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Portsmouth
City in Hampshire, England

Portsmouth

Portsmouth is a port city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England.

Plan a trip to Portsmouth→From London

Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in England not located primarily on the mainland. The city is located 22 miles (35 km) south-east of Southampton, 50 miles (80 km) west of Brighton and Hove, and 74 miles (119 km) south-west of London. With a population last recorded at 208,100, it is the most densely populated city in the United Kingdom. Portsmouth forms part of the South Hampshire urban area with Gosport, Fareham, Havant, Eastleigh and Southampton.

Get in

Getting to Portsmouth

  1. 01
    Portsmouth Harbour station for the Historic Dockyard

    Gunwharf Quays, the Spinnaker Tower and ferries to the Isle of Wight.

  2. 02
    Fratton station for Fratton Park
  3. 03
    Hilsea station is in the northeast

    It serves the local industrial estates and most visitors would have no reason to alight here unless they are visiting Portsmouth Rugby Club.

See

Worth seeing

  1. 01
    Portsmouth Historic Dockyard

    A major naval heritage site within an active Royal Navy base, featuring historic warships including HMS Victory and HMS Warrior.

  2. 02
    Mary Rose Museum

    The Mary Rose Museum houses the remains of Henry VIII’s flagship, which sank in 1545 and was raised in 1982 after more than 400 years underwater.

  3. 03
    Spinnaker Tower

    This striking and highly visible £21-million landmark tower rises some 170 m above the redeveloping harbour of Portsmouth, symbolising the wind filling a spinnaker sail.

  4. 04
    Southsea Castle

    Built in 1544, the castle was part of a series of fortifications constructed by Henry VIII around England's coasts to protect the country from invaders.

  5. 05
    Southsea Model Village

    Lumps Fort, Eastney Esplanade, PO4 9RU (seafront),.

  6. 06
    Southsea Rose Garden

    8AM-8PM.

Do

Things to do

  1. 01
    Southsea Common

    Relax on the common with a picnic or barbecue.

  2. 02
    Clarence Pier

    A small fairground close to the Hoverport with rides and amusement arcades.

  3. 03
    The Bandstand

    Listen to live music here every Sunday in the summer.

  4. 04
    Portsmouth FC

    "Pompey" play soccer in the Championship, the second tier.

  5. 05
    Portsmouth Rugby Football Club

    Victorious Music Festival, Southsea Seafront (2020 venue), info@victoriousfestival.co.uk.

Eat

Where to eat

Portsmouth has hundreds of restaurants catering to all tastes. Towards Fareham, the marina Port Solent offers a variety of restaurants in a pleasant environment with a multiplex movie theatre nearby, and ample (free) onsite parking. Throughout the town you find the known restaurants like Taco Bell, JD Wetherspoon and Greggs (bakery).

  1. 01
    The Tenth Hole Tea Room

    Eastern Parade (next to mini-golf course),.

  2. 02
    Jenny's Restaurants

    4-6 Charlotte St.

  3. 03
    Ocean Fresh Fish & Chips

    152B Kingston Rd.

  4. 04
    Nut Cafe Restaurant

    81D London Rd.

  5. 05
    North End Cafe

    106 London Rd.

How locals move

Getting around Portsmouth the local way

  • Get inAlight at for the Historic Dockyard, Gunwharf Quays, the Spinnaker Tower and ferries to the Isle of Wight.
  • Get inThere are ferry services from four ports in Normandy and Brittany.
  • Get inCross Channel ferry services operate out of the Portsmouth International Port located at the end of the M275 motorway Caen Brittany Ferries, up to 3 a day, 5 hr 45 min Cherbourg Condor Ferries, 1 Sunday service, 5 hr Brittany Ferries, 1 a day, 3-hr fast service Le Havre Brittany Ferries 1 a day, 8 hr 15 min overnight Saint-Malo Brittany Ferries, up to 2 a day, 9 hr overnight or in the daytime There are services from two ports in northern Spain (the Basque Country and Cantabria).
  • Get inBilbao Brittany Ferries, 'cruise style' 2 a week (W: 24 hr, and Su: 32 hr), 'économie' 1 a week (Tu: 28 hr).
  • Get inSantander Brittany Ferries, 3 a week (Tu F Su: 24 hr).
  • Get inGuernsey Condor Ferries, 1 a day, 6 hr 30 min Jersey Condor Ferries, 1 a day, 10 hr 30 min The Isle of Wight is under 60 min by ferry or 10 min by hovercraft.
  • Get inThe Gosport Ferry runs every 7 min at peak times and every 15 min at other times until midnight for £3.30 return.
  • Get inThe Gosport Ferry service docks at the transport hub by Portsmouth Harbour station.

From Wikivoyage: Portsmouth, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us. Last edited 2026-09.

Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Diliff (see Commons), Wikimedia Commons.