Old Royal Naval College exterior

©Will Jones/Lonely Planet

Old Royal Naval College

Top choice


Home to the University of Greenwich and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, the Christopher Wren–designed Old Royal Naval College is a masterpiece of baroque architecture. The sprawling grounds are open to the public, as well as the recently restored Painted Hall, nicknamed the 'Sistine Chapel of the UK' and covered from floor to ceiling with extraordinary 18th-century art, and the neoclassical Chapel of St Peter and St Paul. Tours of the grounds are included in the price of the Painted Hall ticket.