Editor Pick
The Norwich Union Yorkshire Wheel
- July 11, 2006
- Rated 3 of 5 by
indi.chick from -, United Kingdom
The Yorkshire Wheel is the smaller Northern sister of the London Eye, and for what it's worth, it's an enjoyable way to spend 13 minutes (the length of the complete ride). A lot of its charm is that York itself is such a pretty place, that it really lends itself to such an attraction. You can see most of Inner York and quite a way into the distance from your pod, and in fact, it's just the right height, as you can see spectacular scenery from wherever you are in the cycle of the wheel, but also spot the people milling around underneath you.
My experience of the Yorkshire Wheel was with my five excitable friends on a relatively hot day (thankfully all the pods are air-conditioned). With it being half term, the queues were quite long, so if you have to go at peak time, I'd recommend stopping at one of York's many bookshops (my personal favourite is Borders in Davygate) and picking up something to read. If the weather swings the other way, however, the queueing area is all under cover.
The tickets for us, being over 12, were adult fares, which were a fairly reasonable £6, while child tickets are £4 for over 4s. All the tickets can be bought at either of the National Railway Museum entrance, and the staff when we were there were all very friendly, and were happy to give directions to the wheel. However, now would be a good time to mention that, as the NRM itself in free, the food is very expensive, so I would recommend bringing your own.
After a 25 minute wait, we finally got into a pod. Although it says on the website that each pod should comfortably seat up to 6 adults and 4 children, we had a bit of a squeeze fitting in 6, normal sized teenage girls, albeit, we did all have a lot of shopping bags.
I would make the most of the time while the pods are loading, as the rest of the journey goes a bit too quickly. Similarly, if you want to take advantage of the views, bring a proper camera. Don't rely on camera phones, as they seems to have problems with the plastic. Another warning: the pods do rock when you get quite high, so don't be alarmed if they start moving, and for God's sake don't panic and press the big red button - it stops the wheel and unless it's an actual emergency, you will be fined.
OK, so overall, the Yorkshire Wheel is a nice way to spend an hour, but if you're hoping for a Northern London Eye, you will be a little disappointed. The National Railway Museum is about a fifteen minute walk from the centre of York, so make the most of the journey and stop in and see some of the train exhibits, after all, they're free.
From journal York! - Exclamation Mark Justified!