Shepton Mallet Prison: Historic Jail Experience

Discover the captivating history of Shepton Mallet Prison on a self-guided tour. Immerse yourself in over 400 years of prison life and experience a world-class tourism adventure.

Duration: 5 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Shepton Mallet Prison - If you’re looking for a day out with a difference, you’re in the right place. Explore the whole prison at your leisure, take photos and CELLfies as you soak up the atmosphere of this amazing 400-year-old prison. An ideal day out for families with young children who would like to investigate at their own pace.
    You will be…
What's Included
  • All fees and taxes included
Additional Information

Shepton Mallet Prison delivers a quintessential tourism encounter that enlightens individuals by providing an educational and engaging trip into its incarcerating confines. Our objective is to uphold, safeguard, and highlight the historical and cultural significance of Shepton Mallet Prison, thereby illuminating the prison lifestyle from the Jacobean…

Location
Shepton Mallet Prison
Frithfield Lane
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(490 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Lisaiw2423ak
Mar 16, 2026
Amazing. Will be back. - Fantastic day. Admission fee was well worth the money. It was a full day out 11.00 til 15.30. Plenty see lots of history. Two options to get around - guided tour and free roam. We chose free roam and enjoyed getting lost many times. You can come and go as you please throughout the day, not restricted to only one entry. Go out for lunch, come back, leave again and come back. Staff were amazing, friendly and helpful. Good family day out.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Amandaow6813fy
Mar 2, 2026
Guided tour Shepton Mallet Prison - A very interesting place with an informative tour , thought provoking. Well worth a visit.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lbearbath
Mar 1, 2026
A fascinating mix of old and new - A really interesting experience. The prison was much bigger than I expected. As it is an old prison, but one which has been in operation until relatively recently, it was an intriguing mix of old and new. Staff were super friendly and the cake in the cafe delicious. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Anthonyfl4123gn
Feb 26, 2026
Shepton Mallet prison - Well worth a visit everything you expect from a prison and more. A true i site to prison and hove you wouldn’t want to be there.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Q7022zsrebeccae
Feb 20, 2026
Great place to visit - Loved it. It was interesting and fascinating. Its massive and a piece of history. I would next time do the guided tour to gain more knowledge. The kids enjoyed it and liked the fact you could go into the cells.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jackie2715
Feb 20, 2026
Absolutely Amazing Day - I took my my 3 grandchildren, we enjoyed the whole day ,in fact we haven’t stopped talking about it , well worth a visit, each member of staff are friendly and helpful, absolutely amazing day, couldnt fault it at all
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laura
Feb 20, 2026
Fab morning out! - Really great morning out! Very informative, and plenty of space to look around! My 2 teen boys loved it- and it was great fun.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Londonstrotter
Feb 17, 2026
Half Term family fun! - A great day out for children- generously letting children go free during half term. Gave me an opportunity to show the children real social history. Highly recommended if youre ever in somerset.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Fiona210864
Mar 12, 2026
Tour of Shepton Mallet Prison - An interesting tour at our own pace. We did not go on a guided tour. Apart from a group of school children we were the only visitors and so able to read all the information without any difficulty. A helpful map to guide you around the different areas, ensured we didn't miss anything. Friendly staff at reception to welcome us.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Donnai916
Feb 18, 2026
A day out for any age. - We enjoyed our visit to Shepton Mallet prison, we often struggle to find affordable things to do that please all ages of our children (6,13&15), either somethings to young for the teens or too old for our youngest, we were also worried they’d get bored. However, we all found it interesting, I haven’t seen my children explore somewhere in such a long time & it was something different to bowling or the cinema. The staff are all really helpful and it wasn’t overcrowded, nothing was pushed onto us like buying the tour guide book etc. The fact that children go free during the half term was a bonus. The only thing we would have changed if we could was outside the entrance gates is one disabled parking space and we had to ask members of the public where we could park, my partner is disabled and when walking back to the prison to enter, the car parked in the disabled space didn’t have a blue badge displayed, neither did the different car as we left about 2/2.5 hours later! More disabled parking would be beneficial for those who struggle with mobility. Other than that we had a lovely day out and I’ve even had a friend book to come at the weekend from hearing about our experience ☺️
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $20
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).