Editor Pick
My Spin on the Millennium Wheel
- July 14, 2009
- Rated 4 of 5 by
katykicker from Harlow, Essex, United Kingdom
As a young child London was something that conjured up some amazing images for me and I never imagined that one day I would live a 30 minute train journey away from London Liverpool St. Suddenly all of these wonderful places and areas I had only read about in books or seen on the television were mine for the exploring and as I became a young adult it was even better as I could just flit off to London whenever the mood took me and funds permitted.
I have visited the London Eye twice now, once back in 2005 and once more recently and both times I have been very fortunate with nice weather & relatively clear skies enabling me to see further and further across longer on the two seperate trips.
The London Eye is a beautiful wheel which stands on London's South Bank in close proximity to Westminster Bridge & Hungerford Bridge. It stands 135 metres high and holds 32 identical pods which each weigh 10 tons and can hold around 25 people.
It's very simple to get a ticket you can either book online in advance, print reservations on the day or just turn up when you want to go and join the queue to purchase your ticket & then join another queue to visit the pod.
There is good safety when visiting the pod with handbags being searched and staff members checking each pod before the next set of people 'board' and ensuring (with the use of mirrors) that there is nothing sinister on board that could be potentially harmful to members of the public.
The pods themselves are continually moving and when it's your turn to board you need to get on as safely and quickly as possible (it's only moving at 0.6mph) and the pods are air conditioned with some seating in the middle of each one. If you are disabled or have a disabled person in your party then they can either slow down or stop the eye to enable safe boarding of wheelchair users or people with disabilities. Each pod is fitted with a telephone incase of emergencies and one revolution of the entire eye will take around 30 minutes, however, don't be alarmed if you stop momentarily as it could just be something with a disability boarding (I have panicked just a tad both times this has happened!).
Once you are up in the pod it's possible to see vast stretches of London and what you will see depends on how high up the Eye you currently are and what the weather conditions are like. Some of the places I've most enjoyed seeing from this height in the past are the BP Tower, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Houses Of Parliament etc.
I found that the pod moves very slowly and although I was very apprehensive both times I went, due to the height, I was pleasantly surprised with just how enjoyable it was and how little I noticed we were moving. All of a sudden we were just at the top and I was amazed!
Both times I have visited I have been in a pod with around 5-10 people and I think anymore would feel like a bit of a crowd, especially when posing for a photograph towards the end of the rotation. Also, on one occasion I was in a pod with somebody who was scared of heights and she had taken her two children on to the pod and just spent the whole time laying on the bench wailing and sobbing and this really upset her children and made everyone else in the pod feel really uncomfortable.
As the London Eye is now owned by the same group that own several other big attractions in London, including Madame Tussauds, it is possible to book online and save a great amount, we recently visited the Eye, London Zoo & London Dungeons for around £70.00 for two people and compared to the usual prices we said lots! This would be my top tip for anyone who wants to visit any attractions in London as there is nearly always discounts to be had.
The London Eye is great for locals and tourists alike as you really can see so many different things from up in the sky. The view on a clear day is just amazing and hasn't failed to impress me on the two occasions I've visited. I will visit again and I will continue to recommend it to friends and family. It's a very smooth ride and one that's pretty unique. It's amazing that as a small child I wouldn't go on the 'big wheel' but now there's a real 'big wheel' in London I'll happily step foot on it and let it carry me around.
I have heard about some queue times of around 30 minutes in the past from friends who have visited but I have never had this problem and find that 2pm seems to be the ideal time for my 'flight' and therefore this is the time that I would recommend if you are going to be visiting the London Eye.
I am a huge fan of the Eye and it's a place I've thoroughly enjoyed just walking by each time I've been in London. The size of it never fails to astound me and I remember when it was being pulled up over several days and they filmed it and showed it on the news. From that moment on I always wanted to visit it and although it took me 5 years I was so glad I did.
I am hoping to get in to London again for the New Year and will enjoy the firework displays launched from the London Eye in the evening of New Years Eve.
My rating for the London Eye is 4/5 and I would recommend it for most people except those who are extremely frightened of heights, however, I would say I was quite scared and this helped me get over my fears but this is not going to work for everyone with a fear!
From journal Tourist Time in London!