HMS Victory

We used our multi attraction ticket from Naval dockyard to visit HMS Victory - its situated next to the Mary Rose museum which we did just before doing the HMS Victory. A very different experience, but equally a good one! Kids really enjoyed looking at the different areas and got on quite well using the audio guides. Lots and lots of information if you use the guides! HMS Victory was undergoing some much needed work on our visit so bits of it was covered - but this didn't take away from the fact that we was onboard such a marvellous ship. You also have the option of popping into the area set up that is doing the work to find out more about how the ship is being looked after. A great experience - glad we did it!

HMS Victory is truly iconic. I’ve seen it so many times on TV, and it felt incredible to finally step aboard in person! After the ticket check, you can pick up an audio guide and follow the route through the ship, which gives a clear picture of the Battle of Trafalgar and Admiral Nelson’s story. It even marks the exact spot where he fell. Standing on deck, imagining one of the most significant naval battles in history, is a truly special feeling. Huge thanks to the staff for their excellent preservation and restoration work!

HMS Victory is a legend of naval history – and seeing her in person is unforgettable, even though she is currently under long-term restoration. For the past three years the work has been ongoing, and it will continue for almost another decade, but this makes the visit even more fascinating: you don’t just admire a historic ship, you witness the painstaking process of preserving her for the future. Walking her decks, knowing this was Nelson’s flagship at Trafalgar, is both humbling and inspiring. Even behind scaffolding, the spirit of history is alive – a living monument to Britain’s maritime heritage.

British Naval history in a nutshell. Sadly dismasted and under wraps at present (2025). Very knowledgeable guides and lots of entertaining anecdotes for children and parents too. Watch your head in the narrow lower decks and your footing going up and down the ladders. There are no toilets onboard, known as heads on a Naval Vessel, but plenty in the main dockyard and other attractions included in your rather expensive ticket! Best o get a discount when available or buy an annual ticket as it takes many visits to get to see most of the attractions dotted around the harbour or in the Historic Dockyard. There is a golf buggy to transport you from the dockyard entrance gate, where your bag will be searched, to the main Victory arena. Or you can borrow a wheel chair . Mind out for the old railway lines though! Many places for lunch and seating for your picnic even a discrete garden behind Captain Scott of the Antarctic's statue. Good shops with a wide variety of relevant memento to be tempted by.

What an amazing ship! How on earth was this built without modern technology is unbelievable. At present going through a lot of remedial work, but all decks are open to the public. See the spot where Lord Nelson was shot, and the place he actually died. Give yourself at least two hours to visit. One of the best attractions in the country.

It's always a 5* for me. I mean come on it's the HMS Victory. A beautiful part of English History. Horatcio Nelson's galleon. You have to see it to believe it. You also have the Mary Rose and museum and HMS Warrior. It's all set in an easy access area still owned by the royal navy. Parking is very close and great value. We parked all day and only paid £4.50. Various cafes and shops dotted around so you can grab a coffee or Beer.

An interesting tour but sadly the Victory is being restored so you can't see her in all her glory. But as the entrance fee includes all areas within the docklands still worth a visit

The ship is being renovated so we didn't get to experience the wind blowing through our hair whilst visiting, all the more reason to come back when it is finished renovating in ~10years! Audio tour was very informative and immersive!! The staff was ready for all the questions we managed to come up with and they were all very approachable! Special thanks to the woman that demonstrated how the canons worked back in the day on one of the few original cannons still aboard! We absolutely loved our time there and would have gladly spent another hour just talking to the great people on the ship!

This is the oldest commissioned warship in the world and has been turned into a museum. It also serves several ceremonial duties. The USA's claim of the oldest commissioned warship (USS Constitution) is qualified as the oldest commissioned warship afloat since the Victory has been in dry dock since 1922. The Royal Navy has put considerable effort into preserving her and making her accessible for tours. It is well worth the visit and includes a free audio tour recounting Admiral Horatio Nelson's crucial victory at the Battle of Trafalgar.

The Victory is under years-long maintenance, but the interior is barely affected and that's the highlight. It has been incredibly restored to the condition at the time of Nelson. The included audio guide does a great job in both exploring the ship and setting the context of the Battle of Trafalgar.

This ship may be on the small side, but it is bursting with larger-than-life historical significance! For £18/ticket, you can get a full tour of the HMS Victory. The tours start every half hour, and the tour itself is about 50 minutes long. The tour guide walked us through each deck of the ship, stopping to remark on various historical events and important points of interest. The experience was amazing, and a must for any history buff or naval nut. Well worth the trip! If you get claustrophobic, DO NOT TAKE THIS TOUR. The decks range from 4-5 feet high, and light is at a minimum.

I was disappointed with the HMS Victory exhibit. It could have been so much better. I read all the C. S. Forester and Patrick O'Brian novels about the British Royal Navy during the Napoleonic wars and had looked forward to seeing Admiral Nelson's flag ship the HMS Victory for many years but was really let down by the exhibit. There were no guides either in person or audio, very little signage and almost no descriptive material. The ship was dark and honestly I felt there were areas in which there were ladders which could have been dangerous. The Victory is such a national treasure it is unfortunate that it cannot be displayed better. On the other hand the nearby Mary Rose exhibit made up for my disappointment. I am not sorry I saw the Victory but wish a better job had been done with the way it was shown.

Our experience at HMS Victory was a blast with modern engaging tour guide adding to a unique and interesting experience that covered a large range of information. We would highly recommend this as an destination to visit.

Wish we could on to the ship. From a distance it looks like a huge ship. The naval history is amazing here

Love this ship! It's amazing the history is unquestionably brilliant best attraction in Portsmouth

This is a must-see if you're in Portsmouth. I took my oldest boy there when we went to Salisbury to visit family. My father-in-law insisted we go to Portsmouth to the dockyard for the day, and it was an enormously wonderful experience. The HMS Victory ended up being my eldest boy's favorite part of the entire 2 week trip to England and Wales (and this is a boy who loves Doctor Who, and went to the Cardiff Dr. Who exhibit!). You're able to walk the whole ship, which is really quite something. They have plaques on historic spots, and you're able to easily take photos. All in all it was really a wonderful experience, and if you are there and don't stop by you're doing yourself a big disservice.

Great ship to Bill not recommended for anyone under 15 years of age Love the challenge

Walk the decks of history on this amazing ship. The Navy has done a great job maintaining this ship. The staff is helpful and educational. If you enjoy maritime history, this is the place to go!

I have seen this ship many times. Each time I am still left in awe of its beauty. The rigging is a work of art. It is 26 miles long, if stretched in a line! Its a shame they have no sails. It was £12 to go on the ship and visit the museum. On this occasion I didn't stump up the cash. I think its a bit pricey! Apparently Nelsons great,great,great,great grandson John Tribe had just visited the ship in June. I wonder if he was as short and great looking as his ancester? In storehouse 10 it is possible to see remnants of the original sail. It shows the battle damage inflicted upon it during battle.

A great place to visit whilst in Portsmouth to soak up a bit of important UK naval history. It's a well put together tour as the guides are very knowledgeable and tell a story of life on the ship for everyone from officers to normal ratings, as you walk through the ship. Bring a jacket with you as you never know with British weather and could be pretty cold. Easy to get tickets and lots of tours throughout the day. There is a small shop selling bits and pieces to remember the day. Great piece of history and worth a visit.

Not just one of the last remaining warships of its era, but one of the most important as well: The HMS Victory is a must-see attraction which is part of the tremendous "Portsmouth Historic Dockyard" experience (along with the HMS which offers several days worth of HMS Warrior 1860, the HMS M.33 and the WWII submarine HMS Alliance, plus several museums) which offers several days of exciting sight-seeing for adults as much as more the smaller fry. First things first: If you want to do all of the Portsmouth Harbour attractions in one day (better make it the full day, i.e. 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. in the summer and to 5 p.m. in the winter), make sure to book the "all attractions" ticket *ONLINE*, which will save you money: E.g. the single adult ticket costs UKP 32.00 on the door, but just 25.60 online. The HMS Victory as an individual attraction alone costs UKP 18.00. The HMS Victory is in superb shape (no doubt the result of extensive - and ongoing - preservation and restoration) and full of exciting details on deck and inside. Since the ship is not just fully fitted with historic cannons but also with all kinds of furniture, vintage tableware, hammocks, etc etc you will truly get an impression of what live on such a ship must have been like back in the day - minus sea disturbances, explosions and scurvy. The lighting is very low-key (I imagine it must have been even darker inside back then). You can visit all the decks (be careful on those steep steps between the decks - it's almost inconceivable how sailors were supposed to run up and down those!) and photography is allowed everywhere in the ship. But because of the low lighting you might find it difficult to get sharp images if you only have a smartphone or a super zoom camera). If you have any questions while you're exploring the vessel, there are several friendly guides on every deck who you can ask anything. Of course they're friendlier towards single ladies than to single guys. ;) Since HMS Victory is only part of a large visitors' experience, if you're exhausted or hungry from your exploits there are several restaurants and cafés (sadly, no pub!) on the grounds of the dockyard nearby. Also, in addition to the ship itself you will find a museum with a "Nelson Gallery" right next to it (it's an independent attraction, so you'll either need a new ticket or use your all-attractions ticket - which you must have with you at all times because the staff will check it at every single attraction). All in all this is a most exciting and intriguing tourist and historical attraction. Expect to spend 1.5-2 hours on the HMS Victory alone.

Went here as a guest of the Royal Navy. We didn't go through the normal visitor entrance and we had a guided tour from a British Sailor. First, I didn't know the ship was not actually in the water. Second, the ship is much larger than what I thought. I think after seeing a few of the first American tall ships, I thought I knew what a ship of the line was supposed to look like, but this was huge. I cant remember the actual numbers, but I think it had something like 94 guns...don't quote me, but it was a lot. Seeing the historical side of how the Sailors and Officers lived during this time was amazing. How they ate, slept, conducted war...was all stunning. We went into Admiral Nelson's cabin and wardroom. Again, to witness history like this cannot be properly described, it must be witnessed. At the end, there was a small gift shop that was moderately priced. I would highly recommend a tour and a visit of this ship if visiting Portsmouth.

If your coming to Portsmouth do not leave until you have visited Nelson's Flagship HMS Victory. You will not be dissappointed when you stop by, with a tour onboard the battle of Trafalgar museam ship and the views from the harbour are fantastic. If your intrested in Naval history this is the first point of call. This is an attraction for all the family, reasonably priced. Fun for all.

A must see attraction if you are visiting Portsmouth. The guided tour is brilliant and our guide made it entertaining for both kids and adults. There is a real sense of history as you walk around the ship. It really is awesome and a visit is best combined with other events on offer in the Historic Dockard to make it a great day out!

I was lucky enough to be invited onboard for a prentation of medal to FAA Personnel. Afterwards we were given a tour of Victory (been onboard many years before), the access has really improved. It was brill has it was a Serving Personnel, so we had all the dits too.

over all me and my boyfriend realy enjoyed looking round this ship but we hit a small snag he is 6foot tall and had to keep ducking because there are low beams EVERY where !! and i would warn people with bad backs to may be think before going on to the lower decks. that even if you are short you will still have to duck to git down some of the stairs and this gave me realy bad back ache the worst part is right at the bottom of the ship me and my boyfriend may well just walked on our knees as it was that low so be warned!! the ship is in a very good shape plenty to see but unlike hms warrior you are not allowed to touch most of the things on the ship which was a shame and you have to follow the route marked you cant just wonder round.