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The Chesters hill fort, grassy ramparts and ditches curving across a slope with farmland beyond.
Lothian

The Chesters

One of the best-preserved Iron Age hill forts in Scotland, near Drem in East Lothian, ringed by grassy ramparts more than 2,000 years old.

Welcome

On a gentle hillside near Drem, in the farmland of East Lothian, the grassy rings of the Chesters are one of the best-preserved Iron Age hill forts in Scotland.

It was probably built in the first millennium BC, and people lived here into the centuries when the Romans came north, nearly two thousand years ago.

Walking through its ramparts is like entering a maze. Ring after ring of banks and ditches wrap round the top, rebuilt again and again over the years, and inside are the traces of several round houses. Oddly, the fort sits below a higher ridge, which would have made it hard to defend, so its great walls may have been as much about showing off as keeping enemies out.

This was probably the land of the Votadini, a tribe named by the Greek geographer Ptolemy. Much later, during the Second World War, a lookout on the hill watched over the airfield at Drem, home to Spitfires. It is open all year and free to visit.

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The Daily for 30 October, from Scotland with love. Aerial view of a teal-coloured lochan cupped in a forested hollow, a scree slope rising on one side and autumn-tinged pines ringing the shore.
A short drive awayLuffness New Golf ClubAn Old Tom Morris links of 1894 between Aberlady and Gullane, with small, true greens and a view over Aberlady Bay from the short 16th.6 min by roadSee itLuffness New Golf Club
Before you go

Open all year round, free.

Where
Near Drem, East Lothian.
Age
The first millennium BC.
Entry
Free.

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Where it is

On a low hillside near Drem in East Lothian, EH39 5AZ.

Close byDrem.
  1. Hopetoun MonumentHopetoun MonumentThe tower on the next hills.2 miles 4 min by road
  2. The Brand family's sheep grazing a green field at East Fortune Farm in low autumn sun.The Brand Family LarderThe farm shop at East Fortune Farm in East Lothian, selling the Brand family's own lamb, pork and eggs alongside food from local makers.3 miles as the crow flies
  3. The long glass counter at The Cheese Lady in Haddington, each cheese with its own label, below shelves of bottles and jars.The Cheese Lady3 miles as the crow flies
  4. The front of La Potinière on Main Street in Gullane, a curved grey-painted shopfront with its name in gold letters above the door, lavender and summer flowers in bloom outside.La PotinièreA small, owner-run restaurant on Gullane's Main Street with a short set menu that changes with the seasons, listed in the Michelin Guide.3 miles as the crow flies
  5. Concorde's nose and cockpit on display inside a hangar at Concorde ExperienceNational Museum of FlightThe aircraft at East Fortune.5 miles 12 min by road
  6. Hailes CastleHailes CastleThe castle ruins by the Tyne.7 miles 11 min by road
Directions
White clubhouse with red tiled roof and black-framed windows overlooking grassy linksAttractionsLuffness New Golf Club3.5 miles
A field of sunflowers in full bloom at Balgone under a wide, cloudy sky, with a grass path running along its edge.AttractionsBalgone Estate4.1 miles
Ruined stone walls and towers surround a grass courtyard at Dunbar CastleAttractionsDirleton Castle & Gardens4.5 miles
Timber-clad Archerfield Walled Garden building with plants displayed outside the entranceAttractionsArcherfield Walled Garden4.8 miles
Purple shelves of new books at Night Owl Books in East Linton, with a vase of flowers on the table of books in front.ShoppingNight Owl Books5.2 miles
Curved bunker before the clubhouse on a links golf courseAttractionsMuirfield5.4 miles
Waves lapping a sandy beach lined with distant pine treesAttractionsYellowcraig5.9 miles
The white lighthouse on the grassy rocky top of Fidra island beneath a grey and blue sky.AttractionsFidra Island6.3 miles
Sandstone mansion with domed centre overlooking a wide lawnAttractionsGosford House6.4 miles

Recommend to a friend

Stay nearby

Places to stay near the fort, and when each is next free.

A stone cottage with red pantiled roofs and a gabled dormer sits behind a gravel courtyard, an apple tree in the foreground.Maybell Cottage
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Pittenweem
  • 15 miles from the Chesters
Check datesAn orange leather sofa draped with a sheepskin faces a stone fireplace beneath a timber ceiling, a staircase rising behind.The Old Stable
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Pittenweem
  • 15 miles from the Chesters
Free 31 Oct – 2 NovThe Crow’s Nest, FifeThe Crow’s Nest
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Pittenweem
  • 15 miles from the Chesters
Free 2–5 NovFifies, FifeFifies
  • Sleeps 2
  • In Pittenweem
  • 15 miles from the Chesters
Free 1–3 NovPlaces to stayEvery stay in LothianAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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