A brilliant day out at Crossness Pumping Station. Great informative talk by Petra Cox detailing the history and present day work of the pumping station. Excellent buffet lunch, amazing place - certainly worth a second visit!

Who knew the beauty of poo? U3A visit with a fascinating talk by Petra Cox about the history of London sewage… the Great Stink, Joseph Bazalgette and the River Thames, followed by a comprehensive tour of the building and a buffet lunch. All run by enthusiastic and passionate volunteers. Absolutely brilliant!

We had a great explanation of the history of the management of sewage and why it became important as people realised that perhaps the miasma theory was just a load of smelly air! After learning the history we had a look at the building and how it had changed over the years and the site of the underground reservoir before moving to the engine hall. With two unrestored engines, one restored and one in progress, you could get a really good impression of how the site was rediscovered and what it must have looked like when opened by the Prince of Wales. The engines are truly amazing but so is the metalwork and structure - truly a cathedral of sewage! We had a very knowledgeable guide and everyone was sorry to leave after nearly 3 hours.

We visited today for a steaming day. We parked at Abbey Wood, took the vintage shuttle bus, to the drop off point for a ride on the train to the Sewage works. The buildings are wonderful, great architecture and engineering. To see the beam working is great and you can imagine all the beam engines working. All credit to the teams who have restored the buildings and machines. It is a wonderful day out.

What an amazing place. The architecture and engineering of Crossness is something to behold. We went when one of the beam engines was working (a steam day) The talks and tours on offer were informative. To help visitors travel to this venue there were opportunities to use both a vintage bus and a train with ‘steam’ engine. The volunteers who run Crossness were friendly and informative. Certainly a hidden gem in SE London

We went on a day when they were steaming. Great to see the big engine operating and hear what it would have sounded like. The demonstration of drainage and pumping were informative with a very exuberant presenter. The other volunteers were on hand to answer any questions about the machinery.

What a great way to spend a few hours, a big thank you to all the volunteers for tirelessly restoring this magnificent piece of history, totally amazing to see how it had all been painted in bright colors even though at the time not open to the public. The static displays whilst waiting for your tour was very informative about the London Sewage system and how it came about - who would have thought sewage would be interesting. The one fully restored beam engine is a sight to see, although not running on steam or actually pumping to see it all in motion was so good to see. Outside with the machine shop and other exhibits makes a great place for a different visit and if you live in SE London or Kent nice a local easy to find and park at. The restored steam train is also worth a ride its only a very short trip but runs from the parking to the site and adds to the experience

We live quite close and have passed by on our walks along the Thames so decided to visit. We got the vintage bus from Abbey Wood Station which was easy to use and on entry we were welcomed well by the staff - all the staff we spoke to were really friendly and make a real effort to make sure all are welcome. The information boards are interesting and I wanted to see Prince Consort running which we did. It's an unusual tour, and certainly stinky, but was very much enjoyed.

This was a wonderful experience and all the staff and volunteers we met were friendly and helpful. The building and interior is a real work of craftsmanship and pride and makes us realise how much we owe the Victorians. It's a shame that public buildings now are designed primarily with cost in mind rather than allowing some architectural beauty to show through. The exhibition inside was fascinating and the expansion of London seemed unreal with the corresponding problems that bought and the challenges we are still facing. A nice cafe rounded off the visit.

Absolutely amazing example of pump engine. Very well restored and maintained. Very beautiful ironwork also. Additional demonstration, videos and information boards really helped provided background. Volunteers very friendly & helpful. Vintage bus from station was enjoyable also. But did have to book quite far ahead.