Being a Derby fan I am certainly not biassed towards either of these clubs. But as a lover of football it was great to visit two stadiums of well known and successful English football clubs.
If you are a fan of either club then it would make sense to go on that stadium tour obviously. But if you are a neutral like myself and want to go behind the scenes of a top English & London club, then please read on as I go through each tour I took and at the end give my verdict on which one is better and why.
Firstly I’ll drop a few facts about each stadium:
*info correct as of September 2023
| Stamford Bridge (Chelsea) | The Emirates (Arsenal) | |
| Year built | 1877 | 2006 |
| Stadium capacity | 40,341 | 60,704 |
| Time needed to visit | 1 – 2 hours | 1 – 1.5 hours |
| Admission price (to the tour) | £28 Adult / £18 Child | £30 Adult / £20 Child |
So from the above you can see the building of each stadium has a gap of nearly 130 years, in that time there has been upgrades and changes to Chelsea’s ground but it is certainly evident which is newer. Arsenal also has 20,000 more seats than Chelsea. The tours can last about the same time but Chelsea a little more, with being there 15 mins before the tour starts and if not pre booked, you might have to wait 30 mins for the next one. Arsenal you can just rock up when you like as it is self guided, whereas Chelsea has a tour guide.
Chelsea (Stamford Bridge)
Located just next door to Fulham Broadway station. Chelsea has been the most successful English club over the last 20 years (soon to be overtaken by Man City I am sure). Included in your admission is the Chelsea Museum which you can do before or after. Here you will find all the silverware and many shirts of famous players down the years. The display’s are very well put together and offer great photo ops.
The tour itself beginnings outside the stadium as you walk around the edge and get some information about the tour and some history. The first real stop is the Press Room where you get the chance to have a picture and sit where the manager does to answer those awkward questions.
Next stop is the dressing rooms. You get to sit down where some very famous and well paid players up and down the years, from Enzo to Zola. You then head out the players tunnel to see the stadium in all its glory, sit in the dugout and then head up into the stands, again having a seat and hearing more about the history of Chelsea and the stadium.
You can also at the beginning of the tour have your picture taken with the Premiership and Champs League trophy, which is an additional cost unless you’ve purchased a Go City pass.
The highlights and best bits – What you get to see at Stamford Bridge
For me by a country mile, was our tour guide getting us lined up as teams (Chelsea v Liverpool) in the tunnel and having us walk out to Chelsea’s song (The Liquidator). It felt great to do that and semi live the life of a Prem footballer for 20-30 seconds, I had goosebumps, not going to lie.
The other part I really enjoyed about this experience was our tour guide Ron, he was there to escort us, tell us about the history of the club etc but he did it in a fun way. Also taking an interest where people had come from and who they supported.
The not so good bits
I think the group size was a little too big at around 50, it was an August day and lot’s of kids but it would have been nice to be around 20-30. If you have not pre-booked you may have to wait to get on the next tour, we waited about 30 mins for the next one but used that time to go to the Museum.
Arsenal (The Emirates)
Being a pretty new stadium given how old Chelsea’s is and the history of their old one (Highbury). You can tell the differences between the stadiums and the new look and feel. Rather than a tour guide you are given an interactive handset with earphones and 13 stops to make.
As you walk through the Car Park to start the tour you can start playing your headset with Lee Dixon doing the voice over. You go up to the Diamond suite and out onto the hospitality seating. Here you can get great pictures of the pitch and terraces.
After this you head downstairs to go through the Away and Home changing rooms before heading through the tunnel and pitch side. Sit on the uber comfortable dug out seats. After here venture through the small interview rooms to the main press room.
You are then almost at the end of the tour and completed the 13 main stops. You also have the museum to cover which is towards the back of the stadium and can access this by showing your earphones from the stadium tour. Not the biggest of Museums and the best bit for me was the Prem trophy from the year of invisibles (unbeaten in the league in 2003/04 season).
The highlights and best bits – What you get to see at The Emirates
The home dressing room, very impressive compared to the away one. Also thinking and sitting where top players like Saka, Rice sit (being an England fan). The view of the stadium from the hospitality suite where you can venture outside is very impressive. For kids and adults if interested you can also get a FREE certificate at the end of the tour to say you’ve done it.
The not so good bits
I didn’t enjoy having the interactive handset and would have preferred a tour guide, also one of the earphones broke 5 mins into the tour. It wasn’t that busy when we went but can imagine it being quite hectic at peak times. Also on some parts of the tour can get a little lost, not a major issue but still annoying.
Which is the best, Chelsea or Arsenal stadium tour?
For me it was the Chelsea tour. Yes it’s a much older stadium but having a tour guide brought the history and story of Chelsea to life and also the Museum is done a lot better than Arsenal’s and has a lot more modern silverware to show off. Unless you are an Arsenal fan you should certainly do the Chelsea tour over the Arsenal one.
Stamford Bridge (Chelsea):
As mentioned walking through the tunnel with the Chelsea song on is amazing and having a tour guide just makes it more fun. Having as much silverware as they do helps for photos and the museum is well organised and really tells their story.
My rating: 4.5 / 5
The Emirates (Arsenal):
No denying this stadium is more modern and nicely finished compared to Chelsea’s. Some areas are impressive like the Diamond room and the home changing rooms, along with Arteta’s office. I just would have preferred an actual tour guide rather than the interactive handset.
My rating: 4 / 5
How to get a discount
If you want to do both Stadium tours or even other attractions including one of these then I would recommend a Go City London Explorer Pass. You can get a 2 choice pass which is £51 for an adult and do the two tours so you would save £7.
That doesn’t sound a lot, but check out what else they have to offer on the pass as you could do an O2 climb (£41) and a stadium tour and that would then save you around £30. The more choices you get the cheaper it becomes, you can even have a Burger at Hard Rock Cafe.
I personally did the 2 stadium tours and Fish ‘n’ Chips with a value of £92 and paid £66, so I made a saving of £26 overall.