London Free GuideLondon Free GuideLondon Free Guide nazar, warding off the evil eye
ExploreFree A–ZGuidesDay TripsFirst TimeCalendarHire us
the little ship that sailed the world

Golden Hinde (exterior)

Free
Bankside · London Bridge
Get directions

A full-size replica of Sir Francis Drake's galleon, free to admire from the quayside in a hidden Bankside dock.

Getting there. At St Mary Overie Dock off Cathedral Street, a couple of minutes from London Bridge or Borough Market.
Free landmark ship
ALWAYS
FREE
Bankside · London Bridge
LONDON FREE GUIDE

The lowdown

Tucked into a small dock just off the Bankside riverside sits the Golden Hinde, a full-size seaworthy replica of the galleon in which Sir Francis Drake became the first Englishman to sail around the world between 1577 and 1580. What strikes everyone is how tiny it is, that such a small wooden ship carried a crew across every ocean on Earth.

Boarding the ship for a tour charges admission, but you can stand on the cobbled quayside and admire it from outside for free, masts and rigging towering over you in a hidden corner of Bankside. It makes a great free photo stop on a walk between Borough Market and the river.

Locals only

The insider tip

The bit we only tell the people on the list. Join free and every insider tip unlocks on this device.

The quayside view is free and the best angle for a photo is from the little dock at the bottom of the steps. It sits right on the Bankside walk between Borough Market and Southwark Cathedral, both also free.
One tap unlocks every insider tip on this device and gets you the weekly free-London email. No spam, leave any time.

Featured in these guides

A free walk along the South Bank

More like this

Kenwood House
Hidden gem
Free
Kenwood House
A free neoclassical mansion on the edge of Hampstead Heath with a Rembrandt, a Vermeer and a Turner on the walls, plus a walled garden and a cracking cafe.
Daily 10am–5pm
Hampstead · HampsteadGoogle Maps
Hidden gem
Crystal Palace Dinosaurs
Free
Crystal Palace Dinosaurs
The first dinosaur sculptures ever built, free in a south London park, a herd of gloriously wonky Victorian monsters made in 1854, years before anyone really knew what dinosaurs looked like.
Daily · park roughly 7:30am to dusk
Crystal Palace · Crystal PalaceGoogle Maps
London Mithraeum
Free
London Mithraeum
A reconstructed Roman temple to a mystery god, rebuilt seven metres below Bloomberg's headquarters with an atmospheric light and sound show, all free.
Tue–Sat, free but pre-book
City of London · BankGoogle Maps
Back to Explore

Get it in your inbox

One email a week with the best free things to do in London this weekend. Before everyone else finds them.

No spam. One tap to leave. We never sell your email.
Follow everywhere, same content
InstagramTikTokSubstackXThreadsFacebook