HMS Caroline

An excellent visit and well worth the money! Arrived for the morning for the guided tour on a Sunday morning. Chap on the desk was lovely and welcoming and said I could start on the guided tour after I had seen the introductory video in the next room, which was about the Battle of Jutland featuring the ship. Excellent graphics with brilliant sound and video quality, really was immersive. Following this I was led round the rest of the ship by a knowledgeable chap called Chris (I think that was his name!).

We visited the officers and crew quarters, deck of the stern, communications room, and even the engine room, which included surround sound of what it was like to be down in such a room - very loud! Chris encouraged questions and explained life on board the ship and how different areas changed over time. There was also a café and a small shop which he kindly offered to open up for me before his next tour. Really enjoyable experience all round. Interactives were present in one of the rooms also!

As it was winter we weren't able to visit the bridge due to safety reasons which I totally understand. It's clear a lot of effort has been put into making parts of the ship as accessible as possible which is wonderful, usually this isn't the case on many museum ships or obvious reasons but somehow they made it work for most areas! Be aware though there are some areas which are quite tight to walk through due to overhead beams, bulkhead doors etc but hopefully you will expect that anyway when visiting.

Would love to visit again for such a unique experience.

In terms of locality, this is at the very end of the Maritime mile, about a 10 minute walk north from the Titanic museum. There are some small signs directing you over to its location, although there could be a few more further south at the beginning of the mile and round the Titanic quarter. If in doubt, there is a really good cheap bus (G2) service which takes you right near its location from the city centre - a 15 minute journey.

Easy booking of tickets and guide book online. The staff were welcoming, friendly and helpful. The pre ship information display was very informative and easily followed. The audio story was superb, both interesting from the naval point of view and very personal in relation to the crew.
An excellent experience and well worth the fee. The ticket is a yearly access one so I’ll definitely be back for another 2 hour, 15 mins of immersion in the Battle of Jutland. Don’t miss the Engine room for a truly sensory experience of sound, smell and vibration.

Well worth our walk to go see HMS Caroline. Really interesting to walk the decks and learn about the ships history. Things to do for little ones, or big kids (adults) like morse code and messaging activities. We also had a nice cuppa in the cafe onboard to warm up as it was pretty chilly walking round the day we went. Make sure you’re wrapped up warm. The audio guide was easy to use and good to have as we made our way round.

On a short visit to the city we took a walk around the Titanic area and came upon this ship almost by accident. It was a very impressive site and we were able to learn something of its history. Unfortunately, due to restrictions, we were unable to board. Maybe next time ?

Visited on Thursday 07th September 2023 having arrived from our overnight cruise I got a free shuttle bus into Belfast City Centre and then walked through the Maritime Mile to the second oldest commissioned ship in the Royal Navy and sole survivor from the Battle of Jutland, British Light Cruiser HMS Caroline. The entry cost of £11 was great value, and the welcome by the reception desk was very appreciated. I purchased the guidebook too which was also very reasonable. The self-guided tour included audio descriptions triggered from fixed points both on the ship and in the room which detail the ship's history. Once on the ship there is an initial stunning film which depicts some of the scenes from the Battle of Jutland and the timeline from the engagement. Each section includes fascinating insights into the lives of those who served and an engine section AV presentation that is quite intimidating but brilliantly shows how uncomfortable it must of been to work in such conditions. There is a cafe on board which I didn't make use of but looked decent enough. I can't recommend a visit more.

Absolutely disgusted, have an annual ticket and used to visit regularly many to get a coffee in the cafe. We drove to do this on a wet Sunday only to be turned around in the rain and told they were only doing guided tours and cafe was open after the tour. We saw no advertising of this online and wasted fuel and time going to be turned around. What a pathetic and stupid idea to stop people from coming on board to spend money with a ticket they bought originally thinking they could use it for a year. Complaint going in. Also if you have mobility issues there is a fare walk from the car park as they haven’t bothered to put an entrance where the car park is!! You have to go across a bridge with wood on it that is very dangerous for stick users as the stick slips!! Tore ticket up and will NEVER go back

Definitely worth the modest admission charges to look round the only surviving warship from the battle of Jutland in 1916.

The ship is located at the bottom end of the historic dockyard walk and has only recently reopened after the pandemic. It also looked like the museum had performed some restoration on it whilst closed as the ship was very well presented.

It was easy to get around the vessel and to follow the 'push to hear' audio buttons. There are also lifts installed for those who may struggle with the steepness of some the ships steps.

There are some excellent interactive displays, for young and old - I quite liked the 'try your hand at breaking the code' one. Disaster!

There is a nice cafeteria also on board serving good food. I enjoyed sitting in the old mess hall on the lower deck. Unusual location for a welcome coffee and cake. The staff were very friendly and helpful as well.

Not overpriced at all and definitely worth a look round.

We didn't know what to expect as I didn't really know much about the ship, but we were both blown away by the tour as a whole. Loads to see and do and great to listen to the stories that are part of the audio tour. Special mention to all the staff we met as all were extremely knowledgeable and friendly. We thought we would be in and out in 30 mins, ended up spending nearly 2 hours!! Worth the dander up from Titanic for a look.

Really enjoyed our visit to this WW1 warship which is the last remaining warship from the Battle of Jutland. Good parking available, tickets can be bought online in advance or at the ticket desk when you arrive. On arrival, check in at the ticket desk in the adjacent building and get free audioguides. On board the ship you point your audioguide at lots of different points clearly marked and it tells you about that part of the ship. Lots to do and see on board at the different levels with rooms set out to show how life would have been for the sailors. Lots of video and interactive exhibits and activities for younger children as well as plenty to interest teenagers. At the start there is a 10 minute video portraying the Battle of Jutland projected in a room on a large wall inside the ship. This is quite loud and might be too much for little kids but you could skip through this bit if needed. Nice little coffee shop in the mess area of the ship they do excellent coffee, soft drinks and snacks and light wraps and sandwiches all priced reasonably.
Wear sensible shoes/trainers because there are steps, stairs which are steep and uneven surfaces to negotiate.
A great way to spend a sunny morning.

First encountered HMS Caroline while walking during first COVID lockdown. Planned to visit once it had reopened.

Booked tickets online, which was easy and arrived at office to check-in. The tour includes a self directed audio tour. I’ve had mixed experiences with these sort of things in the past so wasn’t sure what to expect. The device only works on the ship as the helpful person on the arrival desk explained. You move the device towards one of the indicators on the ship and the commentary begins after an audible beep. The information was interesting, not too long, and a mix of technical facts and personal experiences.

The initial presentation on the Battle of Jutland was impressive and immersive, being projected across the whole wall of the room. Lots of information was also displayed on signs throughout the ship, with an excellent and engaging amount of interactive displays.

It was interesting to see the story of the ship from planning and construction to service, decommissioning, the chance request that saved her from the breaker’s yard, and eventual restoration to her current role as a Royal Navy Museum vessel. Alongside this was information about her crew from the Great War.

The whole exhibition gave one a glimpse into the experience of living onboard such a ship during wartime.

There is an excellent café onboard serving sandwiches, snacks, tray-bakes, scones, soft drinks, tea and coffee. The gift shop at the end of the tour also had a lot of interesting items.

You could easily spend a whole day onboard working your way through all of the items. Allow at least 3 hours for your visit.