Spin on England's Ferris Wheels

Enjoy a View of London, Manchester and York on an Observation Wheel

Oct 27, 2008

The London Eye, Manchester Wheel and Yorkshire Wheel offer tourists a bird's eye view of three of England's best-loved cities. Take a ride on a modern observation wheel.

The return of the Ferris wheel is one of the lasting legacies of the millennium celebrations in the UK. As at 2008, there are three passenger wheels in England, in London, Manchester and York.

The London Eye started the revival of the Ferris wheel. Sponsored by British Airways and built for the millennium, the London Eye was the tallest Ferris wheel in the world when built in 1999. It has a diameter of 135 metres (443 feet). By 2009, four larger wheels have overtaken the London Eye; the biggest in Beijing, is a massive 208 metres high.

Of course, the London Eye has the edge when it comes to views. Located on a stunning part of the River Thames, the London Eye is near the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben in the centre of London (local tube station: Westminster).

From the windows of the pod, the traveller can get an unrivalled panoramic view of many of London’s sights. Even Windsor Castle 25 miles distant can be spotted. In some respects an after dark trip is even more stunning than a daylight tour; many visitors do both!

The London Eye carries over 3,000,000 people for a “flight” each year. Each of the 32 glass encased pods can house around 25 people. There is a central bench area in each pod, and plenty of space for the brave to go and stand next to the curved windows.

The wheel of the London Eye rotates very slowly, and most able-bodied visitors find it very easy to enter and exit the pods as they slowly move. Visitors exit the London Eye after one full circuit.

Manchester City Centre’s newest area is the proud home to the Wheel of Manchester. This area was completely renovated following the IRA bombing of the late 1990’s. The Wheel of Manchester stands very close to Victoria Train Station to the north of the city centre.

The Wheel of Manchester is only 60 metres high (200 foot), but considering Manchester still has few tower blocks, the visitor can still get a good view of the area.

The Wheel of Manchester has around 40 capsules, with two long seats facing each other and housing just eight passengers. The Manchester Wheel gives riders four rotations of the wheel. It is better to visit the Wheel of Manchester off-peak to ensure a less busy capsule. The Manchester Wheel transports about 400,000 passengers each year.

The Yorkshire Wheel is the third of England’s big wheels, and is slightly smaller than the Manchester wheel at 54 metres. As York is an historic city, visitors get a good view of the historic walled city, although the venue for the wheel (outside the train museum) is a little out of town, and away from the famous and grand York Cathedral (which is approximately the same height as the wheel).

The copyright of the article Spin on England's Ferris Wheels in England Travel is owned by Chris Read. Permission to republish Spin on England's Ferris Wheels in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.