HMS Belfast

A good day out by the Thames with lots to see and learn about. You can wander about the boat and get a feel for what life on-board a ship might be like as you climb up and down numerous ladders onto different decks and see the different departments.

The weather was miserable but most of it is undercover so it didn't dampen our spirits we still had fun!

great experience

The last time we went to London we made a visit at HMS Belfast. It is really impressive since nothing similar exists in germany. The guns in the front are targeting to the Royal Air Force Museum in Collindale, in the outskirts of London.

HMS Belfast had a challenging brief: entertain and amuse an energetic 12 year old with a short attention span. No problem.

It's a lot bigger inside than I realised and a complete maze, keeping us wandering for a couple of hours. We had a lot of fun climbing up and down and around things, and it didn't feel too museum-y at all. You can touch and explore happily, with no stuffy museum guards telling you off, which was great. Plaques with information were discrete enough to feel like you were just exploring the boat, if that's what you wanted to do, but the free audio guide seemed pretty good if you wanted to learn things too.

We ate lunch in the cafe, which was pricey and really slow as hot food had to be warmed up in a microwave. That was ok if you got to the counter before anyone else, but if someone got in just ahead of you it meant a 20 minute wait before your sausage and mash were ready. Annoying. But at least the menu was varied and my tomato soup really was excellent.

After lunch, the 12 year old was impressed enough to want to go around the ship again. And that's rare. All in all, a good trip out (probably stretching it to say a full day though).

Hooray, HMS Belfast has now been repainted outside. I did feel very embarrassed at this neglect of such an important part of our heritage. Well done for getting it right in the end, but please make better budgeting arrangements for next time- thank you.

Fascinating representation of how a ship used to be, dissapointed in April at the large areas closed or bare due to planned refurbishments but those areas open and fully furnished are very interesting. Catch them on a day with Radio enthusiasts in the radio rooms for a more hands on and personal experience.

If they offer you a map take it! The ship is like a warren, esp as part of the current refurb has included a rearranging of the tour points so the audio tours are not always in the correct order currently.

We visited HMS Belfast during the summer holidays with 2 children -girl aged 10 and boy aged 6. I have to admit to being somewhat disappointed when my husband announced our destination but what a surprise - we had a really great time and ended up spending about 4.5 hours aboard (We do have a reputaion for taking our time in places!).
The welcome was very warm with a really good children’s trail for both on the ship and activities to do afterwards. The map and directions around the ship were a little confusing but there were plenty of helpful staff around to guide us and answer questions. The free audio guides were a great success with the children. The highlight for me was the engine rooms where you can get a real feel for the power of the machinery and cramped conditions for the crew. My son enjoyed sitting in the captains chair and getting to grips with the huge anchor chains.
My daughter is very sensitive to 'war things’ and was worried that she’d find it difficult but apart from the exhibition that us girls skimmed through, and the representation of the sailors quarters complete with manekins and hammocks - she enjoyed the experience far more than she had expected.
We didn’t try the cafe but had a picnic on the deck, watching boats on the river and admiring the other buildings. I left with the feeling that a lot of thought and affection has gone into the showing of the HMS Belfast and it deserves to succeed as a tourist attraction. A really good day.

Situated in the middle of the Thames is the HMS Belfast. The ship has been turned into a floating museum, you can explore the whole of the ship and you are allowed to wander around as you please. There are ladders to climb, there is an exhibition of how the crew would have lived showing hammocks and cramped living areas. We even got to sit in the captain’s chair.
The staff were great and even though they were about to close they let us continue exploring up to the top level.
Visiting the ship took much longer than we expected and was a great day out. I expect it would be a great thing to do as a family, however it was also really good fun for me & my boyfriend!

I enjoyed my visit to HMS Belfast - it’s a large WW11 cruiser near London Bridge on the River Thames. There is a lot to look at and you really get a feel for what life was like for the men who lived and worked on board. One word of warning, there are lots of ladder stairs to climb as you make your way around the boat, so I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re unsteady on your feet or have very small children and make sure you wear sensible shoes!

HMS Belfast a former WW2 cruiser who fired the first salvo on D Day is now a permanent museum moored on the Thames close to Tower Bridge.

I always find myself going back whenever in London, you can easily spend about 4 hours looking around the ship. You get to see everything as it was in 1945.

A favourite with visitors is the dentists drill ! Ouch!

It can get a very tight squeeze along some sections so you have to mind your head. You can go into the engine rooms as well and see how this beauty was powered. You can get an idea of the power of a cruiser when you walk into the main gun battery at the front. As the informative video inside explains guns fired here could reach Watford!

There is a cafe inside for the peckish although it is a little pricey in my opinion.

The entrance fee is around £10 for Adults, Children £5

The HMS Belfast is a WWII cruiser moored in the Thames near London bridge and is well worth a nosey one afternoon. It's a £10 admission fee and you can spend more than 3 hours there looking over the exibihitions and clambering up and down on the different decks.
They have recreated some rooms in the ship to show you what it would have looked like - complete with the men! It is a bit spooky and it is like being in a time warp. It even smells authentic.
There is a certain way to go, a marked way, I suppose its to get everything in and to have people going all the same way when its busy, but I didn't notice this until I had made my own way around half of the ship, so not sure whether it matters.
The exhibitions and displays are very informative, but there is alot to read and look at, so I think you have to pick and choose what parts of its history you are interested in.
So watch your step and your head and wear comfortable shoes as there is alot to walk around.