Sometimes we don’t realise what historical gems we have right on our doorstep. Brunel’s SS Great Britain in Bristol has been on my UK bucket list for ages, and I can finally cross it off my list.
This summer, I was invited along to Bristol to visit the SS Great Britain and see the incredible acrobatics and feats being performed by the Invisible Circus. Dressed in period costume the 6 members of the crew juggled, flipped upside down, and downside up and entertained the visitors with their antics.
*This site uses affiliate links and I may earn a small commission when you use my links and make a purchase without incurring an additional fee yourself.
Thank you for supporting this website. See my disclaimer page for more details.
A little history about the SS Great Britain
The SS Great Britain was the inspiration of Isambard Kingdom Brunel and he was also the Chief Engineer. He tried out innovative designs and ideas including the screw propeller and sculpted iron hull. Brunel’s SS Great Britain was hailed as ‘the greatest experiment since the Creation‘ when she was first launched in 1843. She was able to cross the Atlantic in a record 14 days.
In her sea-going days, the SS Great Britain travelled 33 times around the world via both the Cape of Good Hope at the tip of Africa and Cape Horn in Chile. Negotiating nearly one million ocean miles and calling at more than 15 ports around the world.
In her long history, the SS Great Britain has been an ocean-going passenger ship and a floating warehouse before being left to rot in the Falkland Islands. After mouldering away for 32 years, she was finally rescued in 1969 and towed back to the UK in an 8,000 mile audacious but successful venture.
The SS Great Britain was finally brought back to her home on the Great Western Dockyard in 1970. This grand old lady of the sea has been lovingly restored and painstakingly preserved.
Great Western Dockyard
Step onto the dockyard and you are instantly transported back to the 1840s when the SS Great Britain first set sail. Barrels, chains, weathered wood and even canons are stacked on the ground, as horses wait patiently in the stables to transport cargo or passengers.
Dry Dock
The SS Great Britain appears to be floating in the dock, but actually, it is fixed in position just below the waterline. Reinforced glass covered with water acts as a ceiling to the temperature-controlled dry dock beneath.
Iron and water don’t mix, and as you walk around the hull you will notice the damage the SS Great Britain has sustained over the 180 years since the hull was first created. In order to stop further damage, the air under the glass shield is kept at a constant 20% humidity; the optimum aridity to minimise any degradation of the hull.
Dockyard Museum
The dockyard museum will take you through the history of the SS Great Britain working backwards from 1970, when she was rescued, right back to her launch in 1843. Be entranced by the letters, pictures and personal items as well as the artefacts from the ship.
The museum is filled with videos, interactive activities: match the stamps on the time gates with the SS Great Britain through the ages; use to the handles to winch up the giant propeller or dress up in period costume. Near the end of the museum, are passenger boarding cards, where you can follow in the footsteps of 36 different people. Maybe you will choose independent and creative Elizabeth Parsons, an artist travelling in Second Class from London or fashionista and dressmaker Rachel Henning who was a keen chess player and was a First Class passenger? Who would you choose?
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: The British Museum – Top Tips for Your Visit
The Ship
Walking up the stairs from the Dockyard Museum and across the walkway, you reach the upper deck of the ship.
The Upper Deck or Weather Deck
The upper deck looks similar to how it was in when the SS Great Britain first launched. The areas for second and third-class passengers are the first-class passengers had their reserved area marked by a white painted line on the deck.
To help with supplies of fresh eggs, milk and meat, cows, chickens and pigs were also kept on the upper deck and you can hear them mooing and oinking as you pass by.
The masts and rigging are decked out in colourful nautical flags which flap in the breeze and if you are feeling brave enough, have a go at climbing the rigging!
Go Aloft – climb the rigging like a Victorian sailor
For those brave enough and with a head for heights, you can get rigged up with helmet and harness and clamber up the rigging on one of the masts.
Sadly for health and safety reasons, you cannot take up any cameras or video equipment. The view from the top is breathtaking, a full 360° round the docks and beyond. For the extra brave, you can inch your way across the yardarm.
On your arrival back on deck, you are presented with a Certificate of Discharge to prove you did it.
Age limit: over 10s only
Height: at least 4’5” /1.4m
Weight: maximum of 18 stone/114kg
Go Aloft is extra to your entrance ticket and can be booked at the booth on the top deck. You will need to fill in a health Price is free for under 18s and £10 for over 18s.
*Price correct at August 2019
Down Below
Promenade Deck
For first class passengers who didn’t want to get wet or blown about on the upper deck, the Promenade Deck was the place to see and be seen. You could dance, talk, flirt and enjoy yourself.
Cabins
Either side of the Promenade Deck are cabins where you can meet some of the first-class passengers who sailed on the SS Great Britain between 1845 and 1875. The cabins for second and third-class passengers were not quite as luxurious and were mainly bunks.
Eating on the SS Great Britain
Once they were over the seasickness, the passengers and crew looked forward to freshly prepared meals. First-class passengers ate in their own dining room on the lower deck, complete with SS Great Britain china, linen napkins and glasses.
The Galley
The galley was kept busy with 600 hungry mouths to feed though not all the ingredients were fresh and had to be salted and dried to keep over the journey. Every day bread was baked in the bakery and the aroma of fresh bread drifts out as you pass by.
Engine Room
To power the mighty SS Great Britain, the engine room had to be up to the job. Although the original parts have been replaced by lighter weight replicas, you can still get the sense of what conditions might have been like as you smell the coal and oil and hear the sounds of the coal being shovelled.
Being Brunel Museum
On the opposite side of the ship to the Dockyard Museum is the Being Brunel Museum. The SS Great Britain was not the only feat of engineering for Isambard Kingdom Brunel; he was also instrumental in the Great Western Railway and for building the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol.
The Being Brunel Museum brings all the aspects of his life together, home and working and gives you an insight into the great man. You start off in a replica of the dining room from his home at 8 Duke Street in London. Brunel commissioned paintings of scenes from Shakespeare’s plays, and the room became known as the ‘Shakespeare Room’. Here, with his wife, Mary, he entertained guests and family and friends.
As you move further through the museum, you can learn more about the different sides of Brunel, the Engineer, the Entrepreneur, the Celebrity and Brunel the Artistic Designer. Finally, watch the audio-visual show and see the world as Brunel saw it as each of his projects come to fruition.
Authenticity at the SS Great Britain
The restoration of the SS Great Britain has been carried out meticulously and great care and attention to detail have been taken in all areas to give you a genuine feeling of what it was like to be on the ship as a passenger or member of the crew. Various characters are in period costume including Isambard Kingdom Brunel himself!
Your entrance ticket or “Passenger’s Contract Ticket” is similar to the ones given to passengers travelling in 1867. The sounds of the engines, smell of the coal, cracking of the fires in the galley and the aroma of freshly baked bread in the bakery are all so evocative of a bygone age. The lady being sick in her room while being eyed by an unwelcome stowaway rat make you feel as if you are sailing with them.
The Lowdown on Tickets & Travel
Ticket Prices
Your ticket gives you unlimited return visits for a whole year from the date of purchase.
Adults:
Child (5-16 yrs):
Nipper (4 and under):
Senior (65 plus):
Student (with valid ID):
Family ticket (2 adults or 2 seniors with 2 or 3 children):
£18.00
£10.00
Free
£15.00
£15.00
£48.00
You can book your tickets in advance and get 5% discount on the website.
Is your name Isambard??? If you are lucky enough to be called Isambard, you get free entry to the SS Great Britain!! Just bring along your birth certificate, drivers licence or other personal identification! Read the Ts and Cs on the SS Great Britain website.
*Prices correct at August 2021
Opening Hours
10.00 hrs to 18:00 hrs April
to October
10.00 hrs to 16:30 hrs November
to March
Open daily except 24 and 25 December 2019 and 13 January 2020
Getting To the SS Great Britain
By Car
The address of the SS Great Britain is:
Brunel’s SS Great Britain
Great Western Dockyard
Gas Ferry Road
Bristol BS1 6TY
Parking
There is parking just outside the SS Great Britain for cars and coaches. Prices for parking start from £2.00 for 2 hours. When you buy your ticket to enter the SS Great Britain, you can get up to half your parking ticket refunded on production of the slip.
By Train
The nearest train station is Bristol Temple Meads. You can then choose from a 30-minute walk, ferry or bus ride to the Dockyard.
By Ferry
The ferry runs every 40 minutes from Temple Meads Station and various other stops around the harbour – see Bristol Ferry Boat website for more information or Number Seven Boat Trips which run from Hotwells to Temple Meads stopping at Brunel’s SS Great Britain on the way or between
By Bus
The new Metrobus m2 route from Temple Meads stops at the ‘SS Great Britain’ bus stop, located on Cumberland Road close to Spike Island. From here you can walk five minutes to Brunel’s SS Great Britain.
Click for more information about getting to the SS Great Britain.
If you are looking for more things to do in Bristol, check out the Get Your Guide trips around Bristol.
This post about the SS Great Britain was created in collaboration with SS Great Britain team.
Don’t forget to pin this article so you can come back to it later
I’ve been in Bristol a few times, but never on SS Great Britain. It seems like a nice place, your post gives a very good overview of what to expect. Thank you!
Thank you Anna. It is an amazing place to visit, I highly recommend it.
Had never heard about this before, will definitely add it to my Bristol-list. Historical places like this is always a priority for me when I travel, thanks for all the useful information 🙂
Great news, you won’t be disappointed!
Any place I visit love to explore history of the place first. SS Great Britain is full of history. I would love to visit that Dockyard and the museum.
I hope you get to visit the SS Great Britain one day.
I never knew about Brunel’s SS Great Britain in Bristol but it would great to visit this place and see the historic way of cruising. Children would also love this trip. It is good that they provided freshly baked breads to overcome sea sickness. Also visiting engine room must be a nice experience.
Yes Yukti, there are many interesting areas to explore.
We love boats and anything boat-related. (We actually want to go sailing for about 10 months next year.) So this visit is really our cup of tea!
10 months, wow! What route are you taking?
This is so cute! I’ve been to Bristol – of course, mainly for the street art, therefore, I’ve missed this jewel. Since I intend to go back, I make sure to visit – sooo fun!
I hope to read about your experience if you manage to get there!
Brunel’s SS Great Britain looks so well preserved and how cool that they do historical performances there. I didn’t really know the history behind this ship so it was great to gain some knowledge. The museum must be fascinating to see the artefacts and personal items from the ship.
Yes, Vanessa, it has been beautifully preserved and I would highly recommend a visit if you can.
I enjoyed the look below the waterline at the hull. And those passenger cards are an interesting way to look around; the Royal Pump Rooms in Leamington Spa do a similar thing, and it’s fascinating. I think Aloft would have to be done by someone with a better head for heights than me though!
Wandering around the hull is fascinating as it is a part we rarely see or even think about.
Great post! I enjoyed reading about SS Great Britain. So informative and so many details!
Thank you for sharing! Just wondering what was your favorite part?
Thank you. I have to admit, even though it was tough for me, I loved climbing the rigging!! Would you do it?
Love reading this post. If we ever plan to visit Bristol, I will keep this in mind.
It is definitely a great day out, hope you make it to Bristol.
I absolutely love SS Great Britain and have visited it a few times while living in South Wales. The Go Aloft is a new addition since I was last there and I’d be game to try it next time I visit my favourite ship in the UK.
It is a bit of a climb, but you get such an amazing view from the top. I just wish that I could have taken my camera.
I’m planning a trip to Bristol in the new year so this has come in very handy! I love visiting historic places and this will defo be on my list when I visit! Very informative post!
Oh definitely visit the SS Great Britain, it is a great day out and enjoy Bristol!
It must have been so fascinating to do this attraction! Full of history and seeing how people were living on the boat is pretty amazing! I’ve not been to Bristol yet but when I do, I’ll want to visit this.
It was certainly an eye-opener and the way that everything is done makes it a perfect way to immerse yourself in the history.
Great when these old gems are lovingly restored like this. I’ve never heard of the SS Great Britain. Just another reason to spend a bit more time exploring Bristol I think
Definitely Paul. It has been beautifully restored, and I would highly recommend at trip!
Saving this as our boys would LOVE to visit here! They had a huge obsession with ships when they were younger and they still love history- so this is definitely a place we’d visit!
It is great fun for all ages! Climbing the rigging – if they have a head for heights – is recommended for the amazing views!
Very informative article. Wish to have a look at The SS Great Britain one day. An excellent read.
Thank you Moon Ray, let me know if you come across to the UK and get to see her!
I love blogs like this and learning about nautical history. If you are ever in Sweden make sure you visit the Vasa Museum, it’s stunning.
Oooh thank you for the tip Ruth, we are planning a Scandinavian trip next year.
This experience looks like my cup of tea. As an old Navy man, I always enjoy walking the deck of historic ships (much to my family’s chagrin, at times). Years ago, when in Portsmouth, I failed to visit the HMS Victory and still kick myself for that one. Maybe a nautical themed trip should be in my future.
I think that is a great plan, Randy! Definitely include the SS Great Britain, she is a lovely old lady!
I have been many times to Bristol but I never had enough time to explore the SS Great Britain. It looks like an amazing ship and walking around it surely does make you feel like taking a stroll to the past.
Joanna, it is fascinating to walk around, you can spend hours lost in the history of the ship
Wow! Sounds like a great place to visit! I live in London and Bristol is easily accessible. I like the dining experience and will definitely enjoy the “flipping”. An excellent read.
Bristol is a great day out from London, lots to see and do!
After enjoying a tour of the HMS Victory in Portsmouth, I now need to add this tour to my list when I visit Bristol. It looks like an informative, fun experience.
It was such great fun and so much to see!
Really informative! Great post
Thank you Coleen
Really interesting and informative. A must do on our next visit.
Thank you Marg. The SS Great Britain is a great day out when you are in Bristol
Omg ? thank you Larch Gauld, this is on my “to do” list next time we head over from Australia
Graham you will love it!! It is so authentic and a great experience x
Pictures look so mesmerizing that i am definitely including SS Great Britain in my next travel bucket list. Dockyard Museum and Being Brunel Museum sounds something which i will include in my itinerary. Thank you for sharing such detailed information with us.
Thank you Jiwesh. I hope you make it to the SS Great Britain.