Royal Yacht Britannia is the now decommissioned yacht of Queen Elizabeth II. It is permanently moored at the Ocean Terminal, Leith in Edinburgh. We got a chance to walk in the royal footsteps aboard the HMY Britannia on our recent visit to Scotland and it was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. The chance to explore this 126 meter royal home on the sea was too exciting to pass up and we were not disappointed by the glimpse into the royal life.
HMY Britannia Tour:
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Royal Yacht Britannia: Getting There
If you’re driving, you’ll be happy to know that there is free parking at the mall. You can take a taxi which would be an expensive option and will cost you about £12 so wouldn’t recommend that. The better option is to take the Bus number 22 which goes from the center to the Ocean Terminal in less than 25 minutes and costs £1.60.
We went via the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus as it was one of the stops on the route and that is what l recommend as you can also see other famous attractions, thereby getting a bang for your buck. Once you get to the terminal, you are a bit surprised as you don’t see the yacht. It’s behind the mall! and is actually only accessible from there inside :-). Very enterprising of them actually.
There’s not really much to do or see in Leith apart from the Britannia. They therefore built the mall and attached the yacht to it so you have no choice but to window shop as you make your way to the top floor. It worked, we did a bit of shopping on our way out. There are also nice restaurants and cafes with the most awesome view of the sea, so we had a bit of lunch before setting off on our little discovery.
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History of the HMY Britannia:
The Royal Yacht Britannia is also known as the HMY Britannia. HMY stands for Her Majesty’s Yacht. It is considered Scotland’s best attraction and receives over three hundred thousand tourists yearly. The yacht was launched in 1953 by the Queen and was commissioned in 1954. In the event of a nuclear war, the yacht was conceived to be a refuge for the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh along the North-West coast of Scotland. It was also designed to be a fully functional hospital ship at wartime. It racked up over one million miles while it operated. The first place it sailed to was Malta!, our former home.
The Royal Yacht Britannia Trust now owns the yacht. It is a non-profit organization and there is a small full time crew that maintains the yacht. While we were there, we could see them painting and doing other refurbishment work. The crew of the Royal Yacht Britannia when it was operational consisted of 21 officers and 250 Royal Yachtsmen.
The crew were volunteers from the Royal Navy while the yachtsmen were simply volunteers who after one year of service could be accepted as “permanent” if they chose. It was therefore common to find some with over 20 years of service. I would do it, lodging, food, and the chance to rub shoulders with royalty while sailing around the world? What’s not to love? Whenever the Royal Family were on the yacht, a troop of Royal Marines would accompany them as well. I think everyone would enjoy this tour as part of their visit to Scotland, especially when combined with Glasgow as most people tend to do.
The Royal Yacht Britannia self guided tour:
This is great because it’s a self guided tour so it was at your own pace. Once you’ve paid the entry fee, you are given an audio handset which takes you through the whole yacht and you just key in the numbers as you approach the stops. We started off at the Bridge and saw among other sections including the royal bedrooms, crew’s quarters and a sparkling clean engine room. In my head, l had imagined some over the top, gold covered crap as far as the decorations, and l was thrilled to find it actually tasteful, understated, almost bland. Very refreshing!
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The HMY Britannia Bedrooms:
I was surprised that the Queen slept on a single bed. I have to admit that l would have flexed my muscles and requested at least a queen size bed :-). Very simple room she had and l can easily imagine that she is just as fuss free in real life. I know she loves to tinker with cars and did as much during the war.
Charles and Diana, Prince and Princess of Wales took their honeymoon cruise on the Royal Yacht Britannia. Other guests that have stayed in this room include the Presidents Clinton, Einsenhower, Reagan and Gerald Ford.
Royal Dining Room:
Royal Sitting Room:
One thing l found funny was that the Queen had demanded a working fireplace in the parlor and was overruled. It was dangerous and would have required a full time person watching it so she had to settle for an electronic one. I wouldn’t have liked to be the one who had to tell her no! Off with his head!!! :-). This room opened up to another room and converted into a grand ballroom that could hold hundreds.
Attached to the yacht was the Royal sailboat. Princess Anne learned to sail on it and was quite fond of sailing. I can imagine how freeing it must have been for her.
The Royal Yacht Britannia also traveled with one of the royal cars, a Rolls Royce Phantom which was a bitch to get on and off from the audio files.
The crew’s quarters were on the bottom floor and they had enough to entertain themselves. I was also surprised that there was a full on laundry room with pressing machines etc.
A quick video highlight reel here :
Should you visit the Royal Yacht Britannia?
Yes, yes, and yes. It was a fun afternoon and l really liked seeing how they lived away from the glare of the palaces. Underneath it all, they seemed like normal people who were doing the best with the lives they were born into. My favourite picture out of the hundreds l saw is this one. It’s obvious how much she loved and adored her kids.
There is also a really nice looking tea room there as well as Lego models for the kids to enjoy. If you visit Edinburgh, I think you should definitely leave an afternoon to enjoy this tour. You pick up little tidbits that make the royal family human.
Royal Britannia Edinburgh Opening Hours:
Winter: 10AM with last admission at 3.30 PM
Summer: 9.30AM with last admission 4.30PM
Admission Price for HMY Britannia: £15.50 adults
£8.50 children 5-17 years old. Free for under 5
Check out their website for other discounts, including elderly and service men discounts.
There is a lot of walking to be done on board so make sure you wear comfortable shoes. The ramps are also wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs.
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Have you been to Scotland? Did you visit the HMS Britannia? If so, did you enjoy it. If not, would you care to visit for a glimpse into royal life?
Nice photos. Thanks for sharing your tour of the Britannia. Nope, haven’t seen it. The royals were still sailing on it the last time I was in Scotland!
Thanks Cheryl :-). They must have some good times on that yacht. I can see the Queen letting her hair down so to speak :-). Sounds like it’s time for a return trip to Scotland 🙂 ;-).
Wow looks amazing 😍
It really was :-). Very enjoyable.
I’ve been to Edinburgh a couple times and had no idea this was there. Cool write up on what you can expect on a day out here. You are right about those wax band members – they are creepy.
Those figures snuck up on you and l was by myself.. :-). Gave me quite a jump. It really was a great day and the next time you go to Edinburgh, you should try and check it out.
Really nice. I would’ve also expected it to be a bit more flashy and glamourous and… royal, but it seems really modest. Although if you look at the bunk beds the crew had, you get to appreciate all the space the Queen had :))
I thought so too. I know, I expected all gold and Trump like gaudy style. Instead it was so simple..and yes..modest. Yeah..compared to the royal quarters, their rooms were luxurious..hahah! 🙂
Loved this tour Kemi and, should I get to Edinburgh, I’d take this tour for sure! (The window shopping is just an added bonus, HaHa! BTW, nice jacket!) I love how understated the private rooms are. After all, when you’re the Queen of England, who do you have to impress, right?
Funny, That was exactly the same conclusion l came to. As the Queen, there is certainly no one she needs to impress..haha! It was so cold, we had to buy heavier jackets. The tour is definitely worth it. Imagine sailing around with an attached Rolls! :-). It’s good to be the Queen!!!
This yacht is very old school, you would think you are simply in a old school hotel in an american small town! The lounge area is really nice, would love to see this out ourselves too!
Haha! Exactly. Partially has to do with age. You should see the TV’s :-). Black and white and like 13 inches. Sure it was the bomb when it first came out and like most royal things, never got updated. It was cool to see though. Funny you mentioned hotel. I think there’s a plan being floated around to make it into a hotel.
This is so cool! I really want to go to Edinburgh one day and I will definitely check this out as well. Very interesting 🙂
We found the city amazing and worthy of all the praises heaped upon it, and we would love to go back. Hope you get there soon. I think you’d like it :-).
Kemkem, can you believe I have been to Edinburgh so many times and have never visited the RYB? After reading this post it will be my mission to visit it next time I am in Scotland. I would not like to have surgery on that operating room….but then again if needs must one has to endure hahaha. I also loved that photo of Diana about to embrace her son, she looked so happy. I had expected the Queen to at least have a double bed no???Where did Prince Phillip go to sleep?
Oh you need to visit it for sure. I like QE II and it was nice to be able to see how she lived away from the more glaring lights of the palace. The surgery still smelled like a real one and l wonder if they spray it on a regular basis to make it authentic. Had recovery bed and everything, but you’re right, I wouldn’t want to be under the knife there on a boat rocking and rolling :-). Prince Phillip had a room identical to hers and it was just next to hers but all brown. I would have thought a double bed too. I would have put my foot down and demanded one for sure :-).
I love your pictures!! The photo of the beds reminds me of the time I took a night train in Thailand. Good times!
Thanks Jason. I can totally picture the night train looking just like that..glad it brought back good memories :-).
I love all of this – anything old and antiquated or steeped in history! Also think it’s cool that these remnants are now open for visitors as it really does seem like such a strangely unusual experience to walk around this yacht which I guess is something most people would never get to do in their normal every day lives! Cheers for the write up
I think part of my wonder with travel are the never ending opportunities to see living history. I absolutely love it, even recent history like this. I loved being a voyeur, and nope..it’s not something one gets to experience on a daily basis. Glad you liked it, and thanks for the comment.