London Greenwich

Many people choose to make the hour-long boat trip from Westminster or Tower Hill to Greenwich; boats also run to the Thames Barrier. Travelcard holders get 33% off riverboat trips from a variety of companies. (Visit www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/1131.aspx for details.) City Cruises operates from Westminster Pier to Greenwich via the Tower of London. (☎020 7740 0400; www.citycruises.com. Schedule changes constantly; call for times. One-way £6, all-day “roamer” ticket £7; children £3/3.50).

ROYAL OBSERVATORY GREENWICH. Charles II founded the Observatory in 1675 to accelerate the task of “finding the longitude” after one too many shipwrecks led to public outcry. Despite its importance, he insisted it be built for under £500, so beams from ships and other construction sites were brought in to offset costs. Even though the puzzle of longitude was eventually solved, Greenwich still plays an important role as the marker of hemispheres: the Prime Meridian, or longitude 0º0’0’’, is marked by a constantly photographed red LED strip in the courtyard and allows you to occupy space in both hemispheres. Next, you must choose one of two routes. The Meridian route takes you through all aspects of time, beginning with the Flamsteed House, a Christopher Wren creation originally designed as a living space for John Hamsteed, the first Astronomer Royal; it’s topped by the Time Ball, which climbs to full mast at 12:58pm, only to drop again at 1pm. The Astronomy route takes you through to the back building, where you’ll find a number of interactive exhibits about space exploration and the popular planetarium. (At the top of Greenwich Park, a short but steep climb from the National Maritime Museum or an easier walk up the Avenue from St. Mary’s Gate at the top of King William Walk. Tram leaves from the back of the Museum every 30min. ☎020 8858 4422; www.nmm.ac.uk. Open daily in summer 10am-8pm, in winter 10am-5pm. Last entry 30min. before closing. Summer open 10am-8pm; check website to confirm. Planetarium £6, students and children £4. Royal Observatory free.)

THE ROYAL NAVAL COLLEGE. On the site of Henry VIII’s Palace of Placentia—where he and his daughters Mary and Elizabeth I were born—the Royal Naval College was built in 1696 as the Royal Hospital for Seamen, a naval retirement in the vein of the army’s Royal Hospital in Chelsea. However, the strict regime proved unpopular with former seamen, and in 1873 it was converted into the Royal Naval College. In 1998, the Navy packed its bags and the newly formed University of Greenwich stepped in, along with the famed Trinity College of Music. Most of the buildings are closed to the public, but two are open and worth a stop: the first, the extravagant Painted Hall, took Sir James Thornhill 19 years to complete; the second, the brightly colored chapel. The Queen Mary Bar and King William Restaurant below the chapel and Painted Hall, respectively. (King William Walk. ☎020 8269 4747; www.greenwichfoundation.org.uk. Chapel and Painted Hall open daily 10am-5pm; chapel may close for weddings. Su 11am worship service open to public. Guided tours of the College leave from the Painted Hall Th-Sa 11:30am and 2pm, Su 2pm. Free. Tours £5.)

GREENWICH PARK. A former royal hunting ground, Greenwich Park is home to fun and relaxation as young people and families come out in droves to sunbathe, picnic, and play pick-up soccer. But recreation is nothing new to the park: on the east side, the now-horizontal Queen Elizabeth Oak marks the spot where Henry VIII once frolicked with an allegedly 11-fingered Anne Boleyn. A chestnut tree (that many have mistaken for oak) was planted in the spot as a replacement in 1992. The garden in the southeast corner of the park blends English garden and fairy tale, complete with a deer park, while down the hill from the observatory lie the remains of an AD first-century Roman settlement and Saxon burial mounds (tumuli).(Open daily 7am-dusk. Children’s Boating Pool, behind the observatory, open June-Aug. daily 10:30am-5pm; Sept.-May Sa-Su 10:30am-5pm. 20min. paddle boat rental £2.50, children £1.50.)

CUTTY SARK. Before it was a Scotch, the Cutty Sark was the fastest of the British tea-liners. Built in 1869, she made the round-trip voyage from China in only 120 days, carrying over a million pounds of tea. Retired from the sea in the 1930s, the deck and cabins have been partially restored to their 19th-century prime. The hold houses an exhibit on the ship’s history and a collection of figureheads, while the upper deck features the officer’s quarters—a far cry, comfort-wise, from those of the crew. Due to a large-scale conservation project that began in 2006, the ship is closed to visitors until 2010. (King William Walk, by Greenwich Pier. ☎020 8858 3445; www.cuttysark.org.uk. Will be open daily 10am-5pm. Call for opening updates and details.)