The Royal Yacht Britannia closes to visitors until further notice

The charity that operates The Royal Yacht Britannia will be closed to visitors from 9am on Wednesday November 4 until further notice.

The Royal Yacht Britannia

This move is to try to minimise the ongoing losses that are being incurred as a result of significantly reduced visitor numbers due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Bob Downie, Chief Executive of The Royal Yacht Britannia Trust, said: “The timing of this closure is to take advantage of the extended coronavirus Job Retention Scheme under

which we can furlough staff and reclaim 80% of their wages.

"In very simple terms, we will lose less money from being closed than we are currently losing by being open, over £2.4 million to date and taking action now will help protect our charity’s long-term future.”

Britannia was home to Her Majesty The Queen and the Royal Family for over 40 years and is now berthed in Edinburgh and regarded as one of the capitals ‘must-see’ destinations.

A message from the Editor:Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.