The National Museum of the Royal Navy is launching new behind-the-scenes tours in Portsmouth, Hampshire, on 6 March 2026. Starting at 2:00 PM, these sessions will give visitors a rare look at restricted workshops and hidden collections usually closed to the public.
Each tour is limited to just 10 people to provide a personal experience with the museum curators and experts who care for the exhibits. Residents and tourists must book their spots in advance to see how historic ships and naval artifacts are preserved.
The programme offers a close-up view of the £42 million HMS Victory: The Big Repair conservation project. A new scaffolding structure allows visitors to see inside the 260-year-old warship and view parts of the hull that have been hidden for generations.
People living in the local area with PO or SO postcodes can receive a 30 per cent discount on their Ultimate Explorer tickets. This discount is part of a scheme run by the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard to make the site more accessible to the community.
The tour will also showcase traditional skills used by the museum team, such as rigging and boatbuilding. These experts are currently working on preserving fragments of the ship’s hull to ensure the naval heritage of the city is kept safe for the future.
