royal yacht britannia san francisco

Drink in tales of San Francisco Irish resistance at this legendary bar

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More than 5,000 miles separate the Bay Area from Dublin and Belfast, but the ghosts of Ireland’s past never feel very far away here.

San Francisco has a long Irish history, dating back to the Gold Rush. City records estimate a third of San Francisco’s workforce was of Irish descent by the 1880s. An Irishman, Jasper O’Farrell, of O’Farrell Street fame, also designed the city grid, meaning that the very fabric of San Francisco is, in effect, Irish.

But history lessons can be a tad dry. They always go down better at the bar of the Dovre Club, washed down by multiple pints of the black stuff served up by bartender Brendon “Elvis” McElhatton, who’s been pulling them there since 1999. I wanted to know if some local shenanigans I’d heard about were authentic Irish history or blarney, so I made my way down there and claimed a stool.

The Dovre Club is steeped in San Francisco Irish folklore. The walls are adorned with newspaper clippings about the bar and its former owner, Patrick “Paddy” Nolan. Hunter S. Thompson is said to have drunk there with journalist Warren Hinckle, a friend of Nolan’s. Photos of Nolan hang alongside Irish memorabilia and a banner reading “Free the H-Block 4.” (More on that later.)  The Guinness is creamy, delicious and served the proper way. One raucous tale I sought to verify had to do with piglets and a posh hotel. As the legend goes, Nolan, a staunch advocate of Irish Northern Aid, a major faction in the movement to unite Ireland into a single nation, was behind a prank that involved backing a truck full of live piglets up to the entrance to the Westin St. Francis and releasing them into the lobby. 

The stunt, it’s said, was in protest of the presence at the hotel of Princess Margaret, Queen Elizabeth’s sister. The pigs referenced a remark allegedly made by the princess during a dinner with Chicago’s mayor in the late 1970s. The rumor that she had denounced the Irish as pigs caused international uproar during a bloody time in Northern Ireland. 

Sadly, I could find no newspaper archive clippings to verify this squealing act of resistance against the British monarchy. Still, Irish protesters did gather outside the Fairmont Hotel on Oct. 22, 1979, where the princess was attending a dinner-dance at the Venetian Room alongside guests such as Bob Hope and Tony Bennett. At least one of the 200 angry Irish protesters brought a live piglet—named Jigs, San Francisco Examiner archives show.

Nolan never had children and died of throat cancer in 1996, leaving his storied Mission District bar to Brian McElhatton, who died of brain cancer in 2008. Elvis is Brian’s younger brother, and probably one of the only men alive who might know the truth about the piglets. But when I asked about them, he simply laughed and said, “That’s classic gossip!”

Potato bombs from the Golden Gate?

Another tale claims that when the late Queen Elizabeth visited San Francisco in the 1980s, Irish protesters stood on the Golden Gate Bridge with a sack of potatoes, hurling them at the royal yacht Britannia from above. 

This one, too, merits a fact-check. For one thing, “it was pig’s blood,” Elvis said. “We’ve got to keep our potatoes. We don’t waste that shit.” 

It also never made it past the plotting stage. Police caught wind of the scheme, but many of the cops, being Irish themselves, refused to intervene, according to Elvis.

The plan never came to fruition, as the Golden Gate Bridge walkways were closed, he said. FBI documents allege there was a plot to kill the queen that involved dropping something off the bridge toward the royal yacht during her 1983 visit. The files name the Dovre Club as a gathering place for Irish Republican Army sympathizers.

A related legend claims Nolan and friends loaded boats with rotting fish and tailed the royal yacht so that seagulls would flock over the Queen’s fancy floater and play havoc with its sophisticated radar systems—or perhaps just cover it in poop. Alas, no newspaper clippings could be found to corroborate this tale either. But news clips do show a tight cordon was enforced by the U.S. Coast Guard to keep private vessels away from the royal yacht. 

I asked Elvis about this tale, too. “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story,” the bartender said after serving me another Guinness.

Rumors of a secret IRA safe house

Dovre Club’s former home, at the corner of what is now the Women’s Building, is rumored to have harbored Irish political prisoners in a secret basement before the club moved to the corner of Valencia and 26th streets in 1998.

The basement exists. I went to see it for myself, guided by the building’s facilities manager, Julio Artiga, who had no idea his storage room may once have been a refuge for IRA members and the like. The bar above is now a day care center, but old metal doors that lead to the street can still be seen from below, as can an ancient-looking washbasin and urinal—what more does a wayward Irish son need below a bar?

I was dying to know whether it really did stash prisoners. But when I asked Elvis about it; the color drained from his otherwise rosy complexion, and he shook his head.

“I’ve already got enough enemies, and I’m not trying to make any more,” he said. 

The legend of the H-Block 4

San Francisco Irish history is forever entwined with the story of the H-Block 4, four prisoners who escaped from Long Kesh, the infamous British prison in Northern Ireland—known as the Maze—in 1983. No tale of Irish San Francisco is complete without mentioning the escapees.

The men found sanctuary in the San Francisco Bay Area; one was extradited, one was deported and two stayed behind. One, Terry Kirby, lives in the East Bay. A phone call to Kirby’s home was answered by a woman with a faint Irish accent who said they weren’t interested in talking about Irish resistance in San Francisco before the phone slammed down.

The youngest of the four, Kevin Arrt, lives in San Francisco. I found an address for him and visited the street, but the door number didn’t exist. One door number up, a man stood outside a house. 

“I’m looking for a man named Kevin,” I asked him. He froze and then spoke back in a Northern Irish accent. “What do you want him for?”

I explained my quest. “I know Kevin, but he doesn’t live on this street. Give me your number, and I’ll have him give you a call.” A phone call from a blocked number came a day later, and Kevin—who was the man I'd met on the street—apologized for his deception. He said my British accent had scared the life out of him, thinking I was an assassin. (Do assassins wear corduroy trousers, too?)

Kevin did not want to comment for this story, stating he’d prefer to stay under the radar after clearing his name in Northern Ireland in 2020. He now wishes to retire in peace and said all the men with direct knowledge of any resistance acts in San Francisco, humorous or otherwise, were likely all dead.

Still, if you want to drink among some real San Francisco Irish history this St. Patrick’s Day, Dovre Club is open from noon until 2 a.m., with corned beef hash served around 3 p.m.

Writer's note: I grew up in Manchester, England, but feel it’s important to say my dad grew up in Roscommon, Ireland, in this very farmhouse , which is about as Irish as you can get. I’m an Irish citizen (thanks, Brexit). And if Ancestry’s DNA test is to be believed, my mother is about 20% Irish, too. Erin go bragh.

Joe Burn can be reached at [email protected]

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When Did Queen Elizabeth II Last Visit San Francisco and the Bay Area?

Queen elizabeth's visit to the bay area included a serenade by tony bennett, a meal at trader vics in emeryville and a dinner at the de young museum with president ronald reagan and the first lady., by kayla galloway • published september 8, 2022 • updated on september 8, 2022 at 11:33 pm.

Queen Elizabeth II , the longest-reigning monarch of Great Britain, died Thursday at the age of 96 after nearly seven decades of leadership and global influence. 

Charles, the queen's son, is now Britain's monarch.

In a statement from Buckingham Palace, King Charles III said the death of Elizabeth is "a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family." 

The Queen last visited California in 1983, making stops across the Bay Area, Sacramento, Southern California and Yosemite National Park. 

Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.

Here’s a look back at the Queen's first and only visit to the Bay Area and Northern California in March of 1983.

Rainbow Appears Over Buckingham Palace Just Before Queen's Death Is Announced

‘The Very Spirit of Great Britain:' World Reacts to Queen Elizabeth II's Death

Queen elizabeth's visit to san francisco.

Queen Elizabeth II arrived at the San Francisco airport on March 2, 1983 with then-First Lady Nancy Reagan. 

She was met by Dianne Feinstein , the mayor of San Francisco at the time. 

In a statement Thursday, Feinstein remembered the Queen's visit fondly.

“I remember well her visit to San Francisco in 1983 when I was mayor. I spent time with the queen at the Davies Symphony Hall and found her to be gracious and kind, a wonderful representative of her nation," the U.S. senator said .

During the Queen's Bay Area visit, she dined with President Ronald Reagan, seen below wearing a silver tiara.

The Queen received a true San Francisco welcome with a performance by singer Tony Bennett, featuring the song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco."

During her trip to San Francisco, the Queen visited at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco . An archival image shows her in the lobby of hotel located on Powell Street in Union Square.

The Queen toured the San Francisco Bay aboard her yacht, the Britannia, seen in a photo below under the Bay Bridge. 

The Queen celebrated President Reagan and the First Lady's 31st wedding anniversary aboard the boat.

Queen Elizabeth's Visit to the Silicon Valley

On March 3, 1983, the Queen visited Stanford University and the Hewlett Packard factory, the technology company based in Palo Alto.

At Stanford Queen Elizabeth dined at the Hoover House with university president Donald Kennedy.

Queen Elizabeth II visited campus on this day in 1983 during a tour of California. #Stanford125 https://t.co/nFhiIPDu3F — Stanford University (@Stanford) March 4, 2016

During a stop in Sacramento, Queen Elizabeth visited Sutter’s Fort for a glimpse into California’s Gold Rush of the 19th century. 

Queen Elizabeth continued her West Coast tour with stops in San Diego, Palm Springs, Los Angeles, Sierra Madre, Duarte, Santa Barbara, Yosemite and Seattle.

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The Royal Yacht Britannia : A History of Queen Elizabeth II’s Favorite Palace

By Lisa Liebman

The christening of The Royal Yacht Britannia serves as a cheeky season opener to  The Crown . Black-and-white Pathé News–style footage shows a soon-to-be-crowned Queen Elizabeth II (Claire Foy) cheered on by shipbuilders as she launches her new 412-foot yacht. “I hope that this brand-new vessel, like your brand-new queen, will prove to be dependable and constant. Capable of weathering any storm,” she says about the royal replacement for the  Victoria and Albert III . By the series’ season finale, set 44 years later, both the sovereign and the floating palace she christened  Britannia will have hit rough seas—the cost of repairing the creaky old vessel and the modern role of the monarchy both in question. Ultimately, the yacht that undertook 968 official voyages all over the world, hosting dignitaries—including 13 US presidents—at receptions and banquets, was dry-docked near Edinburgh, Scotland, where it continues to be a popular tourist attraction. Here are some of the most buoyant facts about the palace the Queen famously said was “the one place where I can truly relax.”

The sun room on the Royal Yacht Britannia as photographed in 1981. 

In a nod to the country’s post-war austerity, Elizabeth scaled back the design of the ship that her father, King George VI, had commissioned just two days before he died. Rather than following the opulent plan laid out by the Scottish firm McInnes Gardner & Partners, she opted for the understated elegance envisioned by architect Sir Hugh Casson, who described “running a lawn mower over the Louis XVIl adornments” in favor of simple white walls, lilac-gray carpeting, and “a bit of gilding in grand places.” Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Phillip, were said to have personally chosen the furniture—much of it, including linens, recycled from the  Victoria and Albert —fabrics (florals, chintz, toile), and paintings. 

Prince Charles and Princess Diana on board the Royal Yacht Britannia as they prepare to depart on their honeymoon cruise in 1981.

As a former Royal Navy Commander, Prince Phillip also saw to the ship’s technical details, and his Bluebottle racing yacht inspired the Britannia ’s navy-hued hull. Outer decks were made of two-inch Burmese teak. The steering wheel was reclaimed from Britannia ’s namesake, King Edward VII’s 1893 racing yacht; a wheelhouse wheel came from George V’s racing yacht; and a gold-and-white binnacle (housing the ship’s compass) was salvaged from King George III’s yacht and installed on the Veranda deck. Fittings from former royal ships were also reused. 

The drawing room on the Royal Yacht Britannia as photographed in 1978. 

The 4,000-ton yacht had a crew of 220 Royal Yachtsmen who lived on board, about 45 household staff, and occasionally a 26-member Royal Marine embarked to entertain dignitaries. The monarch often welcomed guests from the ship’s grand staircase. (Stairs leading from the Veranda to the Royal deck were sometimes transformed into a water slide for the kids.)  Britannia ’s apartments were designed like those of a first-class ocean liner. A 56-seat state dining room, where many of the gifts given to the monarch (a wood-carved shark from Pitcairn Island, a bejeweled gold statue from Bangkok) were displayed, was the scene of formal dinners with guests such as Sir Winston Churchill, Frank Sinatra, Nelson Mandela, and Bill and Hillary Clinton. More intimate gatherings were held in the Queen’s official reception room, a smaller state drawing room with floral upholstered pieces, simple wood tables, an electric fireplace, and a Welmar baby grand piano bolted to the deck—played by everyone from Sir Noël Coward to Princesses Diana and Margaret. The teak-clad sun lounge, with rattan furniture and a toile loveseat, was Elizabeth’s favorite place—where she had her breakfast, afternoon tea, and also enjoyed her favorite Dubonnet and gin cocktails.

The Queen’s sitting room on the Royal Yacht Britannia as photographed in 1981. 

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A ship elevator reserved for royal use moved between the Upper and Shelter Decks. The latter is where four Royal Apartments (bedrooms), including the Queen and Prince Phillip’s connecting compartments, were located. Hers featured florals, his had red accents. Elizabeth’s understated Upper Deck private sitting room, done in pastels and neutrals, served as the office where she conducted state business. Phillip used his sitting room, with its wood desk facing a model of his first command, the HMS Magpie , as his study. Below deck there was a wine cellar, as well as a cargo hold that could carry a barge, speed- and sailboats, plus a royal Range Rover and Rolls-Royce. The yacht could also be converted into a hospital (though it never was).

The Queen shed a tear at the decommissioning ceremony for thye Royal Yacht Britannia.

As depicted in  The Crown, Britannia ’s final official trip was to Hong Kong in 1997, where Prince Charles attended the handover of the territory to China. By then, Prime Minister Tony Blair’s administration was complaining that the £11 million a year needed to keep the boat afloat couldn’t be justified. With Queen Elizabeth, Prince Phillip, and all of their children in attendance,  Britannia was decommissioned at a ceremony in Portsmouth, England on December 11, 1997, with the monarch seen wiping away a tear. The yacht, now docked in Leith, Scotland, is open to the public as a museum and events space. (Prior to their wedding, Princess Anne and Mark Phillips’s daughter Zara Phillips and her fiancé Mike Tindall had a celebration there.) Visitors will note that every clock on board reads 3:01, the exact time the Queen disembarked her beloved  Britannia for the final time on that December day.

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BAY AREA GIVES ELIZABETH A FESTIVE SEND-OFF

• March 6, 1983

Queen Elizabeth II left a soggy dockside celebration in which cookies and Cheerios were served Saturday for a rest in majestic Yosemite National Park, capping a week of dinners, demonstrations and downpours across California.

Caterers dressed in Elizabethan costumes dispensed doughnuts and bowls of cereal to several thousand people who gathered in rain at Pier 50 to say ''cheerio'' to the royal couple.

The send-off included red, white and blue fireworks and a hot air balloon originally scheduled to greet the Queen Thursday. That festive welcome for the royal yacht Britannia was washed out when Pacific storms forced the royal couple to fly rather than to sail to the Bay area.

Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, flew to Castle Air Force Base at Atwater and were taken away by limousine for the remaining 130 miles to the Ahwahnee Hotel at Yosemite, where their sixth-floor suite has a view of Glacier Point, Yosemite Falls and the Royal Arches. 'It's Her R-and-R'

''This is the Queen's, shall we say, down time for the entire visit,'' Sandy Burke, a spokeman for the British consulate in San Francisco, said. ''It's her R-and-R, so to speak.''

For more than a week Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip weathered protests and receptions. They were cheered by thousands, booed by thousands and serenaded by Perry Como, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett.

They mingled with high-ranking politicians, millionaires, athletes, movie stars and high-technology factory workers. They covered at least 1,000 miles in limousines, planes, four-wheel drive vehicles and a Navy bus.

They ran the culinary gamut from delta asparagus and goat cheese to enchiladas and refried beans. The Queen and Prince Philip arrived Feb. 26 at San Diego's Broadway Pier for the Queen's first visit to California. Two days later, in Los Angeles, the Queen thanked the United States for its support last year when the British successfully fought to retake the Falkland Islands from Argentine invaders.

The carefully planned itinerary, scheduled to end Monday when the royal couple depart for Seattle and then Canada, was foiled more than once by volatile weather. Drive Up Winding Road

A fierce storm prevented the royal party from sailing aboard the Britannia, from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara, where the Queen and Prince Philip were driven up a winding, foggy road leading to President Reagan's mountaintop ranch.

The deluge, which touched off a tornado in Los Angeles, forced the royal visitors to abandon plans to sail by yacht from Long Beach to San Francisco.

The rain abated somewhat during their visit to the Bay area, but the protests intensified, following the Queen wherever she went. The royal couple spent Friday in Sacramento. They later returned to San Francisco, where the Queen gave a dinner aboard the Britannia to celebrate the Reagans' 31st wedding anniversary. ---- 3 Agents Are Killed

COULTERVILLE, Calif., March 5 (UPI) - A sheriff's patrol car collided head-on with a carload of Secret Service agents on the route of the Queen's motorcade today, killing three of the agents.

The accident did not involve the royal motorcade, which passed through the area about 30 minutes later, the California Highway Patrol reported.

The Secret Service in Washington said the agents were part of the detail assigned to protect the Queen and Prince Philip, who were spending the weekend at Yosemite National Park, but added the accident ''did not involve the Queen or her motorcade at all.''

The three agents who were killed were identified as George P. Labarge, 41 years old, of Dayton, Ohio; Donald W. Robinson, 38, of Newark; and Donald A. Bejcek, 29, of Chicago.

In a statement released from Air Force One while flying to Washington, Mr. Reagan praised the men and expressed his sympathy to their families. He also telephoned each of the agent's wives.

I visited the Royal Yacht Britannia, the royal family's luxurious private cruise ship known as a 'floating palace.' Take a look inside.

• The Royal Yacht Britannia was the royal family's private yacht from 1953 to 1997.
• The ship is now a museum open to the public in Edinburgh, Scotland.
• The tour shows the Queen's bedroom, state rooms used for entertaining, and crew bunks.

The Royal Yacht Britannia was the royal family's private yacht from 1953 to 1997.

With its many royal family vacations and official tours, the yacht logged over 1 million miles , the equivalent of one trip around the world for each of its 44 years at sea.

The Queen once said that "Britannia is the one place where I can truly relax."

The Labour government decommissioned the ship in 1997 due to its high operation cost of £11 million each year, Reuters reported . That's equivalent to about $23 million today.

At the decommissioning ceremony, the Queen  shed a rare public tear .

The ship has made several appearances in Netflix's "The Crown," including season five .

The yacht is now a museum open to the public in Edinburgh, Scotland.

On a recent trip to Scotland , I booked a ticket for the Royal Yacht Britannia museum, which costs £18.50 ($23) for adults.

The entrance is located inside the Ocean Terminal shopping center in Edinburgh.

Before boarding the yacht, visitors walk through a museum detailing the boat's history and connection to the royal family.

The five-story ship was a royal residence as well as a Royal Navy ship, with a full-time staff of more than 240 royal yachtsmen and officers.

The museum displays photos of the royal family's life aboard the ship, as well as items like crew uniforms.

Then, a walkway with more photos leads to the deck of the boat.

The ship is docked on the water just outside the shopping center.

I listened to the audio tour of the ship on my phone by scanning a QR code.

There were also separate listening devices available.

Each room of the ship had a number that you could type in and press "play" to hear about your surroundings in an array of languages.

The first stop was the bridge, the main control point of the yacht.

In this small space, officers navigated the seas and recorded data in the ship's logbooks.

Outside, the flag deck is the highest point on the ship.

Britannia had three masts, and different flags were used to communicate with other ships on the water.

The admiral's cabin and suite is the most spacious on the ship, aside from the royal apartments.

The admiral's accommodations featured a day room, bedroom, bathroom, and pantry. The sofa and armchairs in the dayroom are over 100 years old and came from the previous royal yacht, Victoria and Albert III.

The royal family often sunbathed, played deck hockey, or swam in a collapsible swimming pool on the Veranda Deck.

Part of the yacht's royal quarters, the deck was also used for receptions and group photos.

Prince Philip occasionally set up his easel on the deck to paint.

Overlooking the Veranda Deck, the Sun Lounge was one of the Queen's favorite rooms on the ship.

Queen Elizabeth would often take her breakfast and afternoon tea in the Sun Lounge.

The Queen's bedroom on the Royal Yacht Britannia featured bed linens that once belonged to Queen Victoria.

The embroidered silk panel above the Queen's bed, commissioned in 1953, cost £450 ($560, or $6,250 in today's money).

Her sheets were embossed with "HM The Queen."

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip had separate bedrooms connected by an adjoining door.

Each room had its own bathroom.

Philip's bedroom featured red linens, and he requested pillowcases without lace trim.

A button next to each of their beds would summon a royal steward.

Across the hall, the Honeymoon Suite was the only room onboard with a double bed.

The double bed was requested by then-Prince Charles when he honeymooned with Princess Diana in 1981.

The room was also used as a nursery when the royal children were young.

The Anteroom served as a recreational space for the officers, off-limits to the rest of the crew.

Officers would spend their time here listening to the radio and playing board games.

The royal family occasionally dined in the adjoining Wardroom.

Britannia's 19 officers ate meals here, accompanied by the Royal Marines Band.

Britannia has three galleys, which are still working kitchens today.

The galleys prepare food for the Royal Deck Tea Room and events hosted on the ship.

The Royal Deck Tea Room offers an extensive menu of soups, sandwiches, scones, and other treats for visitors to the museum.

The royal family once used the space to entertain guests and play deck games.

The state dining room is the largest room on the Royal Yacht Britannia.

Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Nelson Mandela, and many other world leaders dined here with the royal family.

The placement of each utensil was measured with a ruler.

Just off the state dining room, the Queen's sitting room served as her office.

Here, the Queen would meet with her press secretaries and prepare for royal visits.

On the opposite side of the hall, the Duke of Edinburgh had his own sitting room.

Both Philip and Charles used the room as a study. Philip kept a model of his first naval command, the HMS Magpie, above his desk.

The telephones connecting the sitting rooms to each other and their private secretaries' offices are identical to the phones used in Buckingham Palace.

The large Drawing Room and connecting Anteroom could accommodate up to 250 guests.

The Drawing Room featured an electric fireplace and cozy floral furniture. When it wasn't being used as a reception space during formal events, the royal family used it to relax and play games on the card tables.

Petty officers and Royal Marine sergeants kicked back in their living quarters, also known as the mess.

Petty officers would occasionally entertain the Queen and other royal family members here.

The crew bunks weren't as glamorous as the royal apartments.

Each bunk folded up into a seat, and crew members stored their possessions in lockers.

Britannia's NAAFI (Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes) shop sold souvenirs and sweets, as well as essentials like toothpaste.

Diana once bought Prince William a Britannia souvenir shirt from the shop. Today, it sells homemade fudge to museum guests.

The ship's sick bay and operating theater still feature the original furnishings from the 1950s.

The ship's doctor attended to crew members, while the Queen's royal surgeon traveled with her on voyages.

Britannia's laundry room could reach temperatures of 120 degrees Fahrenheit as it washed up to 600 shirts in one day.

The royal family's laundry was done on different days than the crew's laundry.

All of the clocks onboard the Royal Yacht Britannia are stopped at 3:01 p.m.

The clocks are frozen at the  time the Queen stepped off the ship for the last time  during its decommissioning ceremony in December 1997.

The tour concludes in a gift shop full of royal souvenirs.

Amid the Britannia-themed mugs, pens, and aprons, the gift shop also sold replicas of royal jewelry.

There's even a photo-op at the end of the tour where you can practice your royal wave.

The tour was full of surprising facts about royal life and travels, and I couldn't believe that we actually got to see inside Queen Elizabeth's bedroom on the ship. It's definitely worth a visit.

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What Happened To The Royal Yacht Britannia?

By Elise Taylor

The Crown season five begins and ends with the same plot point: The Royal Yacht Britannia. The vessel serves as a – fairly obvious – metaphor in the first episode, where Imelda Staunton’s Queen Elizabeth describes it as “a floating, seagoing version of me.” The problem with her metaphorical marine self? It’s in desperate need of multi-million pound repairs. 

She asks British prime minister John Major, played by Jonny Lee Miller, whether the government might be able to help foot the bill. He, in turn, asks if the royal family might front the cost, given the public pushback they both might receive if such a seemingly extravagant project was approved. In the final episode of the season (a note to the reader: spoilers will follow), Tony Blair and Queen Elizabeth agree to decommission the yacht after Prince Charles’s trip to Hong Kong.

The Crown is known for taking much of its plot material from real-life events. In the case of the Royal Yacht Britannia, though – what really happened to the boat, and how much political controversy did it really cause?

To go back to the beginning, King George VI first commissioned the royal yacht that would become the Britannia in 1952. It was an exciting project, as the previous official boat had belonged to Queen Victoria, and was rarely used. Then, during the early 20th century, England was mostly at war, and making a massive, slow-sailing luxury ship would be a massive security risk in international waters. 

The Royal Yacht Britannia, George decided, should both be an extravagant vessel and a functional one, able to double as a hospital if times of war were to arise again. In 1953, the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth christened the ship with a bottle of wine, as champagne was still seen as too extravagant post-war. In 1954, she set sail for the first time.

The Royal Yacht fulfilled many functions, most of them leisurely. Over the years, the boat hosted four royal honeymoons, including that of Princess Diana and Prince Charles, as well as many family vacations. In 1969, after his investiture as the Prince of Wales, Charles hosted an intimate party on board to celebrate. (Newspapers at the time wrote that he danced with his dear friend Lucia Santa Cruz – the very person who eventually introduced him to Camilla Parker Bowles.)

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It also served as a grandiose mode of transport for many royal visits. In 1959, for example, Britannia sailed to Chicago to celebrate the recently opened St Lawrence seaway in Canada, and President Eisenhower joined her on board. Twenty years later, she sailed to Abu Dhabi for her first official visit to the United Arab Emirates, where she held a grand dinner for Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

And although Queen Elizabeth's reign was not during wartime, the royal yacht did execute a humanitarian mission, as King George VI had always planned for: In 1986, it sailed to Aden to evacuate over 1,000 refugees from the civil war in Yemen.

The New York Times once described the 412-foot Britannia as “an ordinary yacht what Buckingham Palace is to the house next door.” It wasn’t an exaggeration – Britannia was essentially a floating palace. It had a drawing room, a dining room, two sitting rooms, as well as galleys and cabins for all the officers. The stateroom interiors were just as ornate as any other royal estate, while the bedrooms – which all had their own bathrooms and dressing rooms – were designed to feel surprisingly personal. 

“Within the royal apartments, however, the regal elegance gives way to the homey, patched elbow chic of an English country house, with flowered chintz slipcovers, family photographs, and rattan settees, interspersed with the occasional relic of Empire – shark’s teeth from the Solomon Islands here, a golden urn commemorating Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar there,” the New York Times found when it boarded the ship in 1976.

The cost of running Britannia was always an issue. Politicians raised questions about its financial value as far back as 1954, when two MPs lobbied for an investigation on why the yacht’s refurbishment would cost £5.8 million, accusing the royal family of waste and extravagance. A government committee later dismissed the accusations. In 1994, the Conservative government ruled the yacht too costly to refurbish, when repairs came in at a whopping 17 million, but then briefly walked back on their decision a few years later. 

However, when Tony Blair’s Labour government won the election, and the new government once again declined to pay for Britannia. Britannia’s final journey was to far-flung Hong Kong in 1997, as Prince Charles turned over the British colony back to the Chinese at the end of Britain’s 99-year lease. When they finally decommissioned the boat that summer, the queen cried – one of the few times she’s shown emotion in public. The boat had logged over one million nautical miles.

Today, Britannia sits permanently docked in Edinburgh. Visitors can take tours of its grand galleys, or even rent it out for events. Yet, despite its retirement, the concept of the royal yacht lives on: In 2021, Boris Johnson floated the idea of a new boat. However, a mere eight days ago, Rishi Sunak has scrapped the project – showing that, even now, the concept remains a controversial one.

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From the Archives: The queen’s 1983 visit to San Diego drew a crowd

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On Feb. 26, 1983, Queen Elizabeth II stepped off the royal yacht Britannia at the Broadway Pier, becoming the first reigning British monarch to visit the U.S. West Coast.

Britain’s longest-reigning monarch died Sept. 8, 2022 after 70 years on the throne. She was 96.

From The San Diego Union, Saturday, Feb. 26, 1983:

Her Majesty Arrives Today

First visit To California Will Elicit Curtsies, Cheers, Protests

By R.H. Growald, Staff Writer, The San Diego Union

Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Dominions beyond the Sea. Defender of the Faith, a voyager more traveled than Christopher Columbus, Marco Polo and Ferdinand Magellan, mother, grandmother and her people’s human flag, comes to San Diego today.

And the city is bowing, curtsying, whooping—and protesting.

More on Queen Elizabeth's 1983 visit to San Diego

• Pictures from the queen’s visit
• The story from the Evening Tribune
• Queen Elizabeth II and the ‘international incident’ that marked her visit to San Diego

In the San Diego zoo, they washed the elephants feet for the coming of Prince Philip, Elizabeth’s husband. At the Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park, they readied a fanfare for the queen with trumpets, trombones, organ, timpani and, hoping she wouldn’t notice, French and not English horns.

So taken were San Diegans that they created downtown traffic jams from Market to Grape streets Friday simply angling for a look at preparations for the coming of the queen.

At the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Ushi, the sea lion and a mate were made ready to whirl in a tank to show Elizabeth how America studies life below the seas that Britannia the nation used to rule.

Britannia the 412-foot royal yacht, which can be converted into hospital-ship use but now is decorated with golden dishes and flowers from Windsor Castle, this floating palace, this seven-seas advertisement of life at the top, this Love Boat of international relations, will anchor at Broadway Pier today and some of Sunday.

Only a few of America’s eighth city would meet the queen on this, the opening of her tour of the American West coast. The geography of her sightseeing, the weather and security dictate that most San Diegans would find it hard to glimpse the great guest.

Fear that the monarch might be the target of Irish Republican Army bombers or shooters galvanized a bodyguard equal only to that provided a U.S. President. The U.S. Secret Service is conducting a security orchestra including the FBI, Scotland Yard, the royal and U.S. navies, the U.S. coast Guard, San Diego Police and other forces.

Irish groups organizing a noon rally today at New Town Park, near India and G Streets, say they will peacefully protest both the English involvement in Norther Ireland and the millions of dollars being spent by the U.S. and English governments at a time of high unemployment and troubled economies.

The royal schedule begins after breakfast, at 8:45 a.m. when the Britannia enters San Diego Diego Harbor.

The Navy booms a first 21 gun salute from Ballast Pint . U.S. Park Rangers will open Cabrillo Point at 7 a.m.

For a morning bird-watching session (red-tailed hawks were were hoped for) Ranger Larry Beck said he expected 12 people. how many would come for a panoramic view of the queen’s yacht sailing in?

“Oh, from two persons to a million,” he said.

Shelter and Harbor islands offer other perches for queen watchers. A loser view would be at Broadway Pier. But the best spots there are reserved for 3,000 people carrying invitations. Up front is the greeting committee including Gov. George Deukmejian, Presidential counselor Ed Meese, white House Deputy chief of Staff Michael Deaver, Sen. Pete Wilson, Deputy Mayor Bill Cleator.

The queen, a World war II warrior herself, will review U.S. Marine guards, sailors, a Navy band and a flag team waving banners of all 50 states, will offer three fingers to handshakes (a whole hand tends to encourage crushing grips) and will board a U.S. Navy admiral’s barge for a tour of the harbor and its American warships.

This is a symbolic thank you for the military help America gave British forces, which included her naval helicopter pilot son Andrew, during last year’s Anglo-Argentine war over the Falkland Islands.

Before lunch, the queen and Prince Philip will be back aboard the Britannia to host a reception for some 200 British and American reporters and photographers come to chronicle her West Coast tour. some 2,300 journalists showed up in San Diego alone.

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Take a peek inside the luxury yachts starring in Netflix's The Crown

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By Steph Loseby   17 November 2022

Netflix’s royal drama, The Crown has been captivating audiences since 2016 by following the political rivalries and romance of Queen Elizabeth II's reign and the events that shaped the second half of the twentieth century. Taking readers behind the scenes, YachtCharterFleet identifies all the yachts that have featured on the show.

The hit series first premiered on the 4th of November 2016 and has since become one of the most talked about shows in the world, with the fifth instalment of the semi-fictional show currently airing on Netflix.

Each season follows a different moment in Royal history; from the marriage of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip all the way through the Queen’s reign spanning the 20th and 21st century. While fans of The Crown had hoped the series would run until the present day, creator Peter Morgan has confirmed that the up-coming sixth season of the show, taking the royal family into the early 2000s, will be the last in the series.

As viewers reach season five of the drama series, they witness the royals on various voyages onboard luxury superyachts. Viewers may begin to question which yachts are featured on The Crown ? How much do they cost? What do the yachts look like inside? 

We reveal all the details you need to know about the yachts used for filming in The Crown .

Royal Yacht Britannia – Seasons 2 & 5

In season 2 of The Crown, viewers witness the first sighting of the Royal Yacht Britannia when Prince Philip embarks on his solo world tour. This yacht is seen in the hit drama as a replica of the real steam-propelled vessel that spent 44 years in the service of the Royal Family.

Philip’s tour sees him take the Royal Yacht through Bermuda , Tonga , up the Amazon, across Antarctica and to the Melbourne Olympics. From there, Britannia sails back to Bermuda where the 1920s fishing port in New Harbour became the King’s Wharf dock, and the Arabella Hotel golf course acted as Bermuda’s Port Royal course.

For deck scenes on Britannia, the crew traveled to Cape Agulhas in South Africa where the team built a huge fake deck suspended over the sea, providing a suitable backdrop for ocean-going scenes. The sea behind was used for all filming and acted as the Caribbean and the Antarctic Ocean.

The Crown Season 5 begins with a young Queen Elizabeth II launching the Royal Yacht Britannia, a yacht that sailed more than one million nautical miles on 968 state visits around the world. This vessel also served as the platform for several royal honeymoons including Princess Diana and Prince Charles in August 1981.

Launched on 16 April 1953, the Royal Yacht Britannia is 125m (412ft) with a bean width of 16m (55 feet) and boasts 5 opulent deck spaces where guests can relax, rejuvenate and socialize. The Queen chose deep blue for Britannia’s hull, instead of the more traditional black and proudly displays her crest on her bow and stern, but, unlike other vessels, her name is not on the side of the ship.

Inside Yacht Britannia

Although no filming took place on board, the interiors of Royal Yacht Britannia actually featured in season two of the Netflix Royal Drama during the Queen’s tour. The Royal Yacht Britannia team worked closely with Art Director James Wakefield to ensure that every scene set onboard was as precise and accurate as possible. After documenting and photographing, the team then created their very own Royal Yacht, with outstanding attention to detail to bring the same interiors to life.

As you can see in the images above, the Queen’s bedroom, which can be witnessed multiple times on the show during her tour of Britannia, was carefully created with crucial details allowing viewers to really see everything as it once was onboard. An eye-catching detail within the room, dating back to 1953, is an embroidered silk panel above The Queen’s bed which was beautifully replicated for the show.

How much does it cost to rent Royal Yacht Britannia?

Today, Britannia sits permanently docked in Edinburgh where visitors can take tours of its grand galleys or even rent it out for events. The Royal Yacht Britannia can not be rented for charter vacations.

Yacht CHRISTINA O – Series 5

Also starring in the fifth installment of The Crown , the classic yacht CHRISTINA O was selected to represent the yacht ALEXANDER , on which the Royal couple Princess Diana and Charles celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary.

Filmed on the Balearic Island of Mallorca , viewers witness Elizabeth Debicki and Dominic West in their portrayals of Princess Diana and Prince Charles respectively as they recreate their 1991 yacht vacation in Italy .

Inside superyacht CHRISTINA O

Launched in 1943, CHRISTINA O boasts an impressive history having once served in World War 2 as a convoy escort and was then bought for scrap value by the Greek Shipping tycoon, Aristotle Onassis, who spent a further $4 million refurbishing her as a luxury yacht, and went on to host luminary greats such as Paul Getty, Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor around the burgeoning French Riviera in the fifties and sixties.

Her interiors are striking and exquisite, from her stunning gilded spiral staircase to her exclusive piano lounge and bar, CHRISTINA O is home to an abundance of expansive social spaces that are ideal for elegant soirees or pre-dinner aperitifs.

Other highlights onboard include her Six Senses Spa and an exquisite mosaic-tiled pool that can be elevated at the touch of a button to become a dance floor.

How much does it cost to rent CHRISTINA O?

Showcasing decadent Old-World glamor and allure, CHRISTINA O is still one of the largest yachts in the fleet and is available to charter for $647,500 a week. 

This cost includes the incredible five-star service from her highly trained and professional crew of 38.

Superyacht TITANIA – Season 5

Season 5 of The Crown uses the 73m (239ft) superyacht TITANIA as a replica of the elegant Codecasa yacht JONIKAL (renamed BASH) . The yacht provides the perfect backdrop for the iconic scenes of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed, the son of the yacht's former owner, when the couple took a vacation around the French Riviera in 1997, mere days before their tragic deaths in Paris on 31 August.

The Crown filmed onboard superyacht TITANIA on the Balearic island of Mallorca, around the port town of Andratx and recreated the famous shot of Diana alone with her thoughts at the end of the diving board taken in Portofino , Italy,

Inside Yacht TITANIA

Delivered in 2006 and refitted in 2020, she was designed by world-renowned naval architect Espen Øino and offers a timeless and sophisticated appeal, ideal for recreating the iconic scenes in The Crown .

Boasting impeccable interiors, the yacht's open plan layout lends her perfectly to entertaining and her opulent style adds a new level of luxury and excellence to her social areas. Putting the priority on indoor/outdoor living, superyacht TITANIA has everything a discerning traveler could desire on a private yacht charter .

Onboard highlights include an expansive beach club with an extendable swim platform, a beautiful winter garden and a full beam observation lounge. The motor yacht is versatile for a variety of charter party configurations with accommodation up to 12 guests in seven bespoke cabins.

How much does it cost to rent superyacht TITANIA?

It costs a total of €595,000 per week plus expenses to rent out the yacht TITANIA privately.

Interested in one of The Crown's superyachts for rental?

For more details on chartering any of the above yachts, speak to your preferred  charter broker . They can provide you with personalized information and advice concerning your vacation, creating an itinerary that perfectly caters to your individual needs.

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The Royal Yacht Britannia Has a Fascinating History—Here's Everything You Should Know

It doesn't get more majestic than Queen Elizabeth II's yacht.

Seventy years ago, the Britannia began its journey as the royal yacht for Queen Elizabeth II and the Royal Family of the United Kingdom. Over the next 44 years she’d travel more than a million nautical miles and, in all her glamour and old world elegance, served as a residence that welcomed state visits from all over the world and family holidays alike. Then and now, she was and is a majestic symbol of the British Commonwealth and the reign of Queen Elizabeth II .

“Britannia is special for a number of reasons,” Prince Phillip once said. “Almost every previous sovereign has been responsible for building a church, a castle, a palace or just a house. The only comparable structure in the present reign is Britannia. As such she is a splendid example of contemporary British design and technology.”

Although she retired from service in 1997, today the Britannia, one of many of the world's grandest yachts , is docked in Edinburgh, where she is open as a visitors’ attraction and host of private events. Below we give you all the Royal Yacht Britannia facts you might want to know, from who owns the yacht now to why she was decommissioned to how fast she is to how to get tickets to visit. Britannia was, after all, the one place the queen said she could “truly relax,” so why not see why for yourself?

Royal Yacht Britania Facts and History

On February 4, 1952, John Brown & Co shipyard in Clydebank, Scotland, received the order from the Admiralty to build a new Royal Yacht to travel the globe and double as a hospital ship in times of war, according to the royal yacht's website . King George VI passed away two days after, sadly, and so on April 16, 1953, the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II announced the yacht’s new name as the ship was revealed.

"I name this ship Britannia,” she said. “I wish success to her and all who sail in her." Britannia was commissioned into the Royal Navy in January 1954 and by April of that year sailed into her first overseas port: Grand Harbour, Malta.

The queen and The Duke of Edinburgh worked with interior designer Sir Hugh Casson for the ship to serve as both a functional Royal Navy vessel and an elegant royal residence. Queen Elizabeth II selected deep blue for Britannia’s hull, instead of the more traditional black. Its Naval crew included 220 Yachtsmen, 20 officers, and three season officers—plus a Royal Marines Band of 26 men during Royal Tours.

All of them might have had to change uniform up to six times a day, so the laundry service on board worked nonstop. The yacht also engaged in British overseas trade missions known as Sea Days and made an estimated £3 billion for the Exchequer between 1991 and 1995 alone.

The ship’s wheel was taken from King Edward VII’s racing yacht, also named Britannia, according to Boat International , and the 126-meter ship could reach speeds of 22.75 knots, or a seagoing cruising speed of 21 knots, according to Super Yacht Times . Other fun facts: The yacht could produce her own fresh water from sea water, and shouting was forbidden aboard to preserve tranquility, favoring hand signals for Naval orders instead.

Over the next 44 years, the Britannia would sail the equivalent of once around the world for each year, in total visiting 600 ports in 135 countries. Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong-Jones were the first of four couples to honeymoon on the ship in 1960, gifting them all privacy to sail to secluded locations. Prince Charles and Princess Diana followed in 1981 on the Mediterranean as well as Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips before them in 1973 in the Caribbean and Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson in 1986 in the Azores.

For family vacations aboard the ship, games, treasure hunts, plays, and picnics were organized, and on warm days the children could play in an inflatable paddling pool on the Verandah Deck.

In the Sun Lounge, the queen especially enjoyed taking breakfast and afternoon tea with views through large picture windows, a space you can see replicated in the TV show The Crown. Although no filming took place on board the Britannia for the show, researchers ensured scenes aboard it were accurate. In the queen’s bedroom, the resemblance is seen down to the decorative wall light fittings and embroidered silk panel above her bed that had been specially commissioned.

In 1997, the ship was decommissioned after the government decided the costs to refit it would be too great. On its final day in her service that followed a farewell tour around the U.K., the queen openly wept as the Band of HM Royal Marines played "Highland Cathedral."

"Looking back over 44 years we can all reflect with pride and gratitude upon this great ship which has served the country, the Royal Navy and my family with such distinction," Queen Elizabeth II said. All clocks on the ship stopped at 15:01, the exact time the Queen disembarked from the yacht for the final time, and they would remain at that time until the present.

How to Tour the Royal Yacht Britania

Today the yacht is owned by Royal Yacht Britannia Trus t, and all revenue it generates goes to the yacht’s maintenance and preservation. Ticketed entry allows you to step into state rooms like the Sun Lounge, the State Dining Room and State Drawing Room, in addition to the working side of the ship in the Crew’s Quarters, Laundry and gleaming Engine Room. Along the way you will see original artifacts from the shop—95 percent of which is on loan from The Royal Collection.

How to Visit the Royal Britania

You can visit the Britannia any day of the year on Edinburgh’s waterfront. Hours vary by season, and you can find them listed and purchase tickets on the yacht’s website . Private tours are also available, and you can visit the Royal Deck Tearoom, where the Royal Family hosted cocktail parties and receptions, for drinks, meals and scones. Additionally, the Britannia hosts special ticketed events for New Year’s and other occasions, and event spaces can be booked as well.

While you are in Edinburgh, you can also stay on the Fingal , a neighboring yacht-turned-floating-hotel, which is a seven-minute walk from the Britannia, and dine at its Lighthouse Restaurant & Bar, which serves breakfast, afternoon tea, dinner, and cocktails.

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A voyage through the history of the HMY Britannia

Posted: July 19, 2023 | Last updated: October 30, 2023

There's a long tradition of British royal yachts, dating back to 1660 and the reign of Charles II. During 44 years in royal service, Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia , also known as the Royal Yacht Britannia , sailed the equivalent of once round the world for each year, calling at over 600 ports in 135 countries, including the United States of America, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. Britannia was decommissioned in 1997, and has so far not been replaced. But it's worth looking back over the illustrious service performed by the royal yacht.

Click through and be reminded of when Britannia ruled the waves.

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HMY Victoria and Albert III

Britannia 's predecessor, HMY Victoria and Albert III , is pictured at anchor in the Solent off Portsmouth harbor. Built for Queen Victoria , this was the first royal yacht not to be powered by sail. She was decommissioned in 1939.

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Launch of new yacht

The new Royal Yacht Britannia enters the water after her launch on April 16, 1953 by Queen Elizabeth II at John Brown's shipyard on Clydebank, Scotland. The 126-m (413-ft) Britannia was designed with three masts and could reach a seagoing cruising speed of 21 knots.

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Maiden voyage

A crowd gathers to bid the Royal Yacht Britannia farewell upon her departure from Portsmouth, England, on April 14, 1954 on her maiden voyage to Malta. The vessel was ultimately bound for Tobruk, in Libya.

Royal passengers

On board the vessel were Prince Charles and Princess Anne, pictured here before the yacht's departure shaking hands with the Admiral Superintendent of Portsmouth dockyard. The Queen Mother is keeping an eye on the royal youngsters.

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Embarking for the first time

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh embarked on Britannia for the first time in Tobruk on May 1, 1954, at the end of the royal couple's Commonwealth tour. They are pictured with King Idris and other officials.

Welcome home

London crowds gather along the banks of the River Thames to greet Britannia , with the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh aboard, as it passes under Tower Bridge on its way to Westminster on May 15, 1954, at the end of its inaugural voyage.

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Chicago welcome

Chicago's July 1959 royal welcome for the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh was overwhelming. Some 6,000 vessels of all sizes jammed the harbor area to greet Britannia after having sailed the newly opened St. Lawrence Seaway. Queen Elizabeth, the first British monarch to visit Chicago, is pictured being welcomed by Illinois Governor William Straton. US President Dwight D. Eisenhower had been a guest during part of the voyage, having been invited to take part in the opening ceremony of the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Canadian cheer

Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh pass cheering Canadians and Americans during the royal couple's tour of Canada. They were in Windsor, Ontario, with  Britannia and the American city of Detroit in the backdrop.

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Honeymoon cruise

HMY Britannia soon proved her worth as an ideal honeymoon cruise vessel. Princess Margaret and her husband, Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, were the first royal couple to enjoy their honeymoon at sea, in 1960. Their voyage started a tradition where the yacht could access secluded locations away from the world's press to provide just-married British royalty with the privacy they desired.

Britannia down under

Escorted by an armada of small craft, Britannia , bearing Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh, arrives off Sydney Heads during their tour of Australia in 1963. Three escorting destroyers of the Royal Australian Navy follow in her wake.

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NATO review

Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Anne, and Earl Mountbatten on board the Britannia at Spithead on the south coast of England during the Queen's review of the 62 ships of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) fleet. This ceremony formed part of NATO's 20th-anniversary celebrations. 

Model couple

Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh admire a gift received after the monarch opened the new accommodation of Lloyd's Register of Shipping at the society's City of London headquarters. The gift was a silver model replica of the Royal Yacht Britannia .

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Princes on deck

Queen Elizabeth II with her sons Prince Edward, Prince Andrew, and Prince Charles on the deck of the Britannia as they arrive to attend the Olympic Games on July 1, 1976 in Montreal, Canada. Absent is Princess Anne, who was an athlete competing for the British equestrian team at the Summer Olympic Games that year.

Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II

The Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977 marked the 25th anniversary of the monarch's accession to the British throne. Among the series of year-long events was the Silver Jubilee Review of the Fleet at Spithead, off Portsmouth in southern England. Britannia sailed past dozens of Royal Navy vessels anchored in the Solent on June 28, 1977.

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Onboard entertainment

Later in the summer, the Queen and Prince Philip embarked on a Commonwealth visit that first brought them to island nations such as Fiji and Tonga. Pictured is the royal couple receiving and being entertained by Fijian folk and traditional dancers on board  Britannia . The voyage continued later with longer stints in New Zealand and Australia.

Caribbean tour

In October 1977, the Royal Yacht Britannia anchored off Road Harbor during Queen Elizabeth II's visit to the British Virgin Islands as part of her Silver Jubilee tour of the Caribbean.

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Tour of the Gulf States

A six-nation tour of the Gulf States, the first ever by a female Head of State, took place in early 1979. The Queen and Prince Philip flew into the region before setting sail from Kuwait aboard Britannia .

Charles and Diana's honeymoon

The newly-wedded Prince Charles and Diana , Princess of Wales leave Gibraltar on Britannia for their honeymoon cruise, which commenced on July 31, 1981.

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Presidential welcome

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip with US President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy on board Britannica during an official tour of America in 1983. A banquet was held on the vessel on March 4, 1983 to celebrate the Reagan's wedding anniversary.

Dining in style

The Reagan's dined in Britannia 's grand dining room (pictured), which could host up to 56 guests. The dining room was set within the ship's royal apartments and included a lounge, drawing room, and guest bedrooms.

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What's on the menu?

This is the menu for dinner when Queen Elizabeth entertained President Reagan and other dignitaries on the Royal Yacht Britannia during the royal visit to San Francisco, California.

Prince William and Prince Harry

Joining Prince Charles and Princess Diana on their 17-day tour of Italy's sights and cities in April-May 1985 was Prince William and Prince Harry. The family are seen on board Britannia at Venice.

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"Second honeymoon"

Many Italians described the tour as a "second honeymoon" for the royal couple. Meanwhile, cities like Venice certainly provided a beautiful and historic backdrop for HMY Britannia .

Humanitarian role

In January 1986, Queen Elizabeth's luxury yacht rescued over 500 people of nearly 50 different nationalities from war-torn South Yemen and evacuated them to Djibouti. Britannia maneuvered close to a beach east of Aden to pick up civilians caught in the violent unrest after fighting broke out in the wake of a failed coup d'etat, which quickly escalated into civil war.

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Give us a wave

Growing up fast, Prince William and Prince Harry wear baseball-style caps given to them by the crew of the Canadian frigate HMCS Ottawa after they toured the ship that was moored alongside Britannia on the Toronto waterfront. Charles and Diana were in Canada in late October 1991 as part of a royal tour.

D-Day commemorations

June 6, 1994 marked the 50th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy. To mark the historic occasion, Britannia and her royal passengers joined a colorful fleet review off Portsmouth and Gosport, in southern England.

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VIP photograph

The Queen, Heads of State, and their wives aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia for the D-Day 50th anniversary celebrations, US President Bill Clinton among them. Besides hosting politically- and diplomatically-themed functions, Britannia held numerous "Sea Days"— British overseas trade missions to promote business, trade, and industry around the globe.

VIP guests and celebrities

Among the many VIPs who wined and dined onboard Britannia was President Nelson Mandela, pictured here in 1995. Other guests welcomed onboard over the years include Winton Churchill and celebrities such as Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor.

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Final foreign mission

The handover ceremony of Hong Kong on July 1, 1997, which marked the transfer of sovereignty over the territory from the UK to China, was the Royal Yacht's final foreign mission. Britannia had been scheduled for decommissioning.

Time to disembark

Britannia is pictured returning to Portsmouth in November 1997. The vessel would be decommissioned the following month. Thousands of well-wishers lined the shore and gathered at the entrance to the harbor to witness the historic moment as the grand old lady of the seas arrived at the end of her farewell tour of Britain.

Tearful farewell

On December 11, 1997, after 44 years in royal service, Britannia was retired from the seas. The late Queen, normally undemonstrative, was seen wiping away a tear during the decommissioning service, which was also attended by Prince Philip and Prince Charles.

HMY Britannia sailed to Scotland and began a new role as a visitor attraction moored in the historic Port of Leith in Edinburgh.

Still a royal favorite

Britannia still hosts the occasional royal get-together. Pictured on July 29, 2011 are Kate and William arriving for an evening reception onboard the royal yacht to celebrate the impending wedding of Zara Phillips (the eldest granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II) and Mike Tindall.

Popular tourist attraction

Today the Royal Yacht Britannia is one of Scotland's most popular tourist attractions.

Sources: (SuperYacht Times) (Royal Yacht Britannia) (CBC Archives) (The Royal Watcher) (United Press International) (AP News)

See also: All aboard! Vintage photographs of celebrities at sea

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Saw it in San Francisco - Royal Yacht Britannia

• Europe    
• United Kingdom (UK)    
• Scotland    
• Edinburgh    
• Edinburgh - Things to Do    
• Royal Yacht Britannia

Saw it in San Francisco

When I saw the Yacht Britannia birth in San Francisco when QE!! was visiting California to express gratitude for the US support of the Faulklands operation - I always wanted to see what was inside. Great attraction.

Wonderful to hear you were finally able to visit after seeing Britannia in Royal service. Many thanks for your review.

This was such a fascinating snapshot of life on the Britannia, thanks to the informative audio guides, the helpful staff and clever layout of furniture, clothing, food, wine etc. This all gave a unique insight into the role that the Britannia, together with Queen Elizabeth 11 and her family, played globally in the history of the United Kingdom. We would recommend taking tea and scones in the Royal Deck Tea Room where there are great views across the Firth of Forth. We were just in Edinburgh for a few days without transport. However it was easy to reach the Ocean Terminal at Leith where the Britannia lies. We were able to catch either the 11 or 22 which ran about every 10 minutes from Princes Street to the Terminal at a cost of £1,50 each way. The journey took about half an hour.

Thank you for your great review and helpful information for others. We’re delighted with your comments about the helpful staff as everyone is passionate about ensuring our visitors have an exceptional experience. Many thanks for your five-star review.

I have been to Edinburgh many times, but never to The Royal Yacht Britannia. Just take a bus, 22, from Princes St. To the terminal. £1.50 each way and you need the exact fare. The bus stops outside the shopping precinct and the entrance is on the second floor. What. Treat. £12.75 entry and you can Gift Aid. You can also apply for an annual pass. I toured for about two and a half hours, pausing to have tea. Please make time to have tea, it is a lovely experience. The Yacht is part of our history, and it was lovely to see the state rooms and even The Queens private rooms. I would definitely do this again.

A fantastic review – thank you for your wonderful comments and helpful advice for others. We’re delighted you were finally able to visit and had such a great experience. The Tea Room is a lovely treat and as you say, well worth a visit. We look forward to welcoming you back aboard with your Annual Pass!

How friendly and helpful the staff were from the minute you arrive. The phone commentary was brilliant and gave you a comprehensive description and real insight into every room and function aboard the yacht. It certainly wasn't luxurious in any way more like a 1950's time capsule. As you go round staff smartly dressed in tartan, are only too pleased to answer questions, take photos and generally make your visit a pleasure. Royal Deck Tea Room was a bit of a let down when I visited. They were holding interviews in the front part of the tea room so everyone had to use the back. I chose carrot cake but it was dry and tasteless and the icing was just icing. Not what I expected. Cake was £4.75 and coffee £3.60 The gift shop had items to suit all tastes and budgets. Overall I'm pleased I visited and if you gift aid when you but ticket, you can apply for a free annual pass. Website very comprehensive if you want to plan your visit.

Many thanks for your five-star review. It’s great to hear how much you enjoyed exploring Britannia’s five decks with the audio handset. We hope you will apply for your free Annual Pass as this also gives you 15% off in the Gift Shop and Tea Room. I am sorry to hear about your experience in the Royal Deck Tea Room and will ensure your feedback is passed to the Tea Room Manager.

Very good attraction and worth a visit. Suitable for all ages. Allow a few hours for the visit and arrive early before the crowds so that you can look around with ease. Staff couldn't be more friendly and helpful.

Thanks for your lovely comments about our staff – I’ll ensure these are passed on as everyone will be delighted to read them. Many thanks for visiting.

Absolutely loved visiting the Royal Yacht Britannia. Amazing place and piece of history. If you love the royal family like I do, it is a must visit. Take your credit card for the shop!

We’re so pleased you enjoyed discovering Britannia’s fascinating history with the audio handset and our Gift Shop too! Many thanks for visiting and posting your review.

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The History Hit Miscellany of Facts, Figures and Fascinating Finds

• 20th Century

10 Facts About Royal Yacht Britannia

Peta Stamper

28 nov 2022.

The 83rd and last in a long line of royal yachts, HMY Britannia has become one of the most famous ships in the world. Now permanently moored at Edinburgh’s Port of Leith, the floating palace is a visitor attraction welcoming some 300,000 people aboard each year.

For Queen Elizabeth II, Britannia was the ideal residence for state visits and peaceful royal family holidays and honeymoons. For the British public, Britannia was a symbol of Commonwealth. For the 220 naval officers who lived aboard Britannia , and the royal family, the 412-foot-long yacht was home.

Having travelled more than a million nautical miles over 44 years of service to the British Crown, Her Majesty’s beloved boat was decommissioned in 1997. Here are 10 facts about life aboard HMY Britannia.

1. Britannia was launched by Queen Elizabeth II on 16 April 1953 using a bottle of wine, not champagne

Champagne is traditionally smashed against a ship’s hull during launching ceremonies. However, in a post-war climate champagne was seen as too frivolous, so a bottle of Empire wine was used instead.

Britannia launched from the John Brown & Company shipyard in Clydebank, Scotland.

2. Britannia was the 83rd Royal Yacht

King George VI , Elizabeth II’s father, had first commissioned the royal yacht that would become Britannia in 1952. The previous official boat had belonged to Queen Victoria and was rarely used. The tradition of royal yachts had been started by Charles II in 1660.

George decided that the Royal Yacht Britannia should both be a regal vessel as well as a functional one.

3. Britannia had two emergency functions

Britannia was designed to be converted into a hospital ship in time of war, although that function was never used. Additionally, as part of the Cold War plan Operation Candid, in the event of nuclear war the ship would become a refuge off the north-west coast of Scotland for the Queen and Prince Philip.

4. Her maiden voyage was from Portsmouth to Grand Harbour in Malta

She carried Prince Charles and Princess Anne to Malta to meet the Queen and Prince Philip at the end of the royal couple’s Commonwealth tour. The Queen stepped aboard Britannia for the first time in Tobruk on 1 May 1954.

Over the next 43 years, Britannia would transport the Queen, members of the Royal Family and various dignitaries on some 696 foreign visits.

The HMY Britannia on a visit by the Queen to Canada in 1964

Image Credit: Royal Canadian Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

5. Britannia hosted some of the 20th century’s most notable figures

In July 1959, Britannia sailed the newly opened Saint Lawrence Seaway to Chicago where she docked, making the Queen the first British monarch to visit the city. US President Dwight Eisenhower hopped aboard Britannia for part of the journey.

In later years, Presidents Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton would also step aboard. Charles and Diana, the Prince and Princess of Wales, took their honeymoon cruise on Britannia in 1981.

6. The crew were volunteers from the Royal Navy

After 365 days’ service, crew members could be admitted to the Permanent Royal Yacht Service as Royal Yachtsmen (‘Yotties’) and serve until they either chose to leave or were dismissed. As a result, some yachtsmen served on  Britannia  for over 20 years.

The crew also included a detachment of Royal Marines, who would dive underneath the ship each day while moored away from home to check for mines or other threats.

7. All royal children were allocated a ‘Sea Daddy’ on board the ship

The ‘sea daddies’ were primarily tasked with looking after the children and keeping them entertained (games, picnics and water fights) during voyages. They also oversaw the children’s chores, including cleaning the life rafts.

8. There was a ‘Jelly Room’ onboard for the royal children

The yacht had a total of three galley kitchens where Buckingham Palace ‘s chefs prepared meals. Among these galleys was a chilled room called the ‘Jelly Room’ for the sole purpose of storing royal children’s jellied desserts.

9. It cost around £11 million every year to run Britannica

The cost of running Britannia was always an issue. In 1994, another expensive refit for the ageing vessel was proposed. Whether or not to refit or commission a new royal yacht entirely came down to the election result of 1997. With repairs at a proposed cost of £17 million, Tony Blair’s new Labour government were unwilling to commit public funds to replace Britannica.

HMY Britannia in 1997, London

Image Credit: Chris Allen, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

10. All the clocks on board remain stopped at 3:01pm

In December 1997,  Britannia was officially decommissioned. The clocks have been kept at 3:01pm – the exact moment the Queen went ashore for the last time following the ship’s decommissioning ceremony, during which the Queen shed a rare public tear.

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MYNORTHWEST HISTORY

Queen for half a day: Seattle’s royal visit of 1983

Sep 8, 2022, 6:02 AM | Updated: Sep 9, 2022, 6:41 am

Queen Elizabeth walks through admiring crowds on Fifth Avenue in downtown Seattle with Mayor Charles Royer on March 7, 1983; the old Westlake Monorail station is visible in the background. (Courtesy Charles Royer)

(Courtesy Charles Royer)

BY FELIKS BANEL

Reporting live from Seattle's past

On the blustery and rainy evening of March 7, 1983, a series of big and cheery bonfires were lit in public parks along the eastern shores of Puget Sound north of Seattle. The occasion wasn’t a holiday, and it wasn’t some bizarre late winter progressive picnic.

Secret room hidden in the Battery Street Tunnel

The bonfires were Seattle’s unique way of saying farewell to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, as Great Britain’s monarch and her consort left the United States, and cruised north in the 412-foot Royal Yacht Britannia on their way to Victoria, British Columbia .

Andrew Whittaker is the British Consul General , and is based in San Francisco. Whittaker was just a child in England when Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited Seattle, but he’s also a diplomat who knows his history and who does his homework.

“When she came out it was at the invitation of President Ronald Reagan,” Whittaker said by phone from San Francisco last week. “It was her first visit to the West Coast of the United States.”

Whittaker points to billions of dollars of trade between the Evergreen State and the UK, and the nearly 19,000 jobs with UK-based companies here as proof that the long relationship between the Pacific Northwest and Great Britain remains strong.

“It was absolutely brilliant that Her Majesty was able to visit in 1983,” Whittaker said. “And we’re delighted that we’re able to strengthen and continue to build those relationships today.”

Queen’s eventful stop in California

Before making their visit to Washington back in 1983, the Queen and Prince first disembarked from Britannia 10 days earlier in San Diego. It was there that Mayor Bill Cleator caused a stir when he violated royal protocols and placed his hand on the Queen’s back to guide the monarch through the room during a reception.

Cleator was a city councilmember who had only just become acting mayor in January 1983 when the previous mayor Pete Wilson left office early to become a U.S. Senator. His brush with royalty is all that most people in San Diego remember about Cleator, who only served as mayor for a total of an otherwise uneventful five months.

With guidance only from her advance team, the Queen next traveled north to Los Angeles . At city hall, she addressed the city council and Mayor Tom Bradley and worked in a joke about her own voyage and Great Britain’s early claims to the land that eventually became part of the United States.

“This same northward journey along the coast of California was made some 400 years ago by Sir Francis Drake, who claimed this territory as Nova Albion for the first Queen Elizabeth and for the Queen’s successors forever,” the Queen told the elected officials. “I’m happy, though, to give you an immediate assurance, Mr. Mayor, that I have not come here today to press that claim.”

While in California, the royal couple visited with President Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan at their ranch outside of Santa Barbara, and spent time in San Francisco , Silicon Valley and Sacramento. The Queen and Prince also spent a rare two days of rest, with no reporters allowed, at Yosemite National Park.

Another rarity – a tornado – along with unusually rainy and windy weather for the Golden State, wreaked havoc with the royal couple’s original travel plans in California. One casualty of the high winds was a planned cruise in Britannia up the coast from Santa Barbara to San Francisco with Nancy Reagan aboard. It had to be called off.

At a dinner with the Reagans at the de Young Museum in San Francisco near the end of their California visit, the Queen joked, “I knew before we came that we had exported many of our traditions to the United States, but I had not realized that weather was one of them.”

Queen boards a Boeing jet bound for Seattle

Yosemite was the last stop in California. The royal couple flew from nearby Castle Air Force Base to Boeing Field aboard a Boeing 707 that had often served as Air Force One , arriving around 2 p.m. on March 7, 1983.

As sometimes happens, the weather in Seattle when the royals arrived here was nicer – if not necessarily warmer – than it had been in California. The temperature was in the low 50s. It was overcast, but the rain was holding off.

Under those cloudy skies, the Queen’s motorcade headed for the first stop in Seattle: a visit to Children’s Hospital. Then, it was back into the cars for the short drive to Hec Ed Pavilion at the UW for a formal “convocation,” with Governor John Spellman, along with UW faculty, administrators, and a select number of students.

While the Queen had mentioned Francis Drake in her Los Angeles speech, a transcript of her prepared remarks in Seattle shows that she gave shout-outs to Captain Cook for recognizing the economic potential of the Pacific Northwest; to early British fur traders for initiating trade with Asia; and to the diplomats and soldiers who contributed to the peaceful settlement of the Pig War. Know-it-all historians will be disappointed to learn that there was no mention of the decades of conflict between American settlers and the Hudson’s Bay Company , or the 40 years of joint British-American occupation of the Old Oregon Country that ended with the Treaty of 1846 .

After leaving the UW, the royal couple next headed to Seattle Center, where they met up with Seattle Mayor Charley Royer for a public event at the old Flag Plaza just east of what was then called the Seattle Center Coliseum .

“It was a big deal when the Queen came, and everybody wanted to be involved in it,” Royer said recently, recalling that he got more phone calls from people who wanted invitations to events with the Queen than he got from people who wanted college basketball tickets when Seattle hosted the NCAA Final Four.

“This was an even more powerful draw than that great event,” Royer said. “People wanted to see the Queen, and Britannia being here and all that stuff was just great.”

Royer, who served three terms as mayor from 1978 to 1990, also shared photos of the Queen’s visit from his personal archives. The old photos, the former mayor said, tell an important part of the backstory.

“You can tell in both pictures I’ve got my hands locked behind my back, so I can’t possibly touch the Queen,” Royer said, with a chuckle, as recalled the backlash directed at his counterpart in San Diego.

From the Flag Plaza, the Queen, Prince, and mayor walked through the building that’s now called the Armory and across the pedestrian bridge to the Monorail platform. There, they boarded the World’s Fair artifact for the short, somewhat futuristic ride to downtown.

Seattle Mayor Charley Royer hosts the Queen

After disembarking from the old Monorail station at the old Westlake Mall, the royal couple walked north on 5th Avenue with their mayoral escort, and, Charley Royer says, with adoring crowds lining the route. It was just a few blocks from the Monorail station to the Westin Hotel, for a reception sponsored by Governor John Spellman and attended by elected officials, business leaders, and other VIPs from around the region.

When the reception ended in the early evening, the entourage rode by motorcade to Pier 48 where Britannia was waiting. It had cruised up the coast from San Francisco in into Puget Sound and Elliott Bay while the royal couple relaxed at Yosemite.

As the Queen and Prince prepared to depart, Royer and other dignitaries were invited aboard Britannia for a brief farewell. It was then that Royer had a few moments alone with the royal couple and a short conversation with the Queen.

“We went down in their stateroom,” Royer said. “And she gave me a pair of cufflinks and told me I looked like her son” – Prince Charles – Royer said.

As the mayor and the other local dignitaries were saying their goodbyes, a cluster of five local yachts were being prepared to give Britannia and the royal couple an official and very warm sendoff from the choppy waters of Elliott Bay.

Local antique appraiser James Kemp-Slaughter and his late younger brother Michael helped organize the festive armada for Britannia’s farewell.

James, now 70, has been a member for decades of the local chapter of an organization called the English Speaking Union . It’s a social group of mostly anglophiles who get together for cocktail parties and lectures about all things England, and who raise money for scholarships and support Shakespeare education in local schools. They also were pretty darn excited 35 years ago.

The Kemp-Slaughter brothers attended the reception at the Westin, and along with other family members, were officially “presented” to the Queen by Governor Spellman.

“That was quite exciting,” Kemp-Slaughter said.

But then maritime duties called, and the brothers had to hustle down to the waterfront.

Touring the Britannia on Elliott Bay

James and Michael, and about 200 other revelers climbed aboard those five yachts in Elliott Bay and headed out into Puget Sound as Britannia left the dock and pointed its bow north.

“We had cocktail parties on each yacht,” Kemp-Slaughter said. “And we sailed out and escorted the Britannia, which from the smaller yachts down below looked so huge looking up at it.”

And it was Kemp-Slaughter’s late brother who had the idea to have those cheery bonfires burning along the shore, and who, James says, convinced the parks department to actually make it happen.

Meanwhile, the good luck with the weather didn’t last.

“It was one of those very wet nights, it just poured rain,” Kemp-Slaughter said.

“[But it was] a special night.”

The next day, Charley Royer went back to his regular mayoral duties. A few weeks later, an envelope arrived from an old friend who was living in London. Inside were two newspaper clippings from coverage of the royal visit to the West Coast.

On one of those clippings, Royer said, “here was the mayor of San Diego on the front page of the London Times, having pulled off this great gaff of touching the Queen.”

And on the other?

“Here was me on the front page of the London Times with the Queen standing with the driver of the Monorail,” Royer said. “And the caption was, ‘The Queen is riding on a futuristic transportation system in Seattle with an unidentified person.”

“That was my high point,” Royer said, laughing.

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Everything about tourist attractions

Royal Yacht Britannia – tickets, prices, discounts, afternoon tea, what to see

Royal Yacht Britannia used to be Queen Elizabeth’s Palace on Water and is now Scotland’s most popular tourist attraction. 

Known by many names such as Her Majesty’s Yacht Britannia, Queen Elizabeth’s Yacht ,  HMY Britannia, etc., this Yacht was in the Queen’s service for 44 years and sailed more than a million miles worldwide. 

It is a perfect opportunity to see how the British Queen lived when traveling with other Kings and Queens, World leaders, and celebrities. 

This article shares everything you must know before booking your tickets for the Royal Yacht Britannia tour.

Top Royal Yacht Britannia Tickets

# Royal Yacht Britannia tickets # Royal Edinburgh ticket

Table of contents

What to expect at yacht britannia, royal yacht britannia prices, royal edinburgh ticket, where is the royal yacht britannia, royal yacht britannia entrance, royal yacht britannia opening times, are the britannia tours timed, are the royal britannia tours guided, how long does a tour of britannia yacht take, royal britannia discounts, royal yacht britannia audio guide, royal deck tea room timings, 1. the state drawing room, 2. the verandah deck, 3. the sun lounge, 4. the state dining room, the engine room, the laundry, admiral’s cabin.

Here is a quick video on what visitors can expect inside Her Majesty’s Yacht Britannia.

Your Royal Britannia tour starts from the Visitor Centre, on the second floor of Ocean Terminal, where you get the historical background about the Royal Family and Yachtsmen.

You then pick up the audio guide, which is part of the entry ticket, and board Queen Elizabeth’s Yacht and explore five fascinating decks.

Highlights on the Yacht’s Royal side are the Sun Lounge, the State Dining Room, and The Queen’s Bedroom.

On the ship’s operational side, you get to see the Crew’s Quarters, the Engine Room, the laundry, etc.

More than 95% of the exhibits you will see during your tour are original and are taken on loan from The Royal Collection.

If you prefer, you can also visit the Royal Deck Tea Room.

Back to Top

Royal Yacht Britannia tickets

This entry ticket gets you complete access to the Royal ship that’s now berthed in Edinburgh’s historic Port of Leith.

Visitors can explore all five decks at a leisurely pace even as they take in the public and private lives of the British Royal Family.

This ticket also includes the complimentary audio guide. 

Adult ticket (18+ years): 18.50 pounds Child ticket (5 to 17 years): 9.25 Pounds  Family ticket (2 adults and up to 3 children): 50 Pounds Infant ticket (under 5 years): Free entry

This combo is known as the 48-hour Royal Edinburgh Ticket and is a real money saver. 

If you are visiting Edinburgh for the first time, we highly recommend this Royal attractions combo. 

This ticket gets you to access three of the best attractions in the city:

• Royal Yacht Britannia
• Edinburgh Castle
• Palace of Holyroodhouse

And to top it all, you also get unlimited travel for 48 hours on three of Edinburgh’s hop-on-hop-off bus tours. 

Address:  Ocean Terminal, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6JJ, United Kingdom. Get Directions

The Royal Yacht Britannia is berthed in Leith, Edinburgh, just 2 miles from the City Centre.

Britannia’s Visitor Centre is on the second floor of Ocean Terminal, just 15 minutes’ drive from Edinburgh City Centre.

Ocean Terminal is soon going to be  re-branded  as Porta. 

There are many ways to get to the Royal Yacht. 

If you are coming by train, you must get down at  Edinburgh Waverley .

From outside the station, you can take a taxi to cover the 3.7 kms (2.3 miles) to Ocean Terminal. 

From the Waverly station, you can also take bus No. 22 and 34.

You must board the buses at  Princess Street (Stop PN) , and after 24 minutes and 27 stops, get down at  Ocean Terminal (Stop OF) .

There is a bus from the Station, every 15 minutes.

Lothian Bus services  run three buses – Bus No. 11, 22, and 35 – from Edinburgh City Centre to Ocean Terminal. 

You can purchase tickets on the bus by presenting the correct change or from the  Lothian Buses app .

A single journey on a Lothian Bus costs 1.70 Pounds. 

If you use Satnav, use the postcode EH6 6JJ. 

Else, open Google Maps to get  directions to Ocean Terminal .

If you prefer a taxi, we recommend  Uber ,  Central Taxis , or  City Cabs .

Car Parking

Royal Yacht Britannia offers free parking at Ocean Terminal.

Blue Car Park on Level E is closest to the tourist attraction’s Visitor Centre. 

This part of the Park also has spaces for Blue Badge holders. 

If you reach by foot, taxi, or bus, access to Royal Britannia is from the Ocean Terminal Shopping Center’s main entrance on the ground floor. 

You must take a lift to the 2nd floor of Ocean Terminal and walk towards the building’s East end.

You will first spot Debenhams and then HMY Britannia’s Visitor Center entrance.  Even though you can book tickets at the venue (the ticket desk is to the left of the visitor center entrance), it is better to  buy them online , much in advance, to avoid last-minute disappointment. 

During the peak months of April to October, Royal Yacht Britannia opens at 9.30 am, and the last entry is at 4.30 pm. 

The rest of the year, the Royal Yacht opens at 10 am, and the last entry is allowed till 3.30 pm. 

The last admission on 24 December is at 2.30 pm, and on 31 December it is at 3 pm. 

Royal Yacht Britannia is closed on 25 December and 1 January.

Royal Yacht Britannia tour

The Royal Yacht Britannia   tours are a perfect way to feel like a celebrity for a few hours. 

In this section, we share a few things you must know before you book your tour of the Royal ship. 

No, tours of HMY Britannia don’t start at a stipulated time. 

When you book your tickets, you only select the ‘date.’ 

On the day of your visit, reach the Royal ship between their opening hours to start exploring.

Her Majesty’s Yacht doesn’t offer guided tours. 

However, every ticket comes with an audio guide to walk around and tour the ship yourself.

Kids get their own version of the audio guide. 

You need at least two hours to explore Royal Yacht Britannia to satisfaction. 

However, if you plan to visit the Royal Deck Tea Room, you must factor in another 30 to 60 minutes. 

Visits during July and August tend to take longer because of the crowd. 

Kids up to four years get the maximum discounts at Britannia, Edinburgh – they get in for free. 

On the adult ticket price of 17 Pounds, children aged 5 to 17 years get almost 50% discount and pay only 8.75 Pounds.

Seniors who are 60+ and students with valid educational ID cards get a 2 Pound reduction on the full ticket.

People in the Armed Forces (with valid ID) can also claim the reduced price of 8.75 Pounds. 

However, this Armed Forces discount is available only at the Britannia ticket office.

Every Britannia Yacht entry ticket comes with a complimentary audio guide.

While receiving the audio guides at the Handset Desk, you can ask for straps to wear the audio guides around the neck. Headphones are also available.

Kids can opt for the children’s version of the audio guide.

The audio tour is available in 30 languages; English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Russian, Czech, Polish, Hungarian, Korean, Japanese, Urdu, Mandarin, Hindi, Arabic, Thai, Turkish, Cantonese, Punjabi, Portuguese-Brazilian, Welsh, Romanian and Gaelic. 

Besides the audio guide, visitor guides are also available through the tour route to help if you have questions.

Royal Yacht Britannia afternoon tea

The Royal Deck Tea Room is on board Britannia and tables are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

It is a perfect restaurant to enjoy freshly prepared food and stunning views of the harbor. 

The menu includes specialty coffees, cocktails, tasty soups, sandwiches, cakes, scones, etc.  Download Menu

The Royal Deck Tea Room has 35 tables and can seat 133 people.

During the peak months of April to October, the Royal Deck Team Room opens at 11 am, and the last admission is at 3.30 pm. 

January to March: Opens at 11 am, last admission at 3.30 pm

November to December: Opens at 10.30 pm, last admission at 3.45 pm

Royal Yacht Britannia interiors

Many tourists wonder what’s inside the Royal Yacht before they book their tickets. 

Some out of curiosity and some to know if a visit to Royal Yacht Britannia is worth it. 

We list below some of the highlights of this Palace on water. 

State Apartments

The State Apartments are the collection of rooms where the Royals lived or entertained their guests. 

The Royal family relaxed in the State Drawing Room whenever they traveled together. 

It also acted as a reception room for up to 250 guests. 

The Verandah Deck was a private space for the Royals, where they could sunbathe or enjoy quoits or deck hockey. 

This area of the ship also had a collapsible swimming pool for the Royal Family to splash around if they wanted.

The Sun Lounge was one of the Queen’s favorite rooms onboard HMY Brittania. 

The beautiful teak-lined room was a designated family room and offered a lot of privacy from the rest of the ship.

This massive dining room onboard Britannia has played host to the world’s most influential people, such as Nelson Mandela, Sir Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, etc. 

With its white paneled walls adorned with gifts received during State visits, this room represents ultimate luxury. 

The Engine Room is a testament to British marine engineering skills because, until the ship got decommissioned in 1997, everything was working fine. 

This room is full of gleaming brass, chrome, and white enamel with the ‘heavy stuff’ under the hood pumping 12,000 horsepower, which would help Britannia and her four-bladed propellers to a maximum of 22.5 knots.  

Eight men operated the Engine Room, Boiler Room, and associated machinery rooms.

The 240 Officers and Yachtsmen on board Her Majesty’s Yacht Britannia sometimes had to change their uniforms up to six times a day. 

This is why it was the only ship in the Royal Navy to have a laundry service permanently on board. 

The laundry machines, dryers, and steam presses on the ship worked non-stop, and sometimes the temperature even went up to 48 degrees Celcius (118 degrees Fahrenheit)

The Admiral was responsible for Royal Yacht Britannia’s safe functioning and commanded the 19 officers and 220 Yachtsmen who operated the ship.

He worked, entertained, and often ate (he couldn’t join the other officers in their mess unless invited) in the Admiral’s Cabin. Image: Royalyachtbritannia.co.uk  

The Bridge was HMY Britannia’s center of command and control on all her journeys. 

From here, the officers reporting into the Admiral navigated, passed orders, recorded the logbooks, etc.

Back then, all Royal Navy ships had a Navy, Army, and Air Force Institute shop, known as the NAAFI. 

The crew members and the officers would shop for their daily needs, such as toothpaste, shaving creams, magazines, etc. in this shop. 

Sources # Royalyachtbritannia.co.uk # Architecturaldigest.com # Wikipedia.org # Tripadvisor.com The travel specialists at TheBetterVacation.com use only high-quality sources while researching & writing their articles. We make every attempt to keep our content current, reliable and trustworthy .

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This article was researched & written by

Urvashi Goyal

She is a city fanatic who loves exploring different cities, understanding their culture, meeting people, and discovering hidden gems. She likes to holiday in offbeat places that mainstream tourists are yet to discover. When on holiday, she avoids crowded tourist traps. Favourite cities: Bern, Los Angeles, and San Francisco

Edited by Rekha Rajan & fact checked by Jamshed V Rajan

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Step aboard The Royal Yacht Britannia

Explore each of the five decks of The Royal Yacht Britannia, Best UK Attraction (Tripadvisor) and discover what life was like during Royal service on board Queen Elizabeth II's former floating palace. A great day out for all the family at this top attraction in Edinburgh.

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11 - 23 march and 25 - 28 june.

Britannia will be closed 11 - 23 March and 25 - 28 June due to the redevelopment of Ocean Terminal Shopping Centre.

Ticket information, opening times and more.

Buy Tickets

Pre-book your tickets to visit The Royal Yacht Britannia, top attraction in Leith.

Homemade soups, sandwiches and cakes, along with speciality teas and coffees.

Apply for 12 months' free admission after your first visit.

Stay at our luxury floating hotel, Fingal, AA Hotel of the Year Scotland.

Find souvenirs and gifts from Britannia's online Gift Shop.

Visiting Britannia

Due to upcoming construction work at Ocean Terminal Shopping Centre , Britannia will be closed 11 - 23 March and 25-28 June.

Click on the Visit page  for all you need to know before you visit.

Step aboard to enjoy a great day out!

Fingal Hotel

Get away from the everyday aboard Britannia’s sister ship, Fingal.  Extend your visit with a stay in one of Fingal’s luxurious cabins, your own oasis by the sea. 

AA Hotel of the Year Scotland, AA five-star hotel and 2 AA Rosettes

Learn more: fingal.co.uk