School trips on The Matthew

• School trips which include a harbour boat trip are available during term time between April and October.

• Static school sessions are available during term time between February and December.

• All sessions take place in one-hour timeslots from Tuesday to Friday. Sessions start at 10:45am, 11:45am, 12:45pm and 1:45pm (subject to availability).

• The Matthew is closed in January and on Mondays throughout the year.

All school sessions are one hour in duration and are available to book in one-hour session blocks.

• Pirates! and 1st Mate sessions consist of a trip around Bristol Harbour, starting and finishing at our mooring at Princes Wharf and sailing between Junction Lock and Prince Street Bridge, plus a short talk on your chosen topic, given by our crew whilst the ship is moored.

• Deckhand sessions are static sessions. The ship will remain at its Princes Wharf mooring for the entirety of your one-hour session.

For sessions including a Harbour Trip: the maximum number of passengers per session is 40, with a maximum ratio of 34 students and 6 supervising adults.

For static sessions (the ship is moored): the maximum number of passengers is 50, with a maximum ratio of 42 students and 8 supervising adults.

For health and safety reasons, we require at least 1 supervising adult to be present for every 5-6 students on all school trips on The Matthew. The teachers and other adults with the group remain responsible for the safety and behaviour of the children at all times during your trip.

Parents are welcome to join the trip as one of the supervising adults but must be made aware by the lead teacher that they are responsible for up to five other children as well as their own child and they must supervise all of them for the full duration of your time on the ship.

An operational ship can be a dangerous place whether moving or static, so it's essential that all adults and children adhere to the safety information provided by the crew.

Our maximum capacity for a sailing trip is 40 people. However, for larger groups of up to 50 students, we can run any of the above trips as a static session – it will have the same theme, but the ship won't be moving!

Alternatively, you are welcome to book two or more sessions to accommodate everyone on a trip around the harbour.

Please note that due to health and safety requirements, we require at least 1 supervising adult to be present for every 5-6 students on all school trips on The Matthew.

Of course! If you have a group of older students Years 7 to 11), we would be delighted to adapt your session to work with your requirements. For example, we could look at early exploration and John Cabot.

You are also welcome to use The Matthew as a space for your own teaching session.

Get in touch with The Matthew office and let us know what you need.

CONTACT THE MATTHEW OFFICE

Please arrive at our mooring at Princes Wharf (just outside M Shed) around 5-10 minutes before your trip is due to start. Although we do our best to accommodate groups who arrive late, if we have another booking immediately after yours we cannot guarantee you’ll have a full hour on board if you are late for your session.

Bearing in mind that we are in central Bristol, please make sure to allow plenty of time for your journey, especially if you are coming to visit from further afield – there may be delays, road closures, etc.

For details on coach pick up/set down points and parking, please visit the TravelWest website.

TRAVELWEST WEBSITE

There is no parking for coaches at The Matthew, but they can drop off/pick up within yards of the ship. Follow Museum Street behind the M Shed to the bottom of Gaol Ferry Steps. This is a through-road with no parking, so please be aware that waiting is not permitted here at any time.

Your coach may also be able to drop off/pick up at the M2 bus stop (Wapping Wharf) on Cumberland Road, but please be aware that this is a busy main road. There is no waiting at any time here.

There is coach parking at the Maritime Heritage Centre car park on Gasferry Road/Caledonian Road (BS1 6JL), near the SS Great Britain. If your coach drops you off here, please factor in an extra half an hour for toilet stops and walking to The Matthew. If you arrive late, we cannot guarantee you will get a full hour on board if we have other bookings.

MARITIME HERITAGE CENTRE PARKING

For more details on coach pick-up/set-down points and parking in central Bristol, visit the TravelWest website.


TRAVELWEST WEBSITE

Yes, The Matthew is located in the Clean Air Zone.

Your coach company may be charged to drive in the CAZ when you visit The Matthew. The charge may be passed on to you – you will need to check this with your coach company when booking your coach.

For more information, please visit the Bristol City Council website.

BRISTOL CITY COUNCIL WEBSITE

Your group will board the ship via our main entrance gate which leads to a slightly inclined boardwalk to the ship entrance – this is all enclosed with fencing. As The Matthew is an accurate replica of a Tudor sailing ship, it does not have full disabled access – the main deck of the ship is wheelchair accessible, but please be aware that the upper decks and below deck can only be accessed by steep steps/ladders.

During the trip, students are free to explore the main and upper decks under the direct supervision of the adults with your group. For the talk section of the session, the ship will be moored and the students will be able to sit on the raised area on the main deck.

Everyone is welcome on board The Matthew. However, if you have students with disabilities or special educational needs in your group, we do recommend a visit to the ship beforehand so that you can assess whether or not the trip will be suitable for your student’s needs.

Sensory information: If you have students in your group who are sensitive to their environment, please be aware that school trips are held entirely outdoors and the ship is open-air. There may be loud noises from the ship, which are mainly due to the engine starting and running throughout the trip. You may also be able to smell the diesel when the engine starts. There will also be harbour-related noises and smells as the ship sails around Bristol Harbour.

Wheelchair access: The Matthew is wheelchair-accessible for boarding – this is via a ramp at the main entrance (1000mm gate width) and a 710mm wide gate in the bulwark (the side of the ship).

Accessible toilets: The Matthew is built in a traditional way with steep steps between decks, so it does not have accessible toilet facilities – the onboard toilet is below the main deck down a set of steep steps. If there are people in your group with restricted mobility, please use the public facilities elsewhere before boarding the ship. The nearest accessible public toilets are located in M Shed

There is a toilet below deck which can be made available for the children to use in an emergency. However, the crew politely requests that you use the public facilities elsewhere before boarding the ship.

Notice from M Shed about using their public facilities: “Schools may bring small groups of up to 6 children at a time (accompanied by an adult) to use the M Shed toilets.  We cannot accommodate groups of 15 or more all coming at the same time. Please tell us in advance when you hope to come, so we can try and manage this in our schedule.”

Accessible toilets: The Matthew is built in a traditional way with steep ladders between decks, so it does not have accessible toilet facilities – the onboard toilet is below the main deck down a set of steep steps. If there are people in your group with restricted mobility, please use the public facilities elsewhere before boarding the ship. The nearest accessible public toilets are located in M Shed.

The Matthew doesn’t have lunch facilities. However, there are open areas to eat your lunch nearby on the quayside. Or you may like to take your class across the river to the space outside Lloyds Amphitheatre or at Millennium Square.

You can also find green spaces nearby for your picnic at Queen Square, College Green and Brandon Hill – the home of Cabot Tower, opened in 1897 to commemorate to 400th anniversary of the historic voyage made by John Cabot and The Matthew.

Your trip will go ahead as planned if it is raining or overcast.

The only reason we would not go ahead with a trip due to the weather is in the event of extreme weather and/or strong winds as it can be dangerous to manoeuvre the ship in the harbour under these conditions.

However, all trips are dependent on the weather conditions on the day. The Captain may have to cancel your trip at short notice if there are any safety concerns.

In the event that the Captain does need to cancel your trip, we will endeavour to let you know as far in advance as possible. If you have not heard from us (either by phone or email) please assume that your trip will be going ahead. However, this decision may be made by the Captain immediately before the trip if he has any safety concerns.

In accordance with our booking terms and conditions, if you decide at short notice that you no longer wish to take your trip for any reason, refunds or reschedules are not available.

See our booking terms and conditions for more information about our cancellation and refund policy.

BOOKING TERMS & CONDITIONS

The Matthew is an outdoor venue with very little cover or protection from the elements. As it is an open, uncovered ship, you should dress for comfort according to the weather – bear in mind that we are more exposed to the weather when out on the water.

It can feel colder than it does on the quayside if it's windy, and more exposed to the sun if it's sunny. We recommend you consider bringing an extra layer, waterproofs, and/or sun protection! In the event of rain, we have large umbrellas that you can use.

Footwear should be comfortable and preferably flat. We strongly discourage stiletto heels as these can be dangerous in the event of an emergency and will also damage the wooden deck.

If you are joining us for a Pirates! trip, come dressed for the occasion in your best pirate gear! Arrrr!

School groups are authorized to take photos of their session – there are no restrictions on photography intended for internal use by the school. However, we kindly request that The Matthew has permission to use any photos intended to be used by the school on their social media or other public places.

Please enquire with The Matthew office if you would like to film or make audio recordings during your session.

Of course. Please download our School Trip Information PDF booklet here. It includes everything you’ll need to know for your trip, plus links to useful resources.

You will also be sent a copy of the booklet during the booking process.

DOWNLOAD HERE

School trips on The Matthew are offered to schools at a discounted rate of over 60% less than our standard hourly private hire rate. We are unable to give any additional discounts.

Unfortunately, we cannot run school trips outside of normal school hours.

• School trips that include a harbour boat trip are available during term time between April and October, from Tuesday to Friday.

• Static school sessions are available during term time between February and December, from Tuesday to Friday.

• All one-hour school sessions start at 10:45am, 11:45am, 12:45pm and 1:45pm.

• The ship is closed on Mondays throughout the year.

The Matthew is an independent organisation and does not have any association with other attractions in Bristol.

Both M Shed and SS Great Britain have their own booking policies and systems, so if you would like to book a tour or use their lunch facilities, please contact them directly via their respective websites.

If your particular question isn’t here, please do contact the office – we’d be happy to help!

CONTACT THE MATTHEW OFFICE