Binchester Roman Fort

Northeast England


The ruins of Binchester Roman Fort, or Vinovia as it was originally called, lie 9.6 miles southwest of Durham. First built in wood around AD 80 and refashioned in stone early in the 2nd century, the fort was the largest in County Durham. Excavations show the remains of Dere St, the main high road from York to Hadrian's Wall, and an extraordinarily well-preserved heating system – part of the commandant's private bath suite. It's not served by public transport.

Findings from the site are displayed at the Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Northeast England attractions

1. Escomb Church

1.46 MILES

The stones of the abandoned Binchester Roman Fort were often reused, and Roman inscriptions can be spotted in the walls of the hauntingly beautiful Escomb…

2. Raby Castle

7.74 MILES

Sprawling Raby Castle was a stronghold of the Catholic Neville family until it engaged in ill-judged plotting (the 'Rising of the North') against the…

3. Durham Cathedral

7.84 MILES

Monumental Durham Cathedral is the definitive structure of the Anglo-Norman Romanesque style, a resplendent monument to the country’s ecclesiastical…

4. Durham Castle

7.92 MILES

Built as a standard motte-and-bailey fort in 1072, Durham Castle was the prince bishops' home until 1837, when it became the University of Durham's first…

5. Bowes Museum

13.37 MILES

A monumental chateau half a mile east of the centre contains the lavishly furnished Bowes Museum. Funded by 19th-century industrialist John Bowes, and…

6. Barnard Castle

13.57 MILES

Built on a cliff above the River Tees by Guy de Bailleul and rebuilt around 1150, Barnard Castle was partly dismantled some four centuries later, but its…

7. Beamish Open-Air Museum

14.22 MILES

County Durham's living, breathing, working museum offers an unflinching glimpse into industrial life in the northeast during the 19th and 20th centuries…

8. Angel of the North

16.81 MILES

Nicknamed the Gateshead Flasher, this extraordinary 200-tonne, rust-coloured, winged human frame has loomed over the A1 motorway some 6 miles south of…