The poll of nearly 3,000 Which? Members ranked the sites in April and May according to value for money, helpfulness of staff and lack of crowds. Fountains Abbey, a famous monastic ruin in North Yorkshire, and the Royal Yacht Britannia, a decommissioned royal yacht moored in Edinburgh, emerged as joint favourites. The consumer group said it was “easy to see why” historic sites topped the survey with 88%. “Both Fountains Abbey and Royal Yacht Britannia deliver a unique day out with guests telling us they enjoyed the chance to immerse themselves in a piece of history for the day,” said Guy Hobbs, editor of Which? Journey. Eight hundred years ago, 13 Benedictine monks seeking refuge set up Fountains Abbey beside the River Skell. Last year, the foundations of a medieval abbey tannery were discovered at the UK’s largest monastic ruin now managed by the National Trust, revealing a ‘missing link’ and providing further insight into the abbey’s history. “It’s so easy in a place like the Fountains to think it’s just the way the monks saw it. What we’re finding is that there’s a whole unrecognized history,” said Mark Newman, trust archaeologist, after the discovery in October 2021. The Royal Yacht Britannia, pictured moored in Edinburgh on June 3, has been used by the Royal Family on nearly 1,000 state visits. Photo: Jane Barlow/PA Top of the consumer survey for the second time since 2020, Royal Yacht Britannia has belonged to the British royal family since 1660, when Charles II bought a small coal-fired ship, the HMY Royal Escape, in which he had escaped to France a decade ago. . In 1953, and 82 ships later, Britannia was launched and later used heavily by the Royal Family on nearly 1,000 state visits. Due to rising maintenance costs, the yacht was decommissioned in 1997 by Tony Blair and has since become a lucrative political tool for successive prime ministers. In 2021, Boris Johnson announced that a new national flagship would be built, “reflecting the UK’s emerging position as a large, independent trading maritime nation”. His expected successor, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, has sought to bolster her leadership campaign by pledging support for another large, national ship. “I support the idea of promoting our trade around the world,” Truss said in July, adding that she would look to the private sector for investment for the projected £200m price tag. Following the pair, the Roman Baths and Pump Room in Bath, took third place, along with Culzean Castle and Country Park in Scotland, managed by the National Trust for Scotland.
