Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort image

Arbeia, South Shields Roman Fort

Tourist attraction Museum Historical landmark

One of the Best Places To Visits in South Tyneside


Address

Baring St, South Shields NE33 2BB, United Kingdom

Website

www.arbeiaromanfort.org.uk

Contact

+44 191 277 1409

Rating on Google Maps

4.60 (825 reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Sunday: Closed
  • Monday: 10 am to 5 pm
  • Tuesday: 10 am to 5 pm
  • Wednesday: 10 am to 5 pm
  • Thursday: 10 am to 5 pm
  • Friday: (Good Friday), Closed, Hours might differ
  • Saturday: Closed

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: Roman (41) visit (35) free (34) museum (24) site (21) fort (18) worth (16) interesting (15) small (14) great (13)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Angela W. 6 months ago on Google • 87 reviews
    This a little hidden gem in South Shields. The fantastic work undertaken on the site, the reconstruction of buildings and amounts of finds is wonderful. The reconstruction of the commanding officers house, barracks, herb garden and gate are excellent. The finds in the museum are wonderful from the Roman mail to the broaches and alters. Situated in the heart of South Shields, the site is free to enter. Parking is on street. We made a donation via contactless machine as it’s so worth the visit. The staff on site were very friendly and knowledgable. They advised they still have a least 100 years left to excavate on the site. Would recommend a visit.
    6 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Martin P. 9 months ago on Google • 158 reviews
    Visited this place yesterday and was very surprised how well this place is structured - great archeological site with plenty of history. Nice little gift shop and museum too. Lovely place. Worth to visit. Entry was free.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 stephen j. 10 months ago on Google
    Brilliant place to visit,One of the best Roman reconstructions. Katie was Brilliant today , and couldn't do enough for us both today . Thanks for your excellent customer care .It made our day . Steve and Carole and Willow.
    4 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Richard B. 1 year ago on Google
    Very interesting Roman supply base, right in the middle of a housing estate. The reconstructed barracks and praetorium are a nice addition to the existing remains. Well worth a few hours of your time.
    4 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Stephen L. 10 months ago on Google • 56 reviews
    What a fantastic and interesting place to visit. So many Roman sites are just foundations in the ground but the reconstructed gate house, barracks and commandants house really bring the place to life and as you can walk through them you get a new appreciation of the buildings. Nice museum with found artifacts and models to show the fort though the ages. The bonus is it is free entry, defiantly worth a visit.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 2/5 Mohammed H. 5 months ago on Google • 276 reviews
    These are the ruins of Roman fort that we viewed just from the outside. We decided against viewing against viewing it from the inside for the simple reason that the entrance ticket is priced at £8.50 per person.

  • 5/5 Miles M. 2 years ago on Google
    Really nice to talk to the two staff here who show great enthusiasm for the history of this place. Whilst only the foundations are left here, together with the excellent stone work found in the area, it's enough to create the story of this place. Granaries and Barracks are clearly marked out and the Commanders House has been reconstructed based on a design used across the Roman Empire plus findings on this site. Likewise the Gatehouse is a reconstruction completed in 1988. Great display of Roman silver coins found here in the museum. You can park for free on the roads around here, then if you want, follow a part of the heritage trail through North Marine Park down to Littlehaven Beach and the Pier.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 izwan S. 5 months ago on Google • 150 reviews
    Great experience, loads of knowledge and it is fun too! Totally recommended (free admission) donation highly encourage 😉
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Iryna K. 3 years ago on Google
    Very interesting place to visit while being in the South Shields. Small museum but nice exhibits. Take a time to stop and visit it.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 maria c. 2 years ago on Google
    Fantastic place to visit, free entry. Some excellent reconstructions of one of the gate houses, soldiers barracks and commanders house. Lots of information boards around the site detailing outlines of the ruins that have been excavated. Small museum area to visit with some nice artefacts. It is tucked away as a part of it was built on. Great that this place has now been preserved.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Catherine M. 1 year ago on Google
    Small museum but with important artefacts such as a tombstone to a freed slave woman inscribed in Latin AND Aramaic! Ruins to explore, and the reconstructed Fort, barracks and courtyard are great for children to get an idea of Roman life. Small but good shop, snacks only, no meals. Knowledgeable staff.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Amir B. 7 months ago on Google • 29 reviews
    It’s small museum but very helpful to spend time with family. Small indoor museum and outdoor. You can find something about Romance century. It’s free admission entrance
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Graham E. 2 years ago on Google
    Excellent place to visit, friendly helpful staff, dog friendly with treats and water for the dog. Well presented with a small but informative museum and the reconstructions are really well done and then to top it all it's free entry
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Simon Peter M. 1 year ago on Google
    What a great educational visitor attraction and free of charge too.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Hazel C. 4 years ago on Google
    Free to get in and loads of stuff to see! Probably took us about 3 hours to look round but there's also a cafe on site if you want to have a break at any point! Reconstruction of part of a wall (which you can go up inside, great views!), outlines of many different buildings uncovered through archaeological digs and also a partially reconstructed villa and soldier quarters to give a better idea of scale. Also a small indoor museum with pieces found on the site and more explanations. And the obligatory gift shop of course! Really enjoyed, amazing it's free! They do have a suggested donation of £5 per person but no pressure to do so.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Hanoz D. 5 years ago on Google
    An archaeological wonder right in the middle of South Shields. It has a good museum, walkaround, reconstructed west gate, lovely views of South Shields, North Shields from the West Gate, fun activities for the kids and free parking! The entrance is free too.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Miles W. 9 months ago on Google
    A great place to visit with the family, lots of historical facts and items within the fort, there are also lots of activities within as well as the ancient objects which make the learning all the more fun for young ones. There is no wait at all and all of this day-filling-fun is free, donations encouraged and well worth it to keep the history going. The staff are very friendly and keen to help anyone
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Ross H. 1 year ago on Google
    If you like Roman history, it's great to walk the ground where thousands have trod before. Staff very friendly and knowledgeable. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Joanne O. 2 years ago on Google
    Excellent place. Had such a brilliant time. Well worth a visit
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Joanne K. 4 years ago on Google
    Great place to visit, free entry, gift shop, small coffee shop .like the skeleton when you go in. Don't forget to sniff the boxes on the top floor of the fort, I'll only do that one time .Even better when the events are on for example: re-enactments, archery, lawn games .
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Stew M. 3 years ago on Google
    Not big. Not much left of the fort. You need to use your imagination
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Marcus S. 3 years ago on Google
    (Translated by Google) Fort worth seeing. Partially reconstructed. The museum is small and manageable but you don't have to complain about free entry (donation expected) (Original) Sehenswertes Fort. teilweise rekonstruiert. Das Museum ist klein und überschaubar aber be einen kostenlosen Eintritt braucht man sich nicht zu beschweren (Spende erwartet)
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 David S. 7 months ago on Google • 60 reviews
    I was brought up in South Shields and moved away at 13 years old. So it was a long time between visits returning to Arbeia with 2 of our grand children. The transformation of the site, extra excavations, construction of replica barracks and commanders villa are great. South Shields has a hidden gem of history and is to be applauded for allowing free access.

  • 5/5 Tony W. 2 years ago on Google
    A wonderful interpretation of an important and major Roman military logistics base with sensitive reconstruction of key features that will aid the understanding of many other sites on Hadrian's Wall. Contains an excellent small museum with some very important artefacts from the period of Roman occupation including coins, inscribed tombstones, sword and chain mail remnants that have been remarkably well preserved.

  • 5/5 Amanda G. 1 year ago on Google
    This is the best Roman archaeological site I have ever visited. We have been to lots around the world. The reconstruction work really brings it to life. I could just imagine being there in Roman times. There's no charge for entry either. That is incredible. The staff are really helpful and friendly. I really can't recommend this highly enough.

  • 3/5 jeff f. 3 years ago on Google
    Good place for free few hours out with the family

  • 5/5 Kristy “Captain” R. 2 years ago on Google
    Love it, it’s always a good little place to visit, it’s never too busy, good place to explore, small but takes a hour or so to walk around and see stuff. It’s really cool seeing how things were and imagining how it must of been.

  • 5/5 Chris A. 1 year ago on Google
    One of those places that deserves to be much more well known than it is. What's not to love? Easily accessed next to South Shields Town centre, free parking, free entry, helpful guides & a load of thinfs to see. The site has Roman ruins and reconstructions of what some of those buildings would have looked like with family friendly information boards all round. We finished off with a walk round the museum where we could see some of the artefacts that had been discovered on the site. The whole family loved it, you really should go

  • 5/5 Jodie C. 3 years ago on Google
    Great history to be learned here both for kids and adults alike. Sometimes they have re enactments and events so is worth looking at the website.

  • 5/5 Richard L. 1 year ago on Google
    This Roman fort museum is amazing and it’s location is easy to access with plenty of parking spaces, it’s also free entry, the entrance has lots of exhibits on display even some Roman helmets you and your children can try on, and they even have reproduction Roman coins to buy as souvenirs, well worth a busy if in or around south sheilds 😊😊

  • 5/5 John C. 1 year ago on Google
    World heritage site , with free access ( Donation of £5 is voluntary), dog friendly . Fascinating historical fort with amazing archeological finds

  • 5/5 Rebecca G. 4 years ago on Google
    Really interesting, the gate has loads of fab miniatures inside, and the view from the to.is amazing. The recreated barracks and officer's quarters is fantastic, and the small museum of funds is brilliant.

  • 4/5 Tony H. 1 year ago on Google
    Really interesting place if you like history. Free parking and entry although you can make a small donation. Small museum on site.

  • 5/5 Craig F. 3 years ago on Google
    Really nice reconstructions and gift shop!

  • 5/5 David B. 5 years ago on Google
    Arbeia Roman Fort at South Shields is a fascinating place which will probably stand up to repeated visits, particularly if there is an event there to see. I hadn't read anything about this Roman Fort before going which may have been for the best because I was very pleasantly surprised at how much there was to see and the size of the place. I only knew that there was some ruins found in a housing estate in South Shields and it was free to enter, nothing more. When you arrive there is a visitor centre with a good range of artefacts, exhibits (including a skeleton displayed in the floor!), and even some technology, with two headstones being brought to life (for want of a better phrase) with a short statement purportedly from that person about who they were and what their life was like. I was impressed by the range of books, models/toy helmets and swords, and other things in the gift shop which would be perfect to call in on the way out you want to find out more about the Roman Empire, or any children want a Gladiator-style helmet, sweets, a chilled canned drink from the fridge, or a Horrible Histories book. After that, you go outside to the ruins of the fort, some of which have been rebuilt to 'proper' buildings to give you an even bigger appreciation of life at the thought, whether it's for the common soldier or the Commander. One room has a TV which plays a short film about the history behind the fort, the excavations, and the contributions from two of the people involved in the archaeological dig and have found Roman artefacts make archaeology, in a similar way to something like Time Team, sound very exciting and emotionally rewarding. It's a very strange place because of the location. Unlike most Roman sites, this isn't surrounded by fields or other similar sites, but terraced housing. It's very incongruous but makes you wonder how much of this country was under Roman occupation and the chances of finding potentially priceless historical artefacts in your back garden, a public park, or a field – I guess there's a reason why people (like Lance and Andy in the TV show 'Detectorists') spend so much time outside metal detectors!

  • 4/5 Icy S. 3 years ago on Google
    Great place to visit when all the buildings are open, but I appreciate how they've handled social distancing!

  • 5/5 Adam V. 4 years ago on Google
    We had visited dozens of sites along Hadrian's wall. This was the last in the North. Each site had its own speciality.

  • 4/5 John P. 11 months ago on Google
    A really interesting Roman site. Adding to the extensive remains are a recreated gatehouse plus other buildings that are fascinating. The small museum houses some rare and fascinating finds. And it's all free to visit! Disabled access is good. The only downside is a lack of refreshments. Well worth a visit.

  • 5/5 Matthew L. 1 year ago on Google
    This museum and ruins are absolutely amazing. There are reconstructions of Roman buildings from that period which are convincing and which provide an immersive experience to show what life in Roman times was like. Plenty of information about this fort and the north of England and Hadrian wall in Roman times. Staff were very friendly and informative on the fort. Facilities such as toilets were of good standard. Gift shop was small however, there are a selection of key chains, fridge magnets, books, toys etc. What you would expect. I visited on a slightly rainy weekday and I was the only one there. Entry is free which makes it incredibly worth the visit especially for any locals or tourists. You can make your way round the ruins and museum in under 2 hours while seeing everything. I'd advise 30 minutes minimum for a visit here. I would highly recommend for a free experience where you can view a large Roman fort with reconstructed buildings and an educational experience of the Romans in the local area.

  • 5/5 jacob g. 8 months ago on Google
    Great place! The things to see was great. Lots of information and artifacts. And on top of all that it is free. We just finished walking hadrians wall and it was hard to imagine what it actually looked like. Well this place has the wall fort replicated and gave you a real feel of what it was like.

  • 5/5 Fiona B. 4 years ago on Google
    Very good reconstruction project with lots of attention to detail.

  • 5/5 Mateusz S. 7 months ago on Google • 9 reviews
    Time well spent in the well described and presented remains of the Roman fort from around 3AD. Entry is free. There are toilets on site and a gift shop. There’s lots of information in all parts of the Arbeia. Great experience for big and small people Some free street parking around. Ground is rough all over the place with grass and stones.

  • 5/5 Lorraine M. 6 months ago on Google
    Brilliant place, fascinating to see how things were all those years ago..

  • 3/5 David S. 3 years ago on Google
    Despite Covid restrictions and some parts closed, was canny. Will want to visit again once everything is fully open. Can't really complain when it is free to visit

  • 4/5 Petros The M. 3 years ago on Google
    Roman fortress. (pls. search also : "Segedunum" on the north shields)

  • 5/5 sandra f. 4 years ago on Google
    Fantastic Roman history site

  • 4/5 Barbara C. 3 years ago on Google
    Shame coved 19 restrictions in place you can't go in to the buildings but still worth a visit just have a good look around

  • 4/5 Liam B. 3 years ago on Google
    Very interesting Roman Fort with lots of information and things to explore but parking was a little bit difficult.

  • 5/5 Lee 4 years ago on Google
    Ok

  • 4/5 Angie N. 4 years ago on Google
    Great history trip for the family

  • 3/5 riverboydrew 4. 4 years ago on Google
    Good for a school trip perhaps

  • 5/5 Secret W. 4 years ago on Google
    A interesting place to visit

  • 5/5 Graham A. 4 years ago on Google
    Very interesting

  • 5/5 Chris G. 4 years ago on Google
    Quality historic attraction great for kids to learn too

  • 5/5 xbox m. 4 years ago on Google
    Love the events they have on. Great local resource

  • 4/5 George S. 4 years ago on Google
    After visiting Jarrow Hall, I came across this unknown gem, i always thought south shields was steeped in Viking history not Roman will visit again and learn more about Roman life on the NORTH COAST

  • 5/5 Erik M. 4 years ago on Google
    Well worth a visit!

  • 5/5 Stephen R. 4 years ago on Google
    Absolutely fantastic very dog friendly brilliant for kids and all the family

  • 5/5 john l. 4 years ago on Google
    Very interesting place , good reconstruction as well as original footings

  • 5/5 Rab P. 4 years ago on Google
    Amazing Roman historical site, partly rebuilt and very informative/interesting and has a cafe!

  • 5/5 Kathryn H. 2 years ago on Google
    For something that’s free to visit, you do see a lot. It was great to walk around and visualise what it must have been like as a Roman soldier at the time. I came here by accident as the Roman fort at Wallsend was closed unexpectedly. I’m glad I could get in. The museum exhibits were wonderful. Two downsides were the gift shop was a wee bit small, and the toilet paper in the toilets were small to use, a roll would’ve been better in the ladies. Plenty of benches to sit amongst the site too, I had my lunch here. Would recommend to visit.

  • 5/5 Gillian B. 4 years ago on Google
    Looking for an afternoon or morning out then this is a great little place to step back to Roman times

  • 4/5 Nelli B. 4 years ago on Google
    We spent here for about 1 hour. Nice to look around. You can have a picnic.

  • 4/5 Adrian C. 4 years ago on Google
    Really well maintained attraction with plenty to see and do. Kids really enjoyed it.

  • 4/5 Jojoe C. 4 years ago on Google
    A lovely little piece of history

  • 5/5 Jade M. 4 years ago on Google
    great! loads of stuff and rooms to see. could easily spend a couple of hours here. there is also a very friendly cat :)

  • 4/5 Alan M. 4 years ago on Google
    Great for kids

  • 5/5 DÉBORA S. 4 years ago on Google
    (Translated by Google) Very interesting. (Original) Muito interessante.

  • 5/5 Bill D. 4 years ago on Google
    Very good to see reconstructed buildings as they would have appeared in roman times. Good museum

  • 2/5 wendy h. 4 years ago on Google
    didnt even bother going in you could see the whole thing from the side of the road

  • 5/5 Victoria G. 4 years ago on Google
    When we first approached Arbei we were unsure what to expect. However ftom the moment we entered to when we left we had a very interesting visit. All of the information boards are very interesting and informative. My 7 year okd daughter enjoyed inahining she was a Roman in the fort. An added bonus is that the atteaction is free to enter and you gain a wealth of knowledge. We visited while on a cycle ride but I am sure there is plenty of parking. We did leave wondering where Hadrian's Wall did actually finish ????

  • 5/5 Angela W. 4 years ago on Google
    Spent a lovely morning here with the kids 5 and 2 during the school holidays attending a free craft session. These are normally available each Wednesday of the school holidays so it is worth checking their website before you visit. There are plenty of points of interest if the Roman Empire is of interest to you. A little inexpensive cafe was also open when we visited serving light snacks and refreshments which was a bonus for my hungry chicks. Nice to spend time outdoors plus it's only a five minute walk to the North Marine play park with lovely views over the Little Haven Beach and River Tyne. Definitely worth a visit in the school holidays or when they are hosting events.

  • 5/5 Jna C. 4 years ago on Google
    Superb fort and museum

  • 5/5 rest from l. 4 years ago on Google
    Impressive reconstruction of one of the 4 gates of a roman fort and quite interesting facts about the living and the working of the romans at the time of the hadrians wall. oh.. did I mentioned that entrance is free (but donations are very welcome - and worth it). I love the black cat

  • 5/5 John Paul M. 2 years ago on Google
    For people who like Roman history it's a amazing place to visit a lot of work has gone into the project and there is still a hundred years of excavation to do it's free to visit some of the areas are suitable for wheelchair access but definitely worth a visit


Call +44 191 277 1409 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair-accessible entrance

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