In this article I want to tell you how I managed to make one of my big dreams come true: flying in a helicopter over London. Contrary to what you might think, seeing London from the air is not an option reserved only for VIPs and in this article I want to show you what it is and how you can live this adventure by yourself.
Our helicopter ride through London
This helicopter flight in London is one of the most impressive things I’ve ever done in my life and I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to share it with you. When a friend told us about this opportunity we didn’t hesitate for a second to sign up.
You can’t say that these tours are cheap but the price is reasonable enough that we could afford it, which is already a lot to say. At first we had doubts why on paper the tours seem short but after trying it out we can only recommend it.
After a lot of surfing on the internet we decided and booked our flight in advance and in a super easy way through our reliable page. The weather was ideal and the experience unforgettable. Below we detail our adventure and show you our best photos and videos to give you an idea.
The video of our experience
As a summary we have made a video of our helicopter flight over London. As you can see, we loved the experience and we recommend it without hesitation.
The day of our helicopter flight over London
The first thing you should know is that between 48 and 24 hours before the flight you should call the phone number that will be sent to you in the booking confirmation to reconfirm the assistance. There you will simply be asked for your reservation number and an email and you will be given the exact time you should be at the heliport. As they have now cancelled the roaming in Europe you can do this directly from your mobile phones without having to worry about the price.
Getting to the heliport and initial procedures
The day of our flight everything went smoothly, the weather was great and the whole process was very easy. The heliport has a clear advantage and it is that it is quite central, in the bus number 170 direct from Victoria, we just took 30 minutes to arrive.
Once there you will simply be asked for an ID card to identify yourself and you will be weighed again (although you will have already indicated this in the reservation) to make sure that the weight is distributed correctly in the helicopter. Afterwards you will see a video with safety tips and enjoy!
Discovering London from the air, what do you see?
Matthias and I were lucky and got to sit in the bragging rights of the helicopter even though there were five of us in the helicopter. The most important points of what we could see during this helicopter flight in London are detailed below, together with the photos we took:
The Thames
The flight departs from the Thames and flies mainly along the river mat in a northerly direction. So you sit on the side of the helicopter that you sit on and you can see everything, either going or coming.
Buckingham Palace
It took me a while to find Buckingham Palace from so high up but I finally found it. It’s amazing to see the size of its gardens from the air and all the people swirling in front of its door.
The London Eye and Big Ben
As the helicopter flies almost all the time over the River Thames these monuments look great. The London Eye can be seen from miles away and the Big Ben is impressive from any point of view – unforgettable!
The Shard, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge
After the London Eye and Big Ben the sights that are best seen on this helicopter ride over London are The Shard building, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. Although the latter two can also be seen perfectly from The Shard lookout, the most modern building in London can only be seen from above from a helicopter.
Hyde Park
From this point of view in London’s Hyde Park it reminds me very much of New York’s Central Park, doesn’t it? Well, the hand you see in the picture is the pilot’s one that during the whole trip was telling us interesting things about the monuments we were passing by.
Greenwich: university, park and the Naval Museum in London
On the south bank of the Thames is the famous Greenwich Park, one of Londoners’ favourite places to spend a sunny day in the city. From the helicopter you will have a perfect view of the palace where Greenwich University and the London Naval Museum are located, as well as the observatory and appreciate how huge this London park is.