London Eye

[mamkmm2]

Just how "worth it" is the London Eye? It looks cool but looks can be deceiving so looking for some honest opinions here.

 

Thanks!

[Putterdude]

In early September we stayed at the Premier Inn which sits next door to the Eye and it may be an age thing but we decided not to go on it. There is just so much to see in London the the big Ferris wheel just wasn't important to us...yes, we took some pictures of it for the scrapbook. I would recommend a cruise down the Thames River over the Eye.

[idahospud]

We contemplated it but when we found out 25 people are in each pod we decided against it.

[Bob++]

We have done it and it is memorable. That said, it was a quiet day with no queues and half empty gondolas. I would not want to queue for more than a few minutes for it and agree that if time is short, your time could be better spent.

[dogs4fun]

Just how "worth it" is the London Eye? It looks cool but looks can be deceiving so looking for some honest opinions here.

 

Thanks!

 

Our last visit was in the month of September & we enjoyed our rides on the eye - have done both day and evening rides. Much prefer the evening as the city looks quite magical by night. The pod on our day ride had more people than the night ride - guess it depends on when you will be there. But neither of our rides had the max of 25 in the pod - there were very short or no queues and our pods were half empty. We just returned from Las Vegas where we rode the "High Roller" - I much prefer the views of London from the "Eye".

[Thejuggler]

Really enjoyed it. We took a sunset trip in late October and it was memorable. Sun setting, lights across the city, Heathrow in the distance. There were only about 10 in the pod.

 

If you wan't a view over the city there are bars in some of the taller buildings in the city.

[dsrdsrdsr]

I went on it about 15 years ago and it was well worth it. That was with a full pod, too. There was plenty of room.

[Globaliser]

I don't know how current prices compare, but it's also worth considering The View from the Shard.

 

I think that one difference is that you can stay up at the Shard for pretty much as long as you like; the Eye gives you no choice about when to come back down to earth.

[LondonTowner]

I took some Spanish visitors on the Eye some years ago, followed by a Thames boat trip. We all enjoyed it. There ere only the 5 of us in the pod.

[newport dave]

You can also book timed tickets for the eye, so no lengthy queueing.

 

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

[BM64]

We enjoyed the Eye. We had booked timed tickets for early in the morning on the day of our departure. We only had a few hours before we needed to leave for the train station and this was a great thing to do. Few people in our pod and a nice way to see London for one last time.

[Host Bonjour]

I loved the London Eye and I used to work on the 101st floor of the World Trade Center (the original) so I'm accustomed to amazing views ;)

 

The duration of the "ride" is a half hour as that is the time it takes for the wheel to make one revolution - it's quite a relaxing and quiet experience...it also helps produce energy, which is rather cool.

 

I didn't purchase a timed-ride ticket (the queue moved so quickly it wasn't an issue) and I had a sunset ride in May - it was spectacular to see Parliament, the Thames, St Paul's Cathedral, the Shard, Waterloo Station - just beautiful.

 

It was roomy and easy to move around the gondola so I could take pictures from anywhere I wanted - maybe there were 10-12 people.

 

It's way more than just a ferris wheel, many major cities around the world have built similar type wheels (but not many seem quite as high) to enable visitors to enjoy panoramic vistas.

 

The London Eye has a combo ticket that includes a Thames cruise so if one wished to enjoy both, that option is available.

If you do decide to take a ride, I hope you enjoy the experience as much as those of us in this thread have done. :)

[CT_Chicago]

Just got back from London and didn't think it was worth the price. We went around 6 pm which is when the lines die down. I was staying at the County Hall Marriott so had similar views of the Parliament and Big Ben. I was hoping to be able to see more. It was cloudy when we went up, but not sure if there is a better view on a less cloudy day. Also, we weren't in a full pod, but there was a group that seemed to be hogging the views on the East side. It's a very short 30 minutes. The Tate Modern and the Shard supposedly have good views too. The Shard is even more expensive, but you could go up to one of the restaurants and pay for a meal or drink which is what I thought of doing. Also, if you have a valid National Railway ticket from the same day, you can get a 2 for 1 ticket to the London Eye.

[fabnfortysomething]

check out the Sky Garden at Fenchurch st

 

high views opposite the shard but free!

 

you do have to book admission times within 2 weeks of your visit online

[Globaliser]

The Shard is even more expensive, but you could go up to one of the restaurants and pay for a meal or drink which is what I thought of doing.

It is worth noting, though, that the restaurants are only about half way up the Shard. Higher than the top of the London Eye, but you'd be disappointed if you thought you were going to eat/drink at the very top.

 

It's also worth having a look at the menus online in advance, so you don't suffer "sticker shock" (as I think it's called around here).

[Go-Bucks!]

I really enjoyed the ride. Very relaxing and goes slow enough to take nice pictures. Each pod is large enough (with seats in the middle) that 25 people did not feel crowded at all. I'm glad I went. :)

[Kylie]

We were glad we went and I found 2 for 1 tickets online before going - not sure if any deals are to be found anymore but worth checking out. Line wasn't long and we loved the view.

[mamkmm2]

Thank you everyone for the feedback! I'm leaning towards this activity now with just a commonsense caveat that the weather might impact the experience. To be frank, I got better feedback here than on TripAdvisor. TAdv always makes me wonder how many paid reviewers are on there given how different some of my experiences of a place/location are from what some people write about in their reviews.

 

Thanks again for the great input.

[Host Bonjour]

Thank you everyone for the feedback! I'm leaning towards this activity now with just a commonsense caveat that the weather might impact the experience. To be frank, I got better feedback here than on TripAdvisor. TAdv always makes me wonder how many paid reviewers are on there given how different some of my experiences of a place/location are from what some people write about in their reviews.

 

Thanks again for the great input.

 

It always pays to ask here about anything travel related on these boards - that's why we have "Ports Of Call" because the land based portion of your cruise is as important as the cruise itself - the total experience matters. The Cruise Critic members are wonderful, honest and kind...but we all know that ;)

 

Glad you found everyone's posts helpful and are now leaning toward the Eye. It's also quite convenient to "add on" since you'll likely be by Parliament/Westminster and having that quiet, peaceful aerial view of London is a lovely bonus after some sightseeing. I hope it's a clear day when you are on the South Bank and get a chance to ride the London Eye. Cheers :)

Edited April 26, 2016 by Host Bonjour

[FritzG]

check out the Sky Garden at Fenchurch st

 

high views opposite the shard but free!

 

you do have to book admission times within 2 weeks of your visit online

 

We went to Skygarden last August, and it was the highlight of our trip. The views are incredible, and it's free. We've been to London several times, and we loved seeing the city from on high. You have to book tickets in advance.

 

We've gone on the London Eye three times, and we enjoyed it every time. The pods never seem crowded, and we think it's well worth the price.

[shallwe]

I've been on the Eye twice now and each time found it hugely enjoyable. I don't believe we had more than 10 people on one trip and far less than that on another one.

However we walked past it last week and the queues were horrendous.

[rjrpar]

Don't miss it

[GrJ Berkshire]

It is worth doing, but don't pre-book, as you may skip the queues, but the experience is very weather related. Some days conditions do not justify the expense. Also time of day, week v weekend, determine how busy it is, avoid UK school holidays. The pods are never that crowded you will not get to see all you want. A key tip is to visit the toilets in advance as once in there is no opportunity for the duration. If in London for a few days pick your day/ time and be prepared to return if queues or weather make it sensible so to do.

You cannot say will do on Tues pm and plan around this, you must be flexible.