From the dizzy height of the main mast to the surprises below deck, step aboard and discover the best Cutty Sark has to offer.
The historic ship in the heart of Greenwich is open all year round, and visitors are free to explore all areas of the ship.
Not sure where to start? Check out the highlights below to make the most of your day out. When you're ready, click here to book your tickets.
- Take the boat to Greenwich and arrive at Cutty Sark in true maritime style! It's less than 30 minutes from the Tower of London to Greenwich Pier, with boats disembarking right outside the historic ship.
- Look out for the Cutty Sark characters, especially if you're visiting with kids. These engaging actors are on board every weekend and throughout the school holidays.
- Have a chat with the shipkeepers. These dedicated craftspeople are committed to preserving Cutty Sark for future generations – time your visit right and you can meet them too.
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Discover the history of the fastest ship of its day
Step back in time and voyage through more than 150 years of seafaring history. Uncover tales of life on board, steer Cutty Sark from Sydney to London, and learn how the ship set sail through hands-on exhibits. Historic photographs, films and interactive ship plans help bring the famous tea clipper's story to life.
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Enjoy afternoon tea beneath the hull
Indulge in a unique afternoon tea served beneath Cutty Sark's iconic copper-clad hull. Choose from a selection of teas, sandwiches and sweet treats as you marvel at the historic engineering of the fastest ship of its day.
Afternoon tea bookings include entry to the ship, so you can explore Cutty Sark at your leisure before or after your meal.
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Take a guided tour or listen to a talk
The daily tours and talks on board Cutty Sark are the perfect way to discover the must-see highlights of the historic ship, all led by our friendly and knowledgeable guides.
I was lucky enough to be there for the informative talk on rigging, including the history and materials. The speaker was a professional who was working on the rigging and I learned a lot. There were only 10 of us, including a couple of Cutty Sark volunteers, so it was a valuable opportunity to interact with the speaker.
- Anne P, Tripadvisor, December 2025
Amaze your kids
Cutty Sark is a fantastic day out for kids. Explore the family-friendly interactive displays and get a taste of life at sea.
Look out for regular special events; from craft workshops and shanty singing to character actors and toddler time, there's always something new to discover. Family membership gives you year-round entry for free.
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Enjoy the free audio guides
Listen to thrilling tales from Cutty Sark's history, learn about the lives of its captains and crews – and discover exactly how Cutty Sark became the fastest ship of its day. The audio guide is free to download, and you can even listen again when you get home.
For something a little different, check out the Cutty Sark Soundscape and immerse yourself in the sounds of sailing on a tea clipper 150 years ago. Hear the wind, waves, rigging, creaking wood and other sounds along with specially commissioned music composed by Sonic Collaborations.
Brilliant experience. Audio guide via app was great. Ship and information is very well presented with plenty to see and do without being overwhelming. You could follow the audio guide but also look at other well presented information, via movie presentations. Highly recommended attraction.
- Howard P, Tripadvisor, August 2026
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Walk the main deck
It takes hours of work from our experienced shipkeepers to keep the main deck looking as fresh and clean as it does. It wasn't always this way...
During Cutty Sark's days at sea, pigs and chickens would have been kept in pens on deck, with crew responsible for mucking them out. As for the toilets, well... because there was no flushing water, sailors would have simply used salt water to flush everything into the sea!
Meet the Cutty Sark characters
Meet colourful characters from Cutty Sark’s past and hear astonishing stories about life at sea in the age of sail. Chat to the ship's owner Jock Willis, the ship's cook or meet Captain Woodget himself, Cutty Sark's longest serving master. Who knows? He may even make you one of his crew...
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Explore beneath the ship
Reach up and touch the copper hull of the ship that made Cutty Sark the fastest of its day. The Dry Dock is one of the most dramatic locations in London, with the ship hovering in mid-air above you.
It's also home to a range of displays, including Niki Gorick: Dock Life, a photographic exhibition that captures the varied lives and activities along London's docklands.
- Did you know you can hire this space for parties?
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Rummage through Cutty Sark’s cargo
Tea, wool and even pianos were just some of the items carried on board Cutty Sark.
Wander among the stacks of tea chests in the Lower Hold and venture up to the ‘Tween Deck to discover how many wool bales the ship transported on a single voyage (hint: it's enough to make more than 1.2 million jumpers!).
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Visit the cabins
Can you imagine sleeping and eating here in rough seas? Discover more about what Cutty Sark's crew did when they weren't risking their lives on deck.
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Come face to face with our fantastic figureheads
Visit the Long John Silver Figurehead collection and spot the literary, historic and political figures depicted in the world's largest Merchant Navy figurehead collection. Learn too all about the man behind the collection, and how he earned his piratical nickname...
See the Cutty Sark figurehead
'Nannie' the witch is Cutty Sark's figurehead. Just like the ship itself, she takes her name from the Robert Burns poem Tam O'Shanter.
In the poem, Tam the farmer is chased by a witch called Nannie. Nannie is dressed only in a ‘cutty sark’ - an archaic Scottish word meaning a short nightdress.
The figurehead you can see on the ship today is a new commission, made by ship’s figurehead carver Andy Peters and designed to reflect the beauty of the original ship designs.
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Take the helm
With the ship's wheel in your hands and the miles of rigging shivering in the breeze above your head, this is the place where dreams of setting sail come alive.
The wheel itself was restored in the run up to the opening of Cutty Sark in 1957 by a team of talented woodworkers, and the steering mechanism is one of the many original features preserved on board.
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Enjoy the view
Enjoy stunning views across the River Thames. Look out at the London skyline, spot the landmarks spread around you and snap that all-important picture with the deck and rigging surrounding you.
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