Caernarfon Town Walls & Porth Mawr Tower

About

Don’t overlook Caernarfon’s medieval town walls. Visitors flock here, of course, to see the world-famous fortress. But Caernarfon’s story is not complete without including a chapter on its ring of ancient walls. They were an essential part of King Edward I’s masterplan to create a complete fortress town settled by incomers.

The circuit of walls, studded with eight towers and two gateways, survives almost complete. Extending for almost half-a-mile, the walls threw a security blanket around Edward’s new town. 

The East Gate was the main landward entrance to the medieval borough. This is matched, at the opposite end of the High Street, by the West (or Water) Gate, which could only be approached from the sea in the 13th century. Some of the best-preserved sections of wall can be seen just north of the East Gate, though to get a sense of the original atmosphere of the town take a walk on the quay or along the shady Hole in the Wall Street.

Caernarfon Town Walls - Open all year — during reasonable daylight hours

Can be viewed externally

For safety reasons, access onto the town walls is not currently possible

Porth Mawr Tower - The key can be collected between 10am and 3pm from “Siop Lwsi” (4 Pepper Lane – shop adjacent to the Tower) on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 31 March 2026 until the end of October.