UK neighbourhood where ‘time began’ with stunning observatory and a former royal residence
TICK TOCK
Plus, Sun Travel reveal their top London stops on the Elizabeth Line
TIME began in Greenwich, or at least it's where you'll find the Meridian Line.
Not only does the London borough have an interesting history, it's a great place to spend a day with so many other attractions to marvel at.
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Since 1884, the world’s time zones have been measured from a line at the Royal Observatory, which you can visit if you find yourself in Greenwich.
GMT means Greenwich Mean Time, which is what we all set our clocks to.
Putting one foot either side of the Greenwich Meridian means you’re in both the western and eastern hemispheres.
To see where it all started, head to the Royal Observatory. It sits on a hill in Greenwich Park in south east London, overlooking the River Thames.
Here you can marvel at the Great Equatorial Telescope, visit the Octagon Room - which is the oldest part of the observatory.
There's a planetarium there too, and guided tours.
Tickets start at £24 for adults and £12 for children.
Greenwich is a great place for history buffs, as it is also home to Cutty Sark.
The ship is now a museum in a dry dock by the River Thames and you'll find out more onboard.
In the ship's hull is an exhibition where you'll learn all about the tea trade with China.
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It turns out the reason the Cutty Sark was the favourite ship is because it was speedy.
And when it came to the tea trade, the first tea back every year commanded a much higher price – and Cutty Sark would carry 600 tonnes of tea on each run from Shanghai.
Not to mention, you can get selfies behind the wheel.
Tickets for Cutty Sark are £22 for adults and £11 for children.
Anyone who fancies jumping onboard the ship and visiting the observatory can get a Royal Museums Greenwich Day Pass for both attractions which costs £38 for adults and £19 for children.
On the theme of ships, you can also visit the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
We've all heard of famous explorer Horatio Nelson, well, there's a dedicated display to him in the museum.
Other displays are based on the Pacific Ocean as well as polar expeditions and the Spanish Armada.
Stepping away from museums, pay a visit to the Queen's House - which is completely free to enter.
In one of the most beautiful houses as well as a former royal residence which has since been turned into a gallery.
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Not only can you marvel at the house, but also take a look at a huge collection of artwork, spanning from Old Masters to contemporary pieces from the likes of Canaletto, Rembrandt, Gainsborough, Holbein and L.S. Lowry.
The collection also includes the Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I.
Anyone who is a fan of art will need to visit The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College which is often referred to as "England's Sistine Chapel".
It has an impressive Baroque ceiling and walls. Sir James Thornhill's grand fresco scheme, completed in 1726 after 19 years of work, depicts over 200 figures, including kings, queens, and mythological creatures.
Tickets start at £17.50 for adults and children up to 16 years old go free.
On the first Sunday of every month adult tickets cost £5 and children go free.
After all of that exploration, a place to relax and take in the London skyline is Greenwich Park.
The 75 acre park was once used as a private hunting ground for King Henry VIII.
And we reveal London’s best free kids’ attractions.
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