My niece and nephew love with two things. London and ships. My nephew especially has an obsession with the Titanic. I’m not sure when this came about, since he was tiny (and he’s only six now) he’s wanted Titanic toys. And let me tell you something, there is a real lack of Titanic themed toys in the world. For Christmas a couple of years ago, I managed to track down a Titanic Transformer from the 90’s in Denmark, which was maybe the best day of my life. Auntie goals right?

Amazingly, we picked a beautiful day to visit HMS Belfast. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if you went on a rainy day as there is so much to do inside, but because a lot of floors are outside – visiting when it is sunny is a no-brainer.

The closest train and tube station to HMS Belfast is London Bridge, which is an amazing part of town. There’s history everywhere you look. Also, Borough Market is just down the round where you’ll find some of the best things to eat in the UK.

They also love warships, which I blame on my father who knows all there is to do with the Navy and anything war-based.

The London thing – well, I like to think that’s because I live here. But really it has more to do with Big Ben (they bloody love that clock for some reason), the tubes and the red busses.

This is Rosie doing her best ‘I’m flying Jack’ impression.

There are loads of interactive bits and bobs to do in the ship.

So as it was half term in Wales, my sister and Rosie (5) and Oliver (6) came up to London for a few days of fun.

I’ve wanted to take Oliver and Rosie on HMS Belfast for ages because where else can you run around an actual warship and pretend to shoot enemies on the river?

What I didn’t realise is just how set up HMS Belfast is for kids. It’s not ‘just’ the ship – there are interactive displays (the children thought it was hilarious when they picked up a phone and there was a voice on the other side talking to them), scenes set up like it was when it had crew and was really well marked and felt safe.

There are lots of things kids can hold and play with.

Rosie doing some important work while her grandfather poses behind her.

I must have walked up a million bloody stairs by the time the children were done exploring, so be aware of that. They’re ship stairs too – so ladders. You need two working arms and legs to properly get around.

There’s also a posh cafe onboard which was closed the day we went, so you can take a break if you get tired. You could spend hours in there, so a cup of tea will probably be needed.

You can get those headphones which give you actual information around the ship, but we just decided to let the kids play and discover it naturally.

Here’s Oliver sailing the ship down the Thames.

How much is it to go on HMS Belfast?

Standard prices:

The price for an adult is £14.50 and for a child, £7.25. Under 5’s go on free. The price for concessions is £11.60.

It also has family packages. For example a family ticket (2 adults, 2 kids) coms to £37.05. Check out the full price list for more information.

Yep – that’s a torpedo.

How to get 2for1 tickets

The easiest way to get a cheaper visit to HMS Belfast is to use this Days Out Guide 2for1 trick. If you have a valid train ticket for that day, you can get 2 for 1 tickets for all sorts of attractions, including HMS Belfast.

Don’t worry, the you don’t ACTUALLY have to travel on train, but you need a ticket. Here’s the trick, a train ticket within London counts too. So if you went from Wimbledon to London Bridge which is the nearest station, you’re still entitled to get the discount. The cost of the ticket which is a few quid is worth it for the discount you get on the ticket.

This is the ladder situation, so bear in mind you’ll be going up and down a load of these.