England Guide
Bristol, Bath and Somerset
SS Great Britain
Opening time: Daily: April– Oct 10am–6pm; Nov– March 10am–4.30pm; last entry 1hr before closing
Price: £10.50
Address: Floating Harbour, off Gas Ferry Rd
Website: www.ssgreatbritain.org
The major attraction on the Harbour, and one of Bristol's iconic sights, the SS Great Britain was the first propeller-driven, ocean-going iron ship, built in 1843 by Brunel. She initially ran between Liverpool and New York, then between Liverpool and Melbourne, circumnavigating the globe 32 times over a period of 26 years. Her ocean-going days ended in 1886 when she was caught in a storm off Cape Horn; she was eventually recovered and returned to Bristol in 1968. On board you can see restored cabins and peer into the immense engine room. The same ticket allows you admission to the much smaller Matthew, moored close by and to the adjoining Dockyard Museum, which gives the background of both vessels, of Cabot and his exploits, and of Bristol's long shipbuilding history.