London Eye at night

The London Eye receives more than 3.5 million visitors a year, is one of the most visited attractions because it was the highest viewpoint in London. Nowadays it has been surpassed by The Shard, a 95-storey skyscraper located in Southwark. Even so, the London Eye does not lose its charm.

The night offers the best scenery to enjoy with that special person. Also if you just want to clear your head and go at a time when you won 't run into the crowds of people that go there during the day. Learn all about the London Eye at night. I would like to show you the advantages of visiting it at night, let's start!

The tickets for the London Eye have the same price if you go up during the day or at night. If you want to buy them directly there, what you have to do when you arrive at the foot of the London Eye, is to go to one of the ticket booths and queue up to buy the ticket. The prices of the London Eye change depending on whether you buy combined tickets with another attraction or if you want a private booth. They accept digital or printed tickets.

These are the approximate prices of standard tickets:

• General: 30 €.
• Children under 16 years old: 24 €.
• Children under 4 years old: free.
• General admission without queues: 42 €.
• Children under 16 without queues: 36 €.

And these are the standard tickets for a specific day and time, which is what you will have to book if you want to go up at night:

• General: 32 €.
• Children under 16 years old: 26 €.
• Children under 4 years old: free.
• General without queues: 45 €.
• Under 16 without queues: 40 €.

London in June, July and August is full of tourists, so it is advisable to buy your ticket in advance. This saves you time and you will have your ticket assured for the day you plan to go.

In London the time of night varies depending on the time of year. In winter the nights are longer, so it gets dark at 16:00h and during the summer months at 21:00h. The truth is that if you visit London in December it does not matter that it gets dark at 16:00h, because admiring the Christmas lights of the city and especially from the London Eye is something wonderful.

• The London Eye opening hours in June, July and August is from 10:00h to 20:30h.
• The rest of the year: 11:00h to 18:00h. Sometimes the schedule changes depending on the time of year or some other factor, to be informed you can visit the official website of the London Eye.
• The time to be at the top is 30 minutes, the same as if you go during the day.

Although visiting the London Eye at night is a personal decision, there are several factors that may motivate you to go at that time. It may be that in your travel itinerary you do not have time to arrive early and have to wait long in line. And therefore, by the time you go up, it is already dark.

However, the London Eye at night will not disappoint you. You can see all of London illuminated, such as the Palace of Westminster or the tower of Big Ben. You can see how the water of the River Thames is covered by all the lights of the city, giving everything a more charming air.

If you go at night and you still don't know which parts of the city you will see through the viewing windows, don't worry. In each cabin you will find a tablet with a menu of options, in several languages (also Spanish), which shows you which are the most outstanding landscapes that you are observing from the heights.

Special night packages are available

There is a special package that I recommend if you go at night and it is called "Champagne Experiences". You can relax and enjoy a champagne with that special someone while watching the lights of the whole city.

In order to have a champagne experience, you must book in advance. The cost is approximately 47.50 € per person (maximum of 4 allowed). The rotation of this attraction is hardly felt, so you can enjoy your drink at ease. It includes seats from where you can admire the River Thames, Westminster Abbey and the famous Big Ben tower.

It can be a romantic plan and you can combine it with the Cupid's Pod.

It is a special entrance that I recommend for the evening because it would give even more romance to the atmosphere. You can admire the views of London accompanied by a Pommery Rosé Champagne. Ideal for Valentine's Day, proposals or anniversaries. This package is priced at approximately €550 per pod.

Avoid the crowds

Another reason why it is good to go at night is to avoid the crowds of people both in the queues for the ticket booths, as well as for the booths. If you don't like crowded places, then going at night is the perfect option. In addition, the cabins admit a maximum of 15 people.

The booths are quite spacious, but if you don't want to go in with so many people, well, you know, it's more likely to be less crowded after dark.

And what about the lines? You can easily spend more than two hours in line during the day. Avoid that by buying your ticket to go to the London Eye at night, at that time of the day you will have a quiet and less crowded ride.

Enjoy the summer nights and Christmas views in winter

If you go to London in summer, it does not get dark until 7 or 8, you can take a walk around the city and then go until that time to the viewpoint; an ideal way to extend the summer nights. On the other hand, London at Christmas time, surely the illumination of the London Eye makes the area one of the liveliest in London. Of course, in winter, you have less time to go because at 5 or 6 pm it will be completely dark. So maybe you will choose that special day to visit it.

The views from the London Eye are wonderful and it is worth paying to go up there. Even from the viewing platform you can see the following places that I am going to mention, and who knows, you can take a close look at them when you leave the London Eye:

Attending the key ceremony at the Tower of London

This is surely the oldest ceremony in the world. Every night at 21:53h for the last 700 years, this ceremony is held to close the door of the Tower of London, where the British crown jewels are kept.

In order to attend this ceremony, you must book in advance on the official website of the Tower of London. You must book 6 to 12 months in advance as tickets are free and sell out easily.

Attending a Twilight Tour at the Tower of London

At the Tower of London you can also take a guided night tour, where some historical facts and curiosities about the Tower are taught. These sightseeing tours do not include entrance to the crown jewels or the towers. It is done only on a few Sundays a year at 19:00h. You must buy your ticket in advance. You can check here the prices of the Tower of London.

Visiting the Sky Garden

The Sky Garden is a garden that is located on the 35th floor of another skyscraper in London known as Walkie Talkie for its shape. It has a viewpoint from where you can still admire the beauty of the city at night, usually closes at 21:00h and the best thing is that the entrance is free.

• I remind you that it is best to buy your tickets before your trip to London to avoid queues and if you buy one without queues you can simply arrive at the time you specified in the purchase and enter.
• The weather in London in winter is usually very cold and it can drizzle, I recommend you to wrap up warm (not a good idea to catch a cold in the middle of the vacations).
• You can go up with your cell phone or digital camera and take pictures from the cabin.
• Take the best pictures from outside the London Eye on the Golden Jubilee Bridge. This flying Ferris wheel is illuminated in different colors at night offering a perfect frame to capture its splendor.
• You can go on weekdays from Monday to Thursday to avoid the crowds.

Public transport at night

London is the city that does not sleep, for this reason it has several bus and subway lines that operate during the night. It is very common that people, especially tourists, want to party on the spot or visit the city at night.

In case you decide to visit the London Eye at night, you will also find out how to get around. London's night transport is more frequent on Friday and Saturday, as these two days of the week the London Underground does not close. On the other days of the week, the subway works from 5 or 6 in the morning until 11 or 12 at night.

There are also several bus lines that can serve as a bridge between two points of the city. On weekdays these services are more limited for getting around in the evenings. Therefore, it is likely that you will need to use a cab or bus line that operates at the time of night you need transportation.

Cab service is more expensive than public transport, but has the advantage of dropping you off at the door of your accommodation. Prices can be from 56 € to 105 € depending on the distance.

Places to eat

You can find places to eat near the London Eye after visiting the attraction. One option is to go to Gillray's Steakhouse & Bar which is only 0.2 km from the London Eye. The food served there is somewhere between Churrascaria and European and British dishes.

You also do well to go to La Cucina Di Mamma which is a good place to go with the family. This restaurant offers Italian food and is also about 0.2 km from the London Eye.

Do you want to enjoy a drink on your way out of the London Eye? In that case, go for a drink at All Bar One Waterloo. There they also offer food, such as the following: British dishes, special diets, vegan and gluten-free options.

I hope you take my recommendations into account and don't leave London without seeing for yourself the wonderful views of the city from the London Eye.