Greenwich Optometry Clinic: Jimmy Fairly Basement Test Room

Jimmy Fairly's Greenwich shop is at 5 Nelson Road, London SE10 9JB, and it opens at 9:30am Monday to Saturday, earlier than the brand's other London shops. The store page calls it the brand's latest London opening and invites you to grab a coffee while you are there. The eye test rooms are in the basement, reached by stairs, which is worth knowing before you book if anyone in your party has trouble with steps.

The store page lists Monday to Saturday as 9:30am to 1:00pm and 2:00pm to 6:30pm, so the shop closes for an hour at lunchtime every day it is open. On Sunday it opens from 11:00am to 1:00pm and again from 1:30pm to 5:00pm, with a shorter break. Those split hours are the main thing to plan around: a 1:15pm appointment on any day of the week simply will not work.

The early start is the useful part. A 9:30am slot on a weekday lets you be tested before most of Greenwich has woken up, and it leaves the rest of the day free. If you commute east, the first slot of the morning is a neat way to get the examination out of the way before work.

The store page states that the testing rooms are located in the basement and are only accessible via stairs, and that access may therefore be limited for wheelchair users and customers with reduced mobility. That is a clear and honest note, and it is the most important practical detail on the page. The shop floor sits above, where you browse frames, and the examination takes place downstairs.

If you cannot manage stairs, contact the brand before travelling. The other London shops differ: the Portobello page, for example, describes step-free access to the ground floor. A basement test room does have one advantage, which is that the lighting can be controlled carefully, and the room is quiet compared with the street above.

Every Jimmy Fairly store page describes the same test: in 30 minutes, a team of optometrists checks your vision using state-of-the-art equipment. The brand's UK eye test page says tests are complimentary if a frame is purchased on the day of the test, and that the test costs £25 if no frame is purchased. The store page also notes that the shop does not offer prism prescriptions.

Thirty minutes is generous for a routine check, and the 9:30am opening gives you a calm start. Tell the optometrist about your day: how long you spend on screens, whether you drive at night, and whether you wear contact lenses. Take a note of the results before you leave so that you can compare frames against them in the shop upstairs.

Jimmy Fairly says it has been the coolest opticians in town since 2010, and Greenwich is its newest London address. The store page greets the borough with the line that you will find the latest London opening in this leafy hilly borough, and it points to 5 Nelson Road. The tone is friendly rather than clinical, and the page invites customers to come and grab a coffee.

The brand designs, assembles and checks its own collections and develops its own lenses, which means the frames you handle upstairs are the ones the company sells on its website. Orders can be collected in the store of your choice, and the company offers free delivery at home or in-store in two to three business days.

After the examination, take your prescription up to the shop floor. The website sorts glasses into ranges for small and large faces, a blue light filter range, and sections for men, women and unisex styles. Sunglasses and accessories such as cases, chains and cleaning kits sit in their own sections.

Because the test is only free with a purchase, treat the frame choice as part of the plan. Try the shapes that suit your face and ask the team whether your prescription limits any of them. If you decide not to buy, the £25 fee is the cost, and you leave with an up-to-date prescription you can use anywhere.

Greenwich rewards a slow walk, and the 9:30am opening gives you the whole day. Greenwich Market is a short stroll from the shop and the Cutty Sark, the old tea clipper, sits close to the river. From there you can climb through Greenwich Park to the Royal Observatory, where the view back over the river gives your eyes something far away to focus on after the close-up tests.

The hills are real, as the store page hints with its leafy and hilly description, so wear comfortable shoes. If you ordered frames, ask the team when they will be ready and plan a second visit, or choose the in-store collection option when you order. Karpo APP can help you plan the route between the shop, the market and the park.

Plan the day in the right order. Book the test first, then use the lunch break from 1:00pm to 2:00pm for a walk and a sandwich, and return after the shop reopens to finish choosing frames with your prescription in hand. That split suits the shop's own rhythm and stops you feeling rushed in either half of the visit.

If you are bringing a child or an older relative, think about the stairs and the seating before you arrive, and tell the team when you book. Bring the previous glasses, a list of any medicines, and a note of anything your eyes have been doing lately, such as watering, aching or blurring in the evening.

Shop: Jimmy Fairly Greenwich, 5 Nelson Road, London SE10 9JB. Hours: Monday to Saturday 9:30am to 1:00pm and 2:00pm to 6:30pm, Sunday 11:00am to 1:00pm and 1:30pm to 5:00pm, according to the store page on jimmyfairly.com. Eye test: free when you buy a frame on the day, otherwise £25, according to the brand's UK eye test page. Length of test: 30 minutes. Not offered: prism prescriptions. Test rooms: basement, stairs only.