Greenwich tickets: Cutty Sark, Royal Observatory and more

Greenwich packs a lot into a short walk, and much of it costs nothing. Here's how the main sights stood on November 3, 2026.

• Cutty Sark (ticketed). Royal Museums Greenwich lists adult tickets at £22. Children under 4 go free. Open daily 10am to 5pm, last entry 4:15pm.
• Royal Observatory (closed). Closed from November 2, 2026, for the First Light restoration. The Meridian Courtyard is due back in summer 2027.
• National Maritime Museum (free). Entry covers all galleries; paid exhibitions cost extra. Same 10am to 5pm hours.
• Queen's House (free). The historic house and its art collection, including the Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I.
• Old Royal Naval College (grounds free). The grounds open daily from 8am to 11pm, and the Chapel is free. The Painted Hall is ticketed.
• Greenwich Park (free). The Royal Parks lists pedestrian gates as open 6am to 6pm, and the top of the hill has sweeping views over London's skyline.

So the only ticket most visitors need right now is the Cutty Sark, plus the Painted Hall if you love a ceiling.

Royal Museums Greenwich calls the Cutty Sark "the fastest sailing ship of its time" and "the world's only surviving tea clipper." Built in 1869, she now sits beside the river at Greenwich. A ticket lets you explore the main deck, see how the crew lived, and walk beneath the ship, where a café sits under the gleaming copper hull.

Buying direct. The official adult price was £22 when we checked on November 3, 2026, with children under 4 free and free tickets for carers. RMG's own pages listed two different child and student prices that day, so check those at booking. RMG recommends booking online in advance to guarantee entry; tickets on the day are subject to availability. You choose a date and entry time, and tickets are emailed to you.

Buying through Viator. Viator lists the National Maritime Museum itself as the operator, so it's the same ship and the same entry. What it adds is free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead and an audio guide in English and eight other languages. It's handy if you're booking the rest of your London trip in one place, or if you're not sure of your date yet. If you know your day and want the lowest price, compare it with the official site first.

Is it worth it? For anyone with a soft spot for ships, history or engineering, yes. The view of the hull from below is the moment people remember, and the deck gives you a sense of how tight life aboard must have been. If you're short on time or money, though, the free museums next door are the better value, and you can see the ship's masts and rigging from the riverside for nothing.

The Royal Observatory sits at the top of Greenwich Park, and normally you'd buy a ticket to see the Prime Meridian in the Meridian Courtyard. Right now you can't. Royal Museums Greenwich closed the whole site on November 2, 2026, for First Light: Transforming the Royal Observatory. It says:

• the Meridian Courtyard will reopen in summer 2027, with tickets going on sale in January;
• the work is due to be complete by spring 2028.

If you're traveling before then, skip any Observatory ticket you see for sale and check the official First Light page for updates. Astronomy fans still have options. RMG now runs planetarium shows and talks with its astronomers at the National Maritime Museum, which also hosts the Astronomers Take Over gallery and the Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition; those are ticketed separately. You can also still climb the hill in Greenwich Park, which The Royal Parks describes as having sweeping views over London's skyline.

When we checked RMG's ticket page on November 3, 2026, it listed no joint or combo ticket. With the Observatory closed, the old pairing of Cutty Sark and Observatory isn't on sale, and with the Maritime Museum and Queen's House free, there's little left to bundle. Here's what does make sense:

• Just Cutty Sark. For most visitors this is the only ticket they need. Add the free museums and you have a full day.
• RMG membership. RMG lists individual membership at £58 as a one-off payment, or £48 by Direct Debit, with unlimited entry to the Cutty Sark and free entry to National Maritime Museum exhibitions. That's only worth it if you live in London or will be back after the Observatory reopens.
• Painted Hall. The Old Royal Naval College sells its own Painted Hall ticket: £19 for general admission, with children 16 and under free when they come with a paying adult. It isn't part of any RMG ticket.
• City passes. If you're planning several paid attractions across London, see our London Pass guide to check whether a pass adds up for your list before buying anything for Greenwich alone.
• Bus and boat combos. Some hop-on hop-off bus tickets add a river cruise to Greenwich on their longer passes. Our hop-on hop-off bus tours comparison shows which ones.

Greenwich is one of the few London sights where the journey can be part of the fun. You have three good ways in.

Sightseeing boat (the scenic way)

Thames River Sightseeing runs a one-hour cruise from Westminster Pier to Greenwich Pier with live commentary and an audio guide app in 11 languages. You sail east through the heart of the city, under Tower Bridge, and land right next to the Cutty Sark. A round-trip option takes two hours if you'd rather sail back. Compare it with every other format in our Thames river cruises guide.

Uber Boat river bus (the flexible way)

The river bus is a commuter catamaran, not a tour, so there's no commentary. RMG says boats leave major London piers every 20 minutes for Greenwich Pier. TfL lets you pay as you go with contactless or Oyster, and Travelcard holders get a third off River Bus fares. It's the easy choice if you want to hop on at Tower Pier after a morning at the Tower of London.

DLR and train (the fast way)

The DLR stops at Cutty Sark (for Maritime Greenwich) station, about two minutes' walk from the ship and seven from the National Maritime Museum. Mainline trains from London Bridge and Cannon Street stop at Greenwich, closest to the Cutty Sark, and at Maze Hill, nearer the Maritime Museum, the Queen's House and the park. Use TfL's journey planner on the day for current times.

Our take: go out by boat and come back by DLR or train. The river is at its best on the way in, when Greenwich's riverside buildings appear ahead, and the rail ride home is quicker once your legs are tired.

Greenwich is compact enough to do on your own with a map, but a guide ties the stories together: the naval college, the royal buildings, the tea trade and the meridian. Guided options are thin on Viator, and most are private.

Greenwich Royal Tours's private half-day tour runs about 3.5 hours from a 10am start at the Sir Walter Raleigh statue outside the tourist information center. The route covers the Old Royal Naval College, the Queen's House, the Cutty Sark, Greenwich Market and the National Maritime Museum. It's a walking tour for at least two people and needs moderate fitness. The description says admissions are included, but the listing's inclusions name only the guide and fees, so confirm what's covered with the operator before you book, especially with the Observatory closed. It has a small but strong review record.

Don't want a private guide? The Cutty Sark's audio guide and the Painted Hall talks, which the Old Royal Naval College includes with general admission, cover a lot of the same ground for far less.

This route fits into a morning or an afternoon, keeps walking short, and only needs one ticket.

1. Arrive at Greenwich Pier by boat, or at Cutty Sark DLR. The ship is right in front of you.
2. Cutty Sark. Book a timed entry early in the day; doors open at 10am. Walk the deck, go below, then finish under the hull.
3. Old Royal Naval College. Cross to the free grounds and the Chapel. If you have time and budget, add the Painted Hall. Note that its lift was out of order when we checked, so there are stairs.
4. Queen's House and the National Maritime Museum. Both are free and sit side by side. Pick one if you're short on time: art and architecture at the Queen's House, ships and exploration at the museum.
5. Greenwich Park. Walk up the hill for the view back over the river. The Observatory buildings are closed, but the view isn't.

Last entry at the Cutty Sark and the RMG museums is 4:15pm, so if you're starting after lunch, do the ticketed ship first.