💷 Free entry
Belas Knap Long Barrow
Neolithic long barrow above Winchcombe with four ancient burial chambers, free to visit year-round.
✦ We visited
We took the path up from Winchcombe town and it was a proper walk with a real climb, but the children were absorbed by the chambers and the false entrance once we arrived. Pack waterproofs and good walking shoes. The views from the ridge are worth the effort.
Belas Knap is a Neolithic chambered long barrow built around 3800 BC on the ridge of the Cotswold escarpment above Winchcombe. It is one of the best preserved examples of this type of monument in England and is maintained by English Heritage, with free access throughout the year during daylight hours.
The barrow is around 55 metres long and has a distinctive false entrance at the northern end, framed by curved drystone walls. When the monument was excavated in the 1860s, the remains of thirty-one people were found in four separate chambers set into the sides and southern end of the mound. The chambers can still be seen clearly, and children old enough to understand what they are looking at tend to find the scale and age of the place genuinely arresting. The false entrance is a particularly striking feature: a large blocked doorway designed to divert tomb robbers away from the real burial chambers.
Getting to Belas Knap is part of the experience. From the lay-by on the Cotswold Way above Winchcombe, the walk up is just over half a mile and involves a steep climb through woodland and fields, a couple of stiles and a kissing gate. The path is not suitable for pushchairs. From the top, the views across the Cotswold escarpment stretch a long way on a clear day. An alternative approach from Winchcombe town itself is around two miles each way. There are no facilities at the barrow, so bring water and snacks and plan your refreshment stop in Winchcombe afterwards.
Good for: history, outdoors. Ages: 5–7, 8–11, 12+.
Good to know
Is Belas Knap free to visit?
Yes. Belas Knap is maintained by English Heritage and is open at all times during daylight hours with no admission charge.
Can I visit Belas Knap with a pushchair?
No; the path to the barrow involves a steep climb, stiles and a kissing gate. It is not passable with a pushchair. The site is best suited to children who can manage a walk of at least half a mile on rough terrain.
How far is the walk to Belas Knap?
From the lay-by on the Cotswold Way above Winchcombe, the walk is just over half a mile each way. From Winchcombe town itself the route is around two miles each way and includes a steep ascent through fields.
