Guernsey Museums’ seasonal sites, Fort Grey and the German Naval Signals Headquarters, are preparing to close for the winter following another busy summer season.
The historic sites will welcome visitors for the final time this year on Sunday 1st November. Castle Cornet closed earlier than usual on 6th September to enable the Castle Cornet Bridge restoration project to commence.
Guernsey Museum sites have enjoyed another strong year, continuing the steady growth in visitor numbers seen since the pandemic. By the end of August, almost 66,000 visitors visited the museum sites, representing a 3% increase on the same period last year.
Castle Cornet saw an increase in visitors during the summer months prior to its closure for essential works. The island's most prominent heritage site also hosted a programme of popular events, including the KPMG Castle Nights series, which attracted more than 5,200 attendees, and Twilight Cinema, which sold more than 2,300 tickets, making it one of the most successful cinema seasons to date.
Fort Grey and the German Naval Signals Headquarters have also enjoyed a good season, welcoming thousands of visitors keen to explore Guernsey's maritime and Occupation history.
While the seasonal sites prepare to close for the winter, Guernsey Museum at Candie will remain open until 31st December 2026. Visitors can enjoy the exhibition ‘Brick History: Walk Through History in LEGO® Bricks’, running until 31st December, as well as family Halloween activities including Freaky Friday and Spooky Saturday on 30th and 31st October.
Media Release
‘Brick History: Walk Through History in LEGO® Bricks’, which has been loaned from the talented LEGO® artists at Warren Elsmore Ltd., has toured nationally and internationally. Visitors young and old will be fascinated by intricate models of all sizes from individual figures all the way up to giant constructions, representing Exploration and Discovery, Transport, Equality, Conflict, and the Arts. The exhibition is a fun, colourful and engaging way for visitors to learn about key moments from thousands of years of human history.
The Noon Day Gun will also be fired on Remembrance Sunday and Armistice Day as usual this year, despite the Castle being closed to the public.
Helen Glencross, Head of Culture and Heritage Services, said:
“As of this weekend, we are delighted to have welcomed almost 75,000 visitors across our museum sites, continuing the steady growth we have seen in recent years and demonstrating the strong appeal of Guernsey's heritage offer.
“It has been fantastic to see such strong support for our events programme, alongside the many exhibitions and family activities offered throughout the season.
“I would like to thank our staff, partners and visitors for helping to make this such a successful year. Although our seasonal sites are preparing to close, there is still plenty to enjoy at Guernsey Museum at Candie over the coming months, including our exciting new LEGO® exhibition and Halloween events.”