Royal Navy Submarine Museum from Hayling Island: HMS Alliance, Holland 1 and a winter day in Gosport near Sandy Point

If you want a properly different day out from Sandy Point, the Royal Navy's own submarine museum is just across Portsmouth Harbour in Gosport. Royal Navy Museums: Submarines (still widely known as the Royal Navy Submarine Museum) lets you climb aboard HMS Alliance, a real Second World War era submarine where you can meet volunteers, many of them former submariners, and see Holland 1, the Royal Navy's very first submarine, launched 125 years ago in 1901.

It sits at Haslar Road, Gosport PO12 2AS. From Wittering Sands, our exclusive-use house at 14 Wittering Road, Hayling Island PO11 9SP, it is about 23 miles, or roughly 45 to 55 minutes by car around the top of Portsmouth Harbour. It is open Wednesday to Sunday through the winter, and most of the visit is indoors or under cover, which makes it a strong pick for a grey November or December day. This guide covers what you will see, opening times and tickets, Christmas 2026 dates, how it works for children, older relatives and dogs, and how to fit it into a stay.

What is Royal Navy Museums: Submarines?

It is the Gosport site of the National Museum of the Royal Navy, which now trades as Royal Navy Museums. The museum says it tells the story of the Submarine Service from its earliest experiments to the covert operations of today, with real submarines, submarine science and the people who served on them. The site was once part of HMS Dolphin, a Royal Navy shore establishment in Gosport.

It is one of the attractions on the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard ticket, alongside HMS Victory and the Mary Rose, but you do not have to go to the Dockyard first. You can drive straight to Gosport and park for free. Most visitors spend around two hours here.

What will you see?

• HMS Alliance: the museum describes her as the sole surviving British submarine from the Second World War. She was built in response to the attack on Pearl Harbor and launched in July 1945. Soon after she was commissioned in 1947 she broke the world record for the longest time a submarine had spent underwater, three weeks continuously submerged. She served through the Cold War, including patrols in the 1960s Indonesian Confrontation, was decommissioned in 1973 and came to the museum in 1978. Inside you squeeze through narrow passageways, look through working periscopes and explore the cramped spaces where the crew lived and worked. The museum points out that crews shared nearly everything, even toothbrushes. Today she is also a memorial to submariners who never came home.
• Holland 1: the Royal Navy's first submarine, launched on 2 October 1901 and only 63 feet long. Her first commanding officer found her being built in secret in a shed labelled "yacht shed". She was sold for scrap in 1913 but sank under tow near the Eddystone Lighthouse, lay on the seabed for almost 70 years, was found in 1981 and raised in November 1982. She now sits in her own dehumidified gallery, opened in 2001, and you can step aboard.
• X24: a compact X-class midget submarine, about 15 metres long, which shows how small and cramped some wartime boats were.
• Silent and Secret: a gallery on Britain's Polaris submarines and the nuclear deterrent, told through the personal stories of the people who served on them.
• The Jolly Roger display: why submarine crews fly a skull and crossbones when they come home from a successful patrol. The tradition dates from 1914, and the museum holds the earliest known surviving example, flown from HMS E54. Visitors can design their own flag and see it projected onto the wall.
• The memorial garden: outside, around the museum building, and free to visit without a ticket.

Is it good on a winter or rainy day?

Mostly, yes. The galleries, Holland 1 and the inside of HMS Alliance are all under cover, so it works well on a wet day when the beach is off. Two things to know. The site itself is exposed and the ground is a mix of cobbles, decking and concrete, so wear sturdy shoes and warm layers. And the museum warns that the submarines get very cold in winter, so keep coats on inside Alliance.

That makes it a good fit for a November weekend stay or a Christmas and New Year stay, alongside our winter walks and birdwatching guide for the drier days.

When is it open?

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard's opening times page lists Royal Navy Museums: Submarines as:

• Wednesday to Sunday: 10am to 4pm
• Monday and Tuesday: usually closed, with some extra days added in school holidays (such as the Christmas dates below)
• Car park: closes at 4.45pm, and cars left after that risk being locked in

For Christmas 2026 the same page shows the museum closed on 24, 25 and 26 December, with extra opening on Monday 21, Tuesday 22, Monday 28 and Tuesday 29 December, and 11am to 4pm on New Year's Day. Hours can change, so check the Dockyard's opening times page before you set off.

How much are tickets?

Entry is on Portsmouth Historic Dockyard tickets, which have no booking fees. The published prices are:

• 1 Ship or Museum Day ticket: adults (16+) £36, children (3 to 15) £26, for one attraction on one day. Choose Submarines as your attraction.
• 3 Ships or Museums annual ticket: adults £46, children £31, for three attractions with unlimited visits for 12 months.
• Ultimate Experience annual ticket: adults £51, children £36, or £99 for one adult and up to three children and £120 for two adults and up to three children, covering every attraction for 12 months.

Children under 3 are outside the paid price bands; you collect an under 3s ticket at the first attraction you visit. A companion supporting a full-paying visitor can get a free carer's ticket. If you are thinking of Portsmouth Historic Dockyard on another day of your stay, an annual ticket can work out better value than two day tickets. Prices can change, so check before you book.

Can you go by boat?

Yes, sometimes. A waterbus runs across the harbour between Portsmouth Historic Dockyard and the Gosport museums, and it is included with a Dockyard ticket. In winter (November to March) it runs at weekends only, and daily in Hampshire school holidays, and it is weather dependent. It cannot take wheelchairs or full-size pushchairs, only umbrella-fold strollers. If the waterbus is not running, the museum suggests the Gosport Ferry as the alternative. Our Portsmouth Harbour guide covers the Dockyard side.

Is it good for children?

Yes, especially for children who like ships, machines or squeezing into small spaces. Reviews on the Dockyard's own page mention plenty of interactive things for children, and the Jolly Roger flag projector is a favourite. A few practical points:

• Pushchairs cannot go on board the submarines; there is a buggy park, and staff can tell you where to leave it.
• The submarines have small hatches, steep metal steps, low ceilings and lots of pipes and valves, so little ones need a hand and adults need to mind their heads.
• The museum calls the inside of the submarines a claustrophobic environment, worth knowing if anyone in your group dislikes tight spaces.

It fits well into a February half-term or October half-term week; check the opening times page for any extra holiday days.

Is it accessible?

The museum building has step-free access to the main visitor areas, a lift to the first-floor galleries, accessible toilets with baby changing, and seating throughout. HMS Alliance itself is not wheelchair accessible. A lift gives access to the aft end only, so wheelchair users can see part of the interior but not walk through, and the Dockyard notes that the lift has been under maintenance, so contact the museum before you visit to check. Holland 1 is reached by a ramp and steps. For an older relative who cannot manage steep steps, the galleries, Holland 1 viewing and memorial garden still make a worthwhile visit.

Can you bring a dog?

No. Only assistance dogs are allowed at Royal Navy Museums: Submarines. If you have a dog with you, the sister museum, Royal Navy Museums: Explosion at Priddy's Hard in Gosport, has a dog-friendly harbourside café, Camber Lights (open 11am to 3pm, Wednesday to Sunday), although dogs cannot go into the museum itself. Our dog-friendly Hayling guide has better dog days out.

Where can you eat?

The visitor centre sells snacks, sandwiches, drinks and ice cream, and you are welcome to bring a picnic to eat on site. In Hampshire school holidays there are extra hot snacks and pasties from the Harbour Coffee Stop. Free WiFi is available.

How do you get there from Sandy Point?

• By car: about 23 miles and roughly 45 to 55 minutes in normal traffic, longer at peak times. Cross the Langstone bridge, head west around the top of Portsmouth Harbour towards Fareham, then take the A32 south into Gosport and follow signs for the museum. Use Haslar Road, Gosport PO12 2AS for satnav. Parking is free, but remember the car park closes at 4.45pm. With a group of up to nine, two cars is the simplest plan.
• By waterbus: drive or take the train to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard and cross on the waterbus at weekends. Our getting to Hayling from London guide covers the trains.

What else could you combine it with?

Explosion, the naval firepower museum at Priddy's Hard, is also in Gosport and is on the same ticket options, with the same Wednesday to Sunday winter pattern. The museum says the two Gosport sites are about a 2 mile, 40 minute walk apart, so most people drive between them.

On the way home, Portchester Castle sits right on the route around the harbour, and Fort Nelson, the Royal Armouries' artillery fort, is on the hill above Fareham. For more naval history, try our Southsea seafront and D-Day Story guide or Tangmere Military Aviation Museum for the RAF side. The Isle of Wight guide covers the ferries from Portsmouth, and the Around Hayling guide covers beaches, pubs and walks on the island. Planning something bigger? Our milestone birthday guide has ideas for a family celebration stay.

What are the stay details?

Check-in at Wittering Sands is from 4pm and checkout is by 10am. The house sleeps up to nine across four bedrooms and five beds, with 3.5 bathrooms. Children are welcome, and infants under 2 are welcome too, with a travel cot and highchair on request. Up to two well-behaved dogs are welcome at the house. The house is for the booked guests only and does not allow parties or events. The minimum stay is usually 3 nights, and the booking calendar shows the minimum for your dates.

Rates vary by season and length of stay. The live calendar shows the current figure for your dates; this guide does not indicate availability.

How do you book?

Check the live booking calendar for current dates and pricing. If you want to talk through the group, dogs or travel plans, get in touch.

Opening times, prices and events can change. Check the Royal Navy Museums and Portsmouth Historic Dockyard websites before you travel.