Castles, Museums and Squares in St Helier

October 31, 2026

St Helier packs two castles, three museums and a historic square into a small area, and nearly everything is run by Jersey Heritage. Prices are in Jersey pounds, equal to sterling, and the Jersey Heritage Pass costs £52.00 for adults for 7 days and covers the castles and museums below. Check tide times before visiting Elizabeth Castle.

Elizabeth Castle

The castle stands on a tidal islet in St Aubin’s Bay, about 1.1 km from Westpark Slip. Building began in the 1590s under Elizabeth I, and Sir Walter Raleigh named it while he was Governor of Jersey, between 1600 and 1603. It sheltered the future Charles II twice during the Civil War, and German forces added concrete bunkers in the Second World War. The castle was built to replace Mont Orgueil once gunpowder artillery had outdated it.

You reach it by the amphibious ferry from Westpark Slip, which runs at any tide, or on foot over the causeway at low tide only. Allow at least 15 minutes each way and check the Ports of Jersey causeway calculator at ports.je . In 2026 the castle is open from 18 March to 1 November. Entry costs £19.50 for adults, £18.50 for seniors and £11.45 for children and students, and £24.50, £23.50 and £16.45 when the return ferry is included. Children under 6 go free.

Mont Orgueil Castle

Mont Orgueil rises above Gorey Harbour in St Martin, about 25 minutes from town on LibertyBus routes 1 or 1A. It was begun in 1204 and is a medieval concentric fortress with Tudor additions. Opening times are 10:00 to 17:30 daily until 24 October and 10:00 to 16:00 from 25 October to 31 December. Adult tickets cost £19.50. Book a visit with GetYourGuide for St Helier sightseeing or buy directly through Jersey Heritage .

Jersey Museum and the Maritime Museum

The Jersey Museum on the Weighbridge tells the island’s story from Neanderthal hunters at La Cotte de St Brelade to the finance era. It includes a restored 19th-century merchant’s house, an exhibition on the actress Lillie Langtry and the photographic archive of Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore. Charging resumed on 1 July 2026, with adults paying £15.45, seniors £14.45 and children and students £10.25, and the ground floor remains free.

The Maritime Museum on New North Quay holds the Occupation Tapestry, 13 panels in all, depicting life under German occupation. Islanders stitched twelve of them for the 50th anniversary of Liberation in 1995, and a thirteenth was added in 2020. Tickets cost the same as at Jersey Museum, and the Tapestry Gallery alone costs £6.30. Both museums are open daily from 10:00 to 17:00 until 31 October, and from 10:00 to 16:00 from 1 November.

Royal Square

The Royal Square is paved in granite and flanked by the Royal Court and the States building. It has a gilded lead statue of George II from 1751. In the Battle of Jersey on 6 January 1781, Major Francis Peirson was killed while defeating a French force, and musket-ball marks from that day can still be seen in the walls of The Peirson pub.

Opera House and other sights

The Jersey Opera House on Gloucester Street was designed by Adolphus Curry in 1900. It reopened on 3 October 2025 after a long restoration, with 652 seats, and stages drama, opera, dance and pantomime. See Jersey Opera House for what is on.

Fort Regent, the Napoleonic citadel above the town, is closed to the public for redevelopment, with reopening targeted for the end of 2028.

La Hougue Bie in Grouville has a Neolithic passage grave, a 16th-century chapel and a German command bunker. Its exhibitions tell the story of the forced workers brought to the island. It uses the same prices and hours as the museums. The Jersey War Tunnels are covered on the attraction tours page .