LONDON EYE: All Year
 

The facts and figures about the newest addition to London's already diverse skyline are mind-boggling. There's the multi award-winning engineering team who fused this giant bicycle wheel together out of determination, passion and a whole lot of steel. There's the fact that at a not insignificant 135 metres high, this is the largest observation wheel in the world. Then there are the visitor statistics that more than justify the accolade of being the capital's top tourist attraction for two years running. Throw in a few more record-breaking details about dimensions, floating cranes and cables, and it's not hard to see what all the fuss has been about since the grand opening. A dedicated team of architects and workers, plus a healthy injection of cash to the cool tune of �75 million, thanks to those nice people at British Airways, resulted in the BA London Eye, an incredible feat of engineering not to mention an entirely new tourist experience.

Once inside one of the spacious, airy capsules, you are treated to majestic panoramas of London in all directions. Gliding smoothly and so slowly you barely notice as the river slips away and the tops of the tallest buildings suddenly become eye-level, the 'flight' treats you to views of virtually all the major landmarks in the capital. From the dome of St Paul's Cathedral to the grounds of Buckingham Palace, from the various bridges that cross the Thames as it meanders through the city to the elegant spires of the Houses of Parliament, it's a photographer's delight. London's amazing diversity is laid out before you: stately buildings nestle alongside high-rise office blocks; leafy parks and gardens sit amongst palaces, shops, museums, galleries � all connected by a spaghetti tangle of roads along which, from the lofty perspective of the Eye, cars, buses and taxis trundle along like toy miniatures. London without the litter, fumes, honking horns and jostling crowds, is serene and quite breathtakingly majestic.

It's no wonder that the Eye attracts tourists and locals alike - whatever time you choose for your flight, this is one of the best ways to appreciate one of the world's greatest cities. By day you can experience the bustling movement of the capital, with its ebbs and flows of people; by night it is lit from within, the bridges strung with lights, the buildings bathed in a soft glow that accentuates every detail. The Eye has become a vital part of the London experience and should be on every visitor's and local's list of things to do.



Tickets for the London Eye, London Eye Tickets Laura Richardson

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