The Great British Heritage Pass - worth it?

Coming to England? Read my review of the British Pass - the Great British Heritage Pass - is a good deal or not with this independent guide.

What is the Great British Heritage Pass?

It's a travel pass which allows free entry into many hundreds of the finest country houses, gardens, palaces, castles and historical sites in England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales - the best of British Heritage, in fact. Actually, the only place it isn’t great for is if you’re solely visiting London; in that case you should check out my separate article looking at whether the London Pass is worth the money.

Physically, it's a plastic card that looks a bit like a credit card. You buy it online at the Great British Heritage site before you leave for England.

How much does it cost?

There are different options available, depending on how long you're in the country:

Number of days	Single Adult price	Family Price
4	£45	£99
7	£65	£143
15	£85	£187
30	£115	£253

(The family price is for 2 adults and three children). Check out their website for further details.

 

Ok... so is the British Pass a good deal then?

If you're planning to see a lot of British historical houses, palaces, gardens or castles, then yes. Let's take the 4 day pass first. A prestigious UK historical attraction can cost around £12-15 for an adult to get in, and more than £50 for a family, so if you're planning to see an average of one property a day - or even one property every couple of days - then it is good value. Of course, having one also means you can 'pop in' to places for a short while without feeling you're wasting the admission fee.

If you're planning to spend more time in the UK, on a tour or a longer trip, for example, then the longer versions of the pass are very strong offerings indeed; and the longer pass you buy the better value it becomes. The seven and thirty day passes are really very good value indeed, as are the family passes.

 

But are the sights included in the pass actually worth seeing?

 

Categorically, yes. There are few places in the world that are as crammed with history and culture as the UK, and this pass will get you into pretty much every single historical site you can think of.

It includes Shakespeare's Birthplace in Stratford, Edinburgh Castle, Chatsworth country house and gardens (which was the setting for Mr Darcy's house Pemberley in the BBC movie or TV adaptation of Pride and Prejudice), Leeds Castle (which is actually in Kent, about 200 miles from Leeds), Stonehenge, the Roman Baths in Bath, and Blenheim Palace (the ancestoral home of Winston Churchill and his family), to name but a few.

The reason why I can be so certain that the properties it covers are excellent is because the pass itself is unique. In the UK almost all stately homes, castles and heritage attractions which are open to the public are run by one of four organisations: the National Trust, English Heritage, Cadw (in Wales), and Historic Scotland. The pass lets you into the properties of all these organisations together - nearly 600 in all. In fact, it's such a good deal that they're not allowed to sell the pass to British citizens, only for visitors to the country!

But even leaving aside the well-known and well-loved sites, one of the real strengths of the Great British Heritage Pass is that it allows you to be able to hear about something while you're in England, or drive by a sign to somewhere on the road, and just pop in and have a look without it costing you anything extra. The sheer number of attractions covered make it a great deal.

 

Is there a catch?

Not really! You have to be aware that the days run consecutively, so once you start using the pass, you need to use it for the next four or seven etc days solidly.

The only other thing to consider is to try and mix up periods and places and types of places you go to see - there are plenty of different types of houses and homes on offer in the pass, so don't overdo one period of history or heritage! There's no point coming all this way and seeing wonderful sights only for you to forget them all later because you haven't seen enough variety. Also - particularly if you're in the UK for a week or a couple of weeks - take a break for a while! There is a lot of natural beauty in these islands, as well as wonderful restaurants, shopping and vibrant cities too. Variety is the spice of life.. and makes for a great vacation!

 

What else should I know?

If you want one, the pass should be bought as early as possible to avoid a hefty late-shipping fee or having to pick it up in London!  The pass will only become active on the first day that you use it so buying in advance is the sensible and cheapest option. It also means you don't have to worry about exchange rate fluctuations.

Whenever you buy, make sure you only buy from the official site to make sure you're getting the genuine item.

If you’re buying a pass you’ll also want to organise transport to get to all of these wonderful historic sites and houses – if you want to take the extensive and very able good English rail network then check out the option of getting a Brit Rail pass. If you’re planning to drive once you're here (a wonderful way to see the country - one I'd highly recommend), well I have another page all about how to drive in England and get the best car rental deal!

 

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What do you want to do now?

Learn where to get the best fish and chips in London?

Find out how to get to Central London from Heathrow Airport?

Learn how to get the best deal on currency exchange in London?

Work out how to use the London underground?

Find out if the London Pass is good value?

 

 

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This British Pass guide was updated in late 2010 and is refreshed at least once every six months to make sure it's all wonderful and up to date! Got a question about London? Drop me an email and let me know what you want to know!