When looking for things to do with kids in Bristol, the SS Great Britain is rarely a bad place to start. Known as ‘the world’s first great ocean liner’, it was by far the largest ship in the world when it launched in 1843. Today, there’s even more reason to visit the SS Great Britain as kids can go free this summer to celebrate this amazing anniversary.
Next week (July 19) the SS Great Britain will mark 180 years since she was launched into Bristol Harbour and changed global travel forever. To celebrate the significant anniversary, the SS Great Britain is launching Kids Go Free This Summer, which will run September 3. Families can explore Brunel’s iconic ship – which now rests in Great Western Dockyard, the very dock where Brunel built it – without spending a penny on the littluns.
The 180th-anniversary celebrations include an exciting new food trail – Birthday Banquet Blunder – where families can follow a series of clues to find food items hidden throughout the ship. The trail will teach children about the food that passengers would have eaten on board. Plus, families can solve party preparation blunders, which are all based on real-life events that happened on board.
Iona Keen, Head of Interpretation at Brunel’s SS Great Britain said: “We’re delighted to be launching Kids Go Free This Summer, to enable more people than ever to experience the wonders of the SS Great Britain. Visitors will be able to step on board to embark on their own voyages of discovery.”
That’s not all available either. If they dare, visitors can Go Aloft! and climb the ship’s rigging on the highest rope walk in the UK. The whole family can learn about the life and legacy of Britain’s greatest engineer, as well as meet Mr Brunel and other Victorians. You can also step back in time this summer by peering through a pair of augmented reality binoculars that will transport them to 1843. Created by Zubr, the experience will allow visitors to see the ship and the floating harbour as they were 180 years ago.
The Bristol launch of the SS Great Britain in 1843 caused huge excitement throughout the nation. Queen Victoria’s husband, Prince Albert, travelled on Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s new Great Western Railway from London to Bristol to attend the launch. The ship would go on to sail around the world 32 times, travelling more than 1,000,000 miles at sea.
The family food trail and augmented reality experience are included with your tickets to Brunel’s SS Great Britain. Kids Go Free This Summer tickets can be purchased here.