As it was Ann’s last day, we wanted to do something special, and Ann had arranged tour tickets for us to see the decommissioned royal yacht Britannia, where Queen Elizabeth, her family and friends spent many happy years sailing the seas.
it was a long bus ride but we saw some local color en route.
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Once inside the terminal, we were given an introduction with many photographs before boarding the ship.
As we entered the ship we were welcomed by one of the many corgis who make this ship their home. They were everywhere throughout the ship.
The Queen’s bedroom
Prince Phillip’s bedroom
This is the guest room, AKA “The Honeymoon Suite “ after the wedding of Charles and Diana. He had to request that a double bed be placed here.
We took a break for coffee, which ended up being a delicious cream tea, with a bit of the bubbly to boot! The tea room is gorgeous and the whole experience was suchan indulgence. We loved it!
Back on the tour, we went through the dining room, the ante room and other common spaces that were enjoyed by passengers on the yacht. We also saw the Queen’s study and Prince Phillip’s working spaces. They had a telephone line to connect them to each other while they were working.
Below decks we saw the crew area and entertainment spaces. There were lounges and bars for the officers and similar spaces for the crew. Everyone seemed well cared for. There was also a sick bay, with an operating room and infirmary. The laundry room was huge and, it was told, hot. All the washing and ironing was done there.
Our tour was over and it was time to get Ann back to the hotel to pick up her bag and get to the train station to continue her journey to London. We were very lucky. A taxi pulled up shortly after we got to the street. Even with heavy traffic during the festival season, we managed to get to the hotel, and the same driver waited for her to get her bag and he took her to the station.
The weather has been warming up and our visit to the yacht was perfect. It was a very long day so we crashed for some time afterwards.
We are winding down as the tour ends Monday morning. Stay tuned tuned for more. We will be seeing two more shows, and we will be having the Whiskey Experience and farewell dinner Sunday evening.
Wow! Fascinating! I would loved to have seen the royal yacht! Onward to your next adventure. J.
This would be THEE highlight for me. Wonderful tour & pics. You ladies are brave to indulge in overseas excursions, canes et al. Hopefully other foot traffic is kind to / and patient with your pace. Thanks