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Old Royal Naval College - home to the Painted Hall, Greenwich
4.6
122 Ratings
London
Embark on a captivating journey through 600 years of history at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich. Explore stunning architecture, discover fascinating stories, and visit the breathtaking Painted Hall. Don’t miss the chance to uncover the secrets of this iconic filming location!
Duration:
2 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Old Royal Naval College - Don’t miss a visit to the breath-taking Painted Hall (known as the UK’s Sistine Chapel), which took 19 years to Paint, located in the heart of the Old Royal Naval College Grounds in Greenwich. Included is an optional tour of this magnificent 17 acre riverside estate, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Learn of the fascinating 600 year story of this site, formerly Greenwich Palace - the birthplace of Henry VIII. Included in the ticket is admission to the Visitor Centre, the Victorian Skittle Alley (open 12-3pm) and visit the Chapel.
Tours depart from the Visitor Centre hourly throughout the day with expert guides. The stunning architecture means that this has become one of the most popular film locations in the world.
What's Included
- Multi-lingual audio guide of Painted Hall (English, French, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin, German, Japanese)
- Guided Painted Hall talks every 30 minutes from 11am - 4pm
- Entry to the Visitor Centre
- Skittle Alley (open 12pm - 3pm)
- Guided tours of buildings and grounds every hour from 11am - 3pm
Additional Information
The story of Greenwich starts here with 600 years of history. The breathtaking Painted Hall should not be missed - included in the admission is an audio guide in 8 languages (English, French, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin, German, and Japanese + British Sign Language) or take a guided Painted Hall talks which run every 30 minutes from 11am – 4pm.
Tickets also include an optional guided tour of the Buildings and grounds which leaves the visitor centre hourly from 11am - 3pm.
Included is entry to the Visitor Centre (Discover Greenwich Museum), Chapel and the Skittle Alley (usually open from 12-3pm) where you can try your hand at Victorian bowling.
Location
Old Royal Naval College
King William Walk
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(122 Ratings)
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574shaimaas
Jul 26, 2024
Great experience - Worth every penny, especially when I learned our pennies go toward maintaining the place. Greenwich is my favourite area in London. If you're into Tudor history and architecture, this is the place for you. Our guide for the day was Jim (search for the man with a red and white umbrella). He was very knowledgable with a great sense of humour. We learned so much than we expected to about the ancient and modern history of the place as well as surrounding places that we will be visiting very soon.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
X9210fqkarenl
Jul 21, 2024
Wonderful! - Brilliant time in Greenwich today. Superb guide round the painted hall with Andreus who was very knowledgeable and quite charming! The chapel is beautiful. All the staff were extremely helpful. A big well done!!
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Pinksasparilla
Jun 20, 2024
Well worth a visit - Make sure you take the guided tour - The best afternoon spent visiting these iconic buildings in Greenwich - made extra special as we were lucky enough to meet Jim one of the most knowledgeable volunteer guides who treated us to the most in depth and enlightening descriptions of the history and detailed timeline of the site. The painted hall was just breathtaking and really well worth the visit - we could have spent so much more time there and will definitely return - thank you Jim !
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Liz4271
Jun 11, 2024
"private" tour - I don't know if we were just lucky, but we bought tickets in advance for first thing when they opened and our party were the ONLY people in the painted hall. It was such a treat to have such a beautiful room to ourselves. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit here, as well as the other sites in Greenwich. We traveled from London using the Uber boat, which was super easy. I really recommend a visit -- it's a great addition to any London vacation.
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Alleena_w
Jun 10, 2024
Must See - The Painted Hall is a must see if you are going to the Royal Naval College in Greenwich. There is also an excellent chapel that you can see for free as well.
Review provided by Viator
Teresa_c
May 20, 2024
Lovely experience - Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and the Painted Hall, Chapel, and grounds were Absolutely beautiful
Review provided by Viator
Atraveller363
May 12, 2024
From a time of beautiful buildings - The Old Royal Naval College is another masterpiece from Sir Christopher Wren and his assistant Nicholas Hawksmoor. The twin domes just shout Wren and look like 2 mini St. Pauls. A magnificent set of 4 buildings originally intended as a Naval hospital, built on the site of the old Greenwich Palace it still has some of the walls from earlier Royal buildings that are still visible.
About 300 years old, grandiose in the extreme from the outside and the Painted Hall inside just shouts money. I'm not much of an art lover but I couldn't help be impressed, to say it's magnificently painted doesn't do it justice.
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81asta_
May 4, 2024
Wort to visit - The guide Jim was extreemelly pleasant and inventive in his show. We like the tour very much.
And so nice paintings definitelly worth to see!
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Stephen_p
Jul 24, 2024
Interesting trip - It was an interesting trip, there's lots to do around the town as well. After going to the college, we ended up going to the observatory. The observatory was definitely worth it
Review provided by Viator
Tv2451
Jul 14, 2024
Christopher Wren Buildings - Very large site in Greenwich at the pier along the Thames. Old buildings designed by Christopher Wren. Famous for the Painted Hall, which is a must-see for the very grand paintings inside, where Nelson's body rested for viewing at his funeral.
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