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Old and New Castles, Grodno

The whitewashed Old Castle of Grodno with its red-roofed tower and silver dome on a green hill above the Neman River
Photo: Mike1979 Russia, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

The essentials in 10 seconds

Entry
10–12 BYN per castle, separate tickets
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Hours
Tuesday–Sunday 10:00–18:00, ticket office until 17:30
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Time on site
A typical visit without queueing. In high season add 15–30 minutes.
2 h
With kids
Fine with kids
Closed
Mondays — both castles
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Old Castle
12 BYN adults, 10 students and pensioners, 8 schoolchildren
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
New Castle
10 BYN adults, 9 students and pensioners, 8 schoolchildren
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Children
Under 7 free
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Foreign visitors
No separate foreigner rate on the museum price list
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Paying
BYN only; foreign cards may fail — carry some cash
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Addresses
Old Castle — Zamkovaya St 22; New Castle — Zamkovaya St 20
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Coordinates
53.67680, 23.82410YesGo MapGoogleApple
From Sovetskaya Square
7–10 minutes on foot along Zamkovaya Street

Key facts

1793the last Sejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth met in the New Castle and approved the Second Partition
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)Russian Wikipedia
1795the last king, Stanisław August Poniatowski, signed his abdication in the New Castle
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)Russian Wikipedia
1586King Stefan Batory, who rebuilt the Old Castle as a Renaissance palace, died in Grodno
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)English and Russian Wikipedia
1737–1742the New Castle was built for Augustus III to a design by Dresden architect Carl Friedrich Pöppelmann
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and ArchaeologyRussian Wikipedia (English Wikipedia gives 1734–1751)
6 Nov 2021the Old Castle museum reopened after a major reconstruction
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and ArchaeologyRussian Wikipedia
12th centuryruins of the Lower Church on Castle Hill, built in the local Grodno school of architecture
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)Russian Wikipedia
1678, 1688, 1699general Sejms of the Commonwealth held in the Old Castle
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)English Wikipedia
1944the New Castle burned in the fighting and was rebuilt after the war by architect V. Varaksin
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)Russian Wikipedia
30 Oct 1794Tadeusz Kościuszko held a council of war with insurgent commanders in the New Castle
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)English Wikipedia
1920the museum was founded; it opened to visitors in 1922
2 sourcesGrodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (Museums of Belarus portal)Russian Wikipedia

Grodno castles tickets and opening hours

Both castles open Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00–18:00; the ticket office closes at 17:30. They are two separate exhibitions of the same museum, so you buy two tickets — we found no combined ticket on the price list.

The museum's price list gives the Old Castle at 12 BYN for adults, 10 for students and pensioners and 8 for schoolchildren; the New Castle at 10, 9 and 8 BYN. Under-7s go free, and there is no separate rate for foreigners. Treat these as unofficial: the museum's website would not load for us, so we could only check its price pages through search results.

Guided tours are booked with the museum and priced per group. The museum does not say which languages it offers, so if you want English, a private guide for the whole old town is the safer bet.

How to get to the castles

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on footdestinationStreet view

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On foot

More tips

  1. Start at Sovetskaya Square by the Farny Cathedral. From the railway or bus station it is about 20 minutes on foot along Ozheshko and Sovetskaya streets, or 5–10 minutes by taxi.
  2. From the square walk west along Zamkovaya Street (Castle Street) towards the river.
  3. After 7–10 minutes, about 500 metres, you reach the New Castle at Zamkovaya 20 — look for the gate with sphinxes.
  4. Opposite, a bridge over the old moat leads to the Old Castle at Zamkovaya 22.
  5. Do the Old Castle first — it has the bigger exhibition — then cross back to the New Castle.

Are the Grodno castles worth visiting?

Yes, if you have half a day in Grodno — the Old Castle is the single best introduction to the city. The white tower above the Neman is Grodno's postcard view, and the museum inside covers the city from its 11th-century beginnings. The New Castle is plainer outside, but this is where the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth effectively ended, which matters if you know the region's history.

Short on time? Choose the Old Castle and see the New one from the street. The museum does not say whether labels are in English, so a translation app on your phone or an English-speaking guide is a sensible backup.

A short history of the two castles

The Old Castle sits on the site of Grodno's first fortified settlement. Grand Duke Vytautas rebuilt it in stone with towers, and in the 1580s a Renaissance palace was raised on the walls for King Stefan Batory, who died in Grodno in 1586. Later it hosted Sejms of the Commonwealth, served the Russian army for about 120 years, and passed to the museum in 1924.

The New Castle went up opposite in 1737–1742 as the palace of Augustus III, designed by the Dresden court architect Pöppelmann. The last Sejm of the Commonwealth met here in 1793, and in 1795 King Stanisław August Poniatowski signed his abdication. The palace burned in 1944 and was rebuilt in a simpler style after the war.

The Old Castle's recent reconstruction is controversial — historians questioned how much of it is guesswork — but it reopened as a museum on 6 November 2021, with 16th-century rooms added in 2023.

What to see in the Old Castle

  • The reconstructed rooms of Batory's palace, including a chapel and the royal bath.
  • Archaeology of Castle Hill — finds from the early settlement and medieval Grodno.
  • The ruins of the 12th-century Lower Church, preserved under a protective pavilion.
  • Arms from old arsenals, among them a two-handed sword.
  • The view over the Neman to the Kalozha Church from the edge of the hill.

What to see in the New Castle

  • “New Castle: Events and Fate” — the Sejms, the abdication and the palace itself.
  • “Weapons of Past Centuries” — armour and arms through the ages.
  • Sacred art and “Saved Treasures” — icons, sculpture and church objects from the region.
  • “The Amazing World of Nature” — dioramas and stuffed animals, the kids’ favourite.
  • The courtyard gate with sphinxes and putti, surviving from the 18th century.

Before you go: checklist

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Old Castle or New Castle: which one if you only have time for one

Old Castleyou are hereVytautas’s fortress and Batory’s palaceWhite, with a tower — Grodno’s classic viewArchaeology, local history, 16th-century rooms≈ 12 BYN (verifying)≈ 1 hThe bridge, the view, the ruins
New CastleAugustus III’s 18th-century palacePlain, rebuilt after 1944Sejms, weapons, sacred art, nature≈ 10 BYN (verifying)40–60 minNature dioramas and armour

One castle only? Pick the Old Castle — it is older, more photogenic and tells Grodno's story from the start. The New Castle is worth an extra hour for history buffs or families with children.

Grodno's historic sights compared

Every historic sight in Grodno rated by YesGo. Tap a column heading to sort.

Kalozha Church4630 minFree7 min walk
Farny Cathedral (St Francis Xavier Cathedral)4540 minFree9 min walk
Sovetskaya Street4540 minFree11 min walk
Fire Lookout Tower4520 minFree3 min walk
Bernardine Church4530 minFree8 min walk
Lutheran Church of St John4420 minFree28 min walk
Holy Intercession Cathedral4425 minFree25 min walk
Gilibert Park4340 minFree23 min walk
Jesuit Pharmacy Museum4130 minFree or token fee (unofficial)9 min walk
Old and New Castlesyou are here402 h10–12 BYN per castle, separate tickets—

Old Grodno in half a day

A 12th-century church above the Neman, both castles and the old centre around the Farny Cathedral — all on foot. Add them to your route in one tap — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

  1. Kalozha Church30 min · Free
  2. 7 min walk from the previous stopOld and New Castlesyou are here2 h · 10–12 BYN per castle, separate tickets
  3. 9 min walk from the previous stopFarny Cathedral (St Francis Xavier Cathedral)40 min · Free
  4. 3 min walk from the previous stopJesuit Pharmacy Museum30 min · Free or token fee (unofficial)
  5. 5 min walk from the previous stopSovetskaya Street40 min · Free, open 24/7

5 places · about 4 h 44 min with walks · 24 min on foot in total

Go · my route

Nearby — add to your day

Fire Lookout Tower

Grodno, Belarus

20 min · Free outside; museum by appointment · 3 min walk

Kalozha Church

Grodno, Belarus

30 min · Free · 7 min walk

Bernardine Church

Grodno, Belarus

30 min · Free · 8 min walk

Jesuit Pharmacy Museum

Grodno, Belarus

30 min · Free or token fee (unofficial) · 9 min walk

How to do it right

  • Start with the Kalozha Church, 10 minutes away along the Neman, then walk up to the castles.
  • If you only have time for one, go inside the Old Castle and see the New Castle's sphinx gate from the street.
  • For the postcard photo of the Old Castle, go down to the Neman — from below you see the whole hill with the white palace.
  • Bring a student card — the museum's price list has discounts.
  • Have lunch afterwards on Sovetskaya Street, 10 minutes back along Zamkovaya.

Questions

How much are tickets to the Old and New Castles in Grodno?

Tickets are separate. The museum's price list gives 12 BYN for adults at the Old Castle and 10 BYN at the New Castle, with discounts for students, pensioners and schoolchildren; under-7s are free. Prices are marked as verifying.

What are the castles' opening hours?

Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00–18:00, with the ticket office open until 17:30. Both castles are closed on Mondays.

Is there a combined ticket for both castles?

We found no combined ticket on the museum's price list — buy one at each castle's ticket office.

How long do you need for the Grodno castles?

About an hour for the Old Castle and 40–60 minutes for the New Castle — roughly two hours for both.

How do I get to the castles from the centre?

From Sovetskaya Square by the Farny Cathedral, walk west along Zamkovaya Street for 7–10 minutes. The two castles face each other at its end.

Are the Grodno castles worth visiting?

Yes — the Old Castle is the best introduction to the city, and the New Castle is where the Commonwealth's last Sejm met. Short on time, choose the Old Castle.

Can I pay by card at the castles?

Prices are in BYN. Foreign Visa and Mastercard cards work only with some banks and can be refused, so bring Belarusian rubles from an ATM.

Are there tours in English?

The museum does not list its tour languages. Ask about English when you book with the museum, or hire a private English-speaking guide for the old town.

Is the Grodno Fortress the same as the castles?

No. The fortress is a ring of early-20th-century forts on the outskirts. The Old and New Castles are royal palaces on Castle Hill in the centre.

Have you been? Was it worth your time?

1 — no, 5 — absolutely

Your vote counts towards the YesGo score.

Sources and fact-check

  • Museums of Belarus portal (museum.by): Old Castle and New Castle branches of the Grodno State Museum of History and Archaeology — history, addresses, hours, exhibitions, 30.10.2026
  • Grodno State Museum of History and Archaeology (grodno-museum.by): Old Castle and New Castle price lists, seen through search results, 30.10.2026; announcement of the Old Castle reopening on 6 November 2021
  • English Wikipedia: Old Grodno Castle, New Grodno Castle; Wikidata Q2659535
  • Russian Wikipedia: Old Castle (Grodno), New Castle (Grodno), Grodno State Museum of History and Archaeology
  • Aviasales and ATM Fee Saver — using foreign cards and cash in Belarus
YesGo editorial team · facts checked 30.10.2026 ·
How we checkedHours, the closing day, addresses and exhibitions come from the museum's own branch pages on the state Museums of Belarus portal. The museum's website would not load on the day we checked, from our computer or our server, so the fares come only from its price-list pages as shown in search results and are marked “verifying”; an older 2024 price announcement in the same results shows lower figures. Historical facts are checked against at least two sources. Dates for the New Castle differ — the museum says 1737–1742, English Wikipedia 1734–1751 — so we give the museum's dates and mention the other. Who designed Batory's palace is disputed (Santi Gucci, Scotto of Parma or Josef Roiten), so we name no architect. Card acceptance is marked unofficial.

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