Up at The O2 - Climbing The O2 in London

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Standing on the River Thames, London is one of the most visited cities in the world. It has something to offer all its visitors - from World Heritage Sites (the Palace of Westminster & Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, Maritime Greenwich and the Kew Royal Botanic Gardens) to fantastic open spaces and parks, from fine food to shopping venues and from architectural marvels to world-class tourist attractions (Buckingham Palace, Victoria and Albert Museum, Tate Modern, the British Museum, the London O2 and many more). You just have to take your pick.

The O2 Arena is an indoor arena on the Greenwich Peninsula in southeast London. It has a number of bars and restaurants, exhibition spaces, indoor events spaces, a cinema, clubs, shopping outlets and 'Up at The O2'.

Up at The O2

Up at The O2 involves a climb above the O2 Arena and allows you to experience and view London in a totally different way. A couple of months back, on a lovely and sunny day, Bhavin and I made our way to Greenwich for the O2 climb and the 90-minute urban climbing adventure was unlike anything else.

The Experience

Up at The O2 opened in June 2012 and since then it has welcomed thousands of visitors on the guided expedition over the roof of The O2. Suspended 2 metres above the surface of The O2 roof, the 'Up at The O2' walkway is 52 metres above ground level and around 380 metres long. The walkway has an incline of 28° at its steepest point on the way up and 30° on the way back down. The walkway is made up of a tensile fabric and has a slight bounce to it.

Upon reaching The O2, we made our way to the Up at the O2 ticket counter which is located just to the left of the main entrance of The O2. We presented our tickets, filled in a short questionnaire, and were then shown to a room where the group safety briefing took place. Our guide introduced herself and a short video was played which detailed facts about The O2 and the climb.

The next step was getting kitted for the adventure. We were all given a vest, boots and a safety harness each to put on. All our personal belongings went into the lockers. You can carry your phone while you climb but the phone needs to be in the phone pocket on the vest and you can only use it once you reach the viewing platform.

We made our way up a flight of stairs and our climbing guide showed us how to use the harness. And off we went. Walking on the tensile fabric was fun, it was akin to being on a large trampoline. But we had been briefed not to bounce on the walkway and so we resisted the urge to bounce! It was a relaxed and unhurried climb instead, taking in the views as we made our way to the viewing platform.

Climbing the O2, wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. It was quite fun, actually. Up at The O2 is 52 metres at its highest point and at the top, there is an observation deck where one can take in spectacular views of London. We were allowed to take off the safety harness and wander around taking in the panoramic views. Our guide pointed out various landmarks and areas of London and was happy to answer any questions we had. We had some time to take photos and savour the views and then it was time to make our way down. The walk down was relatively easy, as by now we had got a hang of walking on the tensile fabric.

The Up at The O2 climb is available all year round although the timings may vary based on the season. You can go for the climb during the day, at twilight or at sunset. There is even a 'Celebration Climb' option where you can enjoy a Champagne Lanson toast on the roof! You can buy tickets for the Up at the O2 experience directly on The O2's website or you could purchase it as a gift for someone special on BuyAGift.com. 

 

At the time of writing this post, the Up at The O2 Experience (for two) is priced at £72 on BuyAGift.

Wherever you decide to book your tickets from, the experience is great. It is well organised, the staff are wonderful and the safety aspect has been well taken care of. We thoroughly enjoyed every minute of our experience and wouldn't hesitate to do it again!