First point: The Eye is not cheap. It's about 14.50 in pounds, or a little over 29 American dollars.

Second point: It's totally, totally worth it.

It's more worth it than many of the other city tours (take this with a grain of salt- there are many fantastic tours, too). And it's more worth it than other tourist attractions like Madamn Tussands, which, while worth doing once, is too commercialized for its own near 50 dollar price tag. The views are spectacular- about 25 mile on a clear day and even those on our group with a fear of hights had a great time. Lines look daunting but moving quickly, and if you have an idea of what you're looking for you can easily spot landmarks like Charing Cross Station and the Houses of Parliment with Big Ben.

The London Eye is a feat of modern engineering - it is beautiful to look, at and the views when you are on board are stunning. It is located on the banks of the River Thames and was voted the world's most popular tourist attraction in spring 2005. It is 135 metres above London and is the world's tallest observation wheel.

The capsules, or pods are made of glass and are sleek, modern, and totally see through. You get a 360 degree view of the city and beyond. Apparently on a clear day you can see 25 miles in each direction. I have been on it twice - both times on cloudy days, but you still get good views.

The pods are air-conditioned (and heated in winter), have a large bench seat in the middle and each one can accommodate 25 people. They feel very spacious, never cramped with lots of space for everyone to enjoy the view. The wheel constantly moves, but very slowly, so you do not feel any movement at all - it is a really great experience.

The trip takes about 20-25 minutes. You can see many famous landmarks including Buckingham Palace and St Paul's Cathedral. The view of the Thames and the Houses of Parliament is fantastic and unsurpassed.

The London Eye is the most popular paid tourist attraction in the UK and has the capacity to handle 1,500 visitors per hour. As it is so popular there are huge queues to buy tickets. We booked on-line before our visit and saved 10% on the quoted price, but more importantly saved at least one hour of queuing just to buy the tickets. If you pre-book, you just put your credit card in the machine and the tickets are generated immediately.

You do however still have to queue to get onto the wheel. We stood in line for just over an hour. This was on a cold March morning - I dread to think how long you must have to wait in summertime when the crowds are at their peak.

The London Eye is open in winter from 10am to 8pm and in summer from 10am to 9pm. It costs £14.50 for adults, £7.25 for age 5-15 years, and under 5's are free.

The closest tube stop is Westminster. If you time your arrival right, when you come out of the tube stop you are right next to Big Ben and can hear it chime the hour. We arrived just before 11 o'clock, which was really good timing. Big Ben is really impressive - designed by AW Pugin, Big Ben is actually not the name of the clock, but the name of the bell in the clock tower. The largest bell in the chime weighs close to 14 tons. The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben are the ultimate symbols of London, and as such really are a must-see.

Ii is great fun for everyone who come to this city for pleasure, it is also great to see London's 30 incredible sites in just few minutes.

Despite living and working in London I had never taken a trip on the London Eye before, that all changed in Christmas 2006. My boyfriend’s mum had received free tickets for the London Eye and Thames river cruise, which she gave to us. We got priority queuing but to be honest the queues weren’t that bad. This might have been because of the time of year (30/12/06). We took the river cruise first. The cruise was excellent; we sat outside, which was freezing, but worth it for the views. The intricate history of the buildings, bridges and areas of London received on the boat trip is incredible.

I live in London and thought I knew the buildings and history quite well, but details such as the type of birds on Blackfriars bridge being different on each side due to whether they are facing towards or away from the sea, made me realise how little I know. The trip takes about 40 minutes, and you get a free drink, we got mulled wine but I presume it changes with the season. I would definitely recommend the trip, especially if you don’t plan to get a guide for the eye, this will give you a perspective of which buildings are which and the history of them. After finished the cruise we headed to the queue for the eye. We queued for about 35 minutes, which didn’t seem to bad. The views are spectacular but we didn’t get a guide and I think it would be worthwhile doing as there were questions I wanted to ask about some buildings. I would take another trip on the eye as I would love to see across London at night, its beautiful just from the train so I can imagine that at night the views are spectacular.

The London Eye is one of the best-known sights in London nowadays, and it is definitely worth a trip on it. When inside one of the capsules, you can see for miles around London, and there are may photo opportunities. It takes about half an hour to do a complete trip, so there is plenty of time to admire the view and snap away until you get the photo that you really want.

The ticket itself does not require booking, but this can be done online before you go if you want to go at a specific time. There are also reductions in the price if you book online in advance. It is, however, still fairly expensive for one trip.

Despite the price, I would say that the London Eye is now a must with any trip to London, as the views are spectacular.