In this guide
💡 The Short Version: From April to October 2026 an adult ticket is £23 online and £25 at the door; from 1 November it is £22 online and £24 at the door. Walk-up tickets are always available at the desk on the second floor of Ocean Terminal in Leith, card only, so booking saves £2 rather than securing a place. Allow 2 hours for a self-guided audio tour of five decks. It is open 363 days a year, closed on 25 December and 1 January. The tram to the Ocean Terminal stop is about 20 minutes from the centre. Buy from the yacht at royalyachtbritannia.co.uk. Or book: GetYourGuide’s ticketad is sold by the yacht at £25, the door price.
The tickets, compared
Prices are from the yacht’s tickets page. Every ticket includes the audio tour in 42 versions (36 languages, BSL/ASL and Braille) and a free Annual Pass, so you can return free for 12 months.
The Royal Yacht Britannia at Ocean Terminal, Leith. Photo: Adam D Hope, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
April to October 2026:
| Ticket | Online | At the door | Flexible |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | £23 | £25 | £27 |
| Young person (16 to 21) or student, with ID | £11.50 | £12.50 | £13.50 |
| Child (7 to 15) | £11.50 | £12.50 | £13.50 |
| Armed Forces | £15 | £17 | £18 |
| Child (0 to 6), or accompanying carer | Free | Free |
From 1 November 2026 to March 2027:
| Ticket | Online | At the door | Flexible |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | £22 | £24 | £26 |
| Young person (16 to 21) or student, with ID | £11.50 | £12.50 | £13.50 |
| Child (7 to 15) | £11.50 | £12.50 | £13.50 |
| Armed Forces | £14 | £16 | £17 |
| Child (0 to 6), or accompanying carer | Free | Free |
- A flexible ticket needs no booking, can be used on any date and time within opening hours, and is valid for 2 years. It is fully refundable before arrival.
- Buying on the day through the website costs the same as at the desk, and gets you into the pre-booked entrance.
- The Royal Tea and Group Guided Tour is £89 a person with no discounts and no Annual Pass. It runs on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 29 October 2026 to 1 April 2027, except 31 December 2026: arrive at 13.00, a guided tour of the State Apartments starts at 13.15 in groups of up to 12, and tea in the Royal Deck Tearoom follows at 14.00. Book up to 4pm the day before; refunds are available up to 48 hours before.
Which ticket to buy
- Book the £23 ticket if you are going anyway. You save £2 and use the pre-booked entrance, and nothing else changes: you can arrive at any time within opening hours.
- Turn up if the weather decides your day. Walk-up tickets are always available, so there is no need to commit in advance. Most of the route is under cover.
- Buy the flexible ticket as a gift or for an open date. It is £4 more than the online ticket and is valid for two years.
- Choose the Royal Tea tour in winter if you want a guide: it is the only guided visit, on two days a week.
- The Royal Edinburgh Ticket includes the yacht with the castle and Holyrood. Edinburgh City Pass: is it worth it? has the sums.
Tours worth paying for
The yacht’s audio tour is included in every ticket. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.
Entry ticket sold by the yacht
From £25 · 3,308 reviews
Edinburgh: The Royal Yacht Britannia Ticketad is sold by the yacht itself. £25 is the door price, so the yacht’s own website is £2 cheaper from April to October and £3 cheaper from November.
Hop-on hop-off bus with a Britannia route
From £27 · 48 hours · 922 reviews
Edinburgh: Hop-On, Hop-Off Bus Tour City & Britannia Comboad is a 48-hour Big Bus ticket for the City Tour and the Britannia Tour, which stops at The Shore, Victoria Quay, the Royal Yacht Britannia and the Royal Botanic Garden. It does not include admission to the yacht.
Royal Edinburgh Ticket
From £81 · 48 hours · 3,167 reviews
Edinburgh: Royal Attractions with Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Toursad covers Edinburgh Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the yacht with three bus tours, at the operator’s price of £81.
What to see
Britannia was launched on 16 April 1953 and decommissioned on 11 December 1997, and her website says Tripadvisor ranks her its No.1 Attraction in the World for 2026. The route runs through five decks:
The fore deck of the Royal Yacht Britannia, seen from above. Photo: Billy McCrorie, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
- The Visitor Centre and the Bridge. The tour starts on the second floor of Ocean Terminal. The Bridge is where the Officers navigated and orders were issued.
- The State Apartments. The Drawing Room, the largest and grandest room aboard, received up to 250 guests, and Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip entertained Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela and Ronald Reagan here. The Sun Lounge was the Queen’s favourite room, where she had breakfast and afternoon tea.
- Below decks. The Crew’s Quarters, the laundry, which was the only one permanently aboard a Royal Navy ship, and the Engine Room, which the yacht says ran faultlessly until 1997.
- The Royal Deck Tearoom. It is at the top of the ship, off the Verandah Deck, on the tour route, so you need an admission ticket to eat there. Tables are first come, first served, and the Royal Deck was where the family played deck games.
The Drawing Room aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia. Photo: Daniel Kraft, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Hours, getting there and the rules
- Hours: April to October 9.30 to 18.00, last entry 16.00. November to March 10.00 to 17.00, last entry 15.00. Last entry on 24 December is 14.30. Closed 25 December and 1 January.
- Getting there: the yacht is berthed at Ocean Terminal, Ocean Drive, Leith, EH6 6JJ, about 2 miles from the city centre. Take the tram to the Ocean Terminal stop, or Lothian buses 10, 16, 34 or 35. Edinburgh Bus Tours’ Regal Tour runs from Waterloo Place and St Andrew Square. Edinburgh public transport has the fares.
- Parking: free in the Ocean Terminal multi-storey car park, with a 2 metre height limit.
- Payment: card or contactless only at the desk.
- Access: lifts and ramps link the decks, and the Tearoom is reachable by lift.
Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse are the other two royal sights. The Regal Tour bus also stops at the Royal Botanic Garden. What to book before you go to Edinburgh has the closed days for every sight.
Common questions
How much is a ticket for the Royal Yacht Britannia?
From April to October 2026 an adult ticket is £23 online, £25 at the door and £27 for a flexible ticket. From 1 November 2026 to March 2027 it is £22, £24 and £26. A young person aged 16 to 21, a student or a child aged 7 to 15 pays £11.50 online. Children aged 0 to 6 are free.
Do I need to book the Royal Yacht Britannia in advance?
No. The yacht says tickets are always available at the desk on the second floor of Ocean Terminal, paying by card only. Booking online saves £2 and gives you the pre-booked entrance.
How long does the Royal Yacht Britannia take?
The yacht recommends 2 hours. You arrive at any time within opening hours and follow a self-guided audio tour across five decks.
How do I get to the Royal Yacht Britannia from the city centre?
By tram to the Ocean Terminal stop, or Lothian buses 10, 16, 34 or 35. The yacht says it is about 20 minutes from the city centre. The entrance is on the second floor of the Ocean Terminal shopping centre, Ocean Drive, Leith, EH6 6JJ.
When is the Royal Yacht Britannia closed?
On 25 December and 1 January. It is open the other 363 days, 9.30 to 18.00 from April to October and 10.00 to 17.00 from November to March.
What is the Royal Tea tour on Britannia?
A guided tour of the State Apartments followed by tea in the Royal Deck Tearoom, £89 a person, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 29 October 2026 to 1 April 2027 (not 31 December). Tickets are booked in advance, up to 4pm the day before.
