Avon Gorge Cruises on The Matthew
A three to four-hour trip down the River Avon - look out into the river through one of the deepest locks in the world! We leave Floating Harbour through Junction Lock, then sail down the river under the Clifton Suspension Bridge and along the Avon Gorge to Pill and back.
These trips are tide-dependent so we can only offer a limited number of trips each year – early booking is very strongly advised!
Trip duration: approx. 4 hours
Catering: This trip is not catered – you are welcome to bring your own packed lunch/snacks to enjoy on your cruise!
Bar: Our licensed (cash-only) bar will be open for the duration of the trip, serving a selection of beers, wines, cider, soft drinks and hot drinks.
BOOKING FAQs
-
Trip dates are announced in batches throughout the year as and when they are confirmed. Keep an eye on our website and social media for news.
Alternatively, why not subscribe to The Matthew newsletter and be amongst the first to find out all our latest trip news? You’ll be alerted as soon as new dates are announced and tickets are on sale!
-
Prices for our 2025 trips are:
Harbour Trip
Adult: £15
Concessions: £12.50
Child (5–17 years): £12.50
Child (0-4 years): FreeAvon Gorge Cruise
Adults: £47.50
Concessions: £42.50
Child (5–17 years): £42.50
Child (0-4 years): FreeFish & Chips Trip
Adults: £36.00
Concessions: £33.00
Child (5–17 years): £33.00
Child (0-4 years) - food included: £10.00
Child (0-4 years) - no food: FreeFish & Chips Trip with Piratitude
Adult: £42.50
Child (5–17 years): £42.50
Child (0-4 years) - food included: £20.00
Child (0-4 years) - no food: £10.00Fish & Chips Trip with Sea Shanties
Adult: £42.50
Child (5–17 years): £42.50
Child (0-4 years) - food included: £20.00
Child (0-4 years) - no food: £10.00
----
Concessions:
Concession tickets are valid for seniors (age 65+), disabled people, and carers
Concession tickets are not available for Fish & Chips trips which include entertainment
Trips with food:
The ticket price for our Fish & Chips Trips include food, except where stated.
Meal options must be selected during the booking process.
All meals are gluten free.
Some items may contain nuts or traces of nuts, flour and other allergy-associated products.
2025 menu:
Fish & Chips
Sausage (plain or battered) & chips
Meat-free sausage (plain or battered) & chips
-
Yes, you can. Advance tickets for all confirmed trips are available to purchase online (subject to availability).
• Harbour Trips and Avon Gorge Cruises: Online booking will close up to 48 hours before the scheduled trip date.
• Fish & Chips Trips: Online booking will close up to seven days before the scheduled trip date for all trips including food.
-
• Harbour Trips and Avon Gorge Cruises: If we have any tickets left after online booking has closed, you will be able to buy tickets on board on the day. If we do have any tickets available on the day, they will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis and cannot be reserved.
• Fish & Chips Trips: Tickets for all trips that include food must be purchased online in advance. There will not be any tickets available on board on the day. Online booking for these trips close up to seven days before the trip date so that we have time to order the food from our caterers.
Please note that our trips often sell out in advance. Check the timetable to see our current ticket availability for online booking.
-
Our trip dates are confirmed and released in batches. Click on the ‘Timetable & Online Booking’ button above to view all of our currently available dates – the timetable is updated as and when we confirm new dates.
If there are no dates listed for the particular date or month you are looking for, then we have not announced a trip for this date.
To be amongst the first to find out when new trips are announced, please subscribe to The Matthew newsletter – we send one to all subscribers as soon as new trips are confirmed.
-
ONLINE BOOKINGS: We accept card payments and The Matthew gift vouchers for all tickets purchased online in advance.
IN-PERSON BOOKINGS: If you purchase tickets on board on the day of the trip, our volunteers can only take CASH payments as the ship does not have the facilities to accept card payments on board. However, our volunteers will be happy to direct you to the nearest cashpoint.
-
Your gift voucher can be redeemed either in full or as part payment against tickets for a public trip listed on our website (subject to availability). Check the timetable to see our current trip dates and availability.
You will be invited to enter your voucher code during the online booking process.
All tickets booked using a gift voucher must be purchased online in advance – we cannot accept vouchers for tickets purchased on the day.
-
The capacity of The Matthew is strictly limited to 40 passengers (including children and babies) for the majority of our trips. The capacity is reduced to 35 passengers for trips that include musical entertainment.
If a trip is marked as sold out, this does mean that we have no tickets left for either online booking or on board on the day.
We do operate a waiting list for sold-out trips. If we do not have enough tickets available for your group, you will be invited to join the waiting list during the booking process.
-
We have a group booking limit of 10 people in place on all of our public trips because our maximum capacity is 40 people and the ship is small.
There is no set or reserved seating on The Matthew, and all passengers are free to walk around on deck during their trip. In our experience, larger groups have caused problems in the past as they tend to (quite unintentionally) take over particular areas of the ship, thus making that area inaccessible to everyone else. Our group booking policy is in place to be fair to all passengers, preventing larger groups from unintentionally monopolising areas of the ship and so spoiling the experience for others.
For those planning a trip for a larger group, we offer private hire for parties of 11 or more people.
• Group bookings are limited to a maximum of 10 people.
• Groups of 11 people or more are invited to consider a private hire option instead for the exclusive use of the ship for your party. Please note that the cost for the exclusive use of The Matthew for your group is reflected in the hire price.
-
Our timetable lists all of our currently confirmed public trip dates. Private hire trips and school trips are not listed on our public trips timetable.
If you would like to hire The Matthew for your private event, please visit our Private Hire or School Trips pages for more information.
-
The Matthew does not have a Box Office. All advance bookings are taken online.
-
No, you don’t!
The Matthew is free of charge to visit – no tickets required. You can come aboard, have a look around, climb the steps to the upper decks, and talk with our knowledgeable guides when we are at our mooring and open to visitors.
However, if you’re planning on joining us for a trip, you will need to buy tickets in advance.
-
Please check our FAQ page for answers to more questions about visiting or taking a trip on The Matthew.