24 October 2013

A trip on the London Eye - for the best views in London

With only two days to make the most of London, there were a few must do activities we wanted to fit in, one of which was a trip on the London Eye. Despite living in London for three years and visiting the city on other occasions, I'd never been on the Eye, so I'm not sure who was more excited about the opportunity, me or the kids!

The London Eye from Westminster Pier

After the rain had fair bucketed down for most of the day before, we were fortunate enough to wake up to clear blue skies and sunshine - the perfect combination for a journey 135 metres into the skies over London.

Background view of The London Eye

Our trip up at 11am was timed well with only a few minutes to wait before boarding, which was pretty quick given the London Eye is the most popular paid tourist attraction in the UK with over 3.5 million people making the journey annually - that's nearly the population of our little country!

Looking up at a London Eye capsule

Once on board, the pods move so leisurely that at times it feels as if you are actually stationary, but within moments the incredible views of London start to become apparent like this view towards The Horse Guards.

View of the Horseguards from The London Eye

And the people down below start to take on the appearance of little ants which really intrigued the boys.


The autumn colours are just beginning to show in the city and provide a glorious golden contrast to the greenery abounding in the many parks scattered throughout.

Gaining altitude on the London Eye


I loved seeing the unique reflection of the Eye in the Thames framed with the Golden Jubilee bridge in the background.

London Eye reflections in the Thames

The views over London from the top are quite extraordinary, and the city goes on even further than the eye can see.

The view from the top of the London Eye

Looking down at Big Ben from the London Eye

Taking pictures from the London Eye

The view of the newly completed Shard from the Eye is quite spectacular, with the city reflected in the many angles of the structure.

The Shard is taller than the London Eye

But if you ask me, the money shot is still the views towards Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. Having that much history and beauty in such a small area is almost more than can be comprehended with the naked eye - it's hard to know where to look!

Looking down on Big Ben and London Buses


Of all the things we saw and did in London, this was by far the boys' favourite - no sooner had we landed back on solid ground before they both threw their arms around me, thanked me profusely for the amazing experience, and didn't stop talking about it for the rest of the day!

This is a sponsored post. We received complimentary admission to the London Eye for our family in exchange for a review of our experience, however the opinions and thoughts expressed are entirely our own.

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