Thanks for visiting the next article in my series on traveling outside of London during your time abroad! If you didn’t get a chance to start at the beginning, make sure you read my first post here. Then you can read about my next six trips to Stonehenge, Bath, York, Oxford, the Cotswolds, and North of England before checking out Greenwich! 

Greenwich, pronounced "Grin idge" or "Grin itch", is a town located in England. Also referred to as a borough, Greenwich is a short 20-minute ride from Central London. While you can get there by train or Tube, we traveled by river boat across the River Thames. I had never traveled by river boat before, so it was a fun experience. Greenwich is a small town just outside of Central London, but it is home to several must-see sights while visiting London. It makes for a great day trip and I would recommend taking a full day to explore!

Greenwich river boat (above and below)

Painted Hall

This was our first stop as we exited the river boat. The Painted Hall is one of those places you have to see in person to truly experience. While I took a ton of pictures, it still doesn’t allow you to fully grasp what you are looking at in pictures. The entire hall is breathtaking. It is very impressed to think about what it would have been like in the early 1700s to paint something of this nature. 

I don’t know if it still resides there today, but while I was there, Disney had loaned out the Pirates of Caribbean costume for Jack Sparrow to be on display. Pirates of the Caribbean 4 had just been released a few months before that and part of the movie was actually filmed in the Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College. Click here to read more about it. There were a few people in our group who were really excited about it.

While we were there, they had information on an upcoming restoration project. Now six years later, according to a recent article, they are working on additional restoration projects to continue to repair and restore it. This is on my must-see list for my next trip to see the progress. 

Prime Meridian at the Royal Observatory 

If you’ll recall from middle school, you most likely learned about the Prime Meridian, which is a meridian where longitude is defined as 0°. The Prime Meridian passes through Greenwich and information about it can be found at the Royal Observatory. It is very cool to be able to say I’ve been there. Also, the view from the Royal Observatory is quite unique, given the height. 

While we did walk up and visit, we decided to not actually go inside because we were short on time. There was a queue and it was £8 (about $11 at the time). Just make sure to plan accordingly! 

Also, I will warn you, while it is cool to see, you will need to climb a very steep hill to get there. Coming down is a breeze, but you have to make sure to not let yourself walk too fast down the hill. You can easily get carried away. 

Maritime Museum 

The Maritime Museum was where we spent a majority of our time. I ended up walking around the museum for about 2 hours. Make sure to give yourself plenty of time so you don’t miss anything or feel rushed. I didn’t know too much about maritime, so it was fascinating to learn about how everything worked. The museum had some interactive parts, which were a lot of fun and made it more interesting to learn. And like many other museums in the United Kingdom, there is no charge for admission so make sure to add it to your list. 

This is the largest maritime museum in the United Kingdom, but you will also find a lot of the town is focused around maritime. It is very much rooted in the maritime history. So if you are interested in maritime, I would not only check out the museum, but take time to look around the town. 

Things to Think About

While Greenwich is a small town, it houses a lot of history - so make sure to stop and really take everything in because it is quite impressive. Try to imagine what life would have been like in the prime days of the area. The Painted Hall was definitely a highlight for me because of the history and I look forward to seeing it again one day. 

Old Royal Naval College

Make sure to check back for my next blog about Wales. Catch you next time! 

Pin for later:

Heather Robinette is the London Study Abroad Editor for Wandering Educators. She notes, "During the summer of 2011, I studied abroad for six weeks in London at the University of Westminster with Academics Programs International. I graduated from Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS in December 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. I currently work as a marketing analyst for a small company in central Texas. I currently work as a marketing coordinator for a real estate firm in Las Vegas, NV. I am also pursuing my MBA. While I was abroad in London, I was able to create many unforgettable memories that I will never forget! My study abroad experience helped me gain various skills, but above all else, it helped me to learn more about myself and the world around me." You can find her online at http://www.heatherrobinette.com/

Click here to read more of Heather's articles about studying abroad in London.

All photos courtesy and copyright Heather Robinette