A Review of the London Cable Car – Fun and Inexpensive

I took the London IFS Cloud cable car over the River Thames with my 12 year old son and loved it! Amazing views and it won’t break the bank. It was an enjoyable experience for both of us.

London IFS Cloud Cable Car – What Is It?

The cable car goes over the River Thames from the Greenwich Peninsula to the Royal Docks and back the other way. You can take a one way trip or a round trip. If you’re doing it for the experience rather than just travel I would recommend a round trip.

The cable car reaches heights of 90m (295 feet). It costs £6 each way for adults and £3 for children (£12 and £6 for a round trip). Prices are correct as of August 2024. Although some people find this pricey, I think it’s a cheap activity compared to other things you can do in London.

I would recommend buying tickets online before you go. You can then show the tickets on your phone when boarding. You can buy tickets when you get there if you prefer but there is an additional queue which can be quite long.

Find more about how to pay and buy tickets.

How to Get There?

The nearest tube is North Greenwich which is on the Jubilee line. It’s a 5 minute walk from the tube station.

We took the tube from Waterloo to North Greenwich. The tube journey took around 20 minutes.

Who’s It For?

It’s for everybody. All ages will enjoy this one.

Our Experience

I went with my 12 year old son. I was worried a cable car ride would be boring for him as he’s used to the thrills of rollercoaster rides at theme parks. However he loved it.

We went on a Saturday afternoon in November and there were no queues for the cable car itself. However there were a few people waiting to buy a ticket. I whipped out my phone, bought the tickets online and was swiftly emailed a QR code. This was seen by an attendant for entry. We then just walked through to the cable cars.

Note: You can also use a contactless or Oyster card for entry to the cable car just like you do on the tube! 

The cable cars come around every 30 seconds. We walked onto the first cable car that came which we had all to ourselves. At busy times you may have to share a cabin with other people. However, it was quiet at 2pm on the first Saturday in November.

The doors shut and we slowly ascended. It was very exciting. It was windy and you could feel the cable car was moved by the wind very slightly  – this added to the excitement!

Ascending 90m means the views from the cable car are brilliant. On one side, there’s an amazing view of Canary Wharf with London stretching out behind it. My pictures aren’t brilliant but they give you an idea.

The other side is less aestheic with some building works going on but this I still found the whole view fascinating.

After about 10 minutes we reached the other side. At this point I was glad we paid for a return trip and was very much looking forward to going back.

We remained seated on the cable car while it turned round for the return journey. Coming back was awesome too. It was great to see the views from the other direction.

All in all, we very much enjoyed our ride on the cable car and would recommend it as a great way to see brilliant views of London.

It’s worth noting that the cable cars also run in the evening, if you would like a night time experience. The opening hours vary according to the day of the week and the time of year. You can find the exact opening hours here.

Update: My son enjoyed the cable cars so much when we returned to London in August 2024 he requested we do it again! We went at 4pm and queued for about 10 minutes to get on (we’d bought our round trip tickets online before we went).

London Cable Car vs London Eye

Which is better, the London cable car or the London Eye?

There are many differences between the two. The London Eye gives an iconic view of London. It’s located right next to Westminster and Big Ben on the Southbank. As you’re in the a central part of London it’s a great way to see the famous landmarks.

The London cable car is located in North Greenwich and on one side there are great views of Canary Wharf and the Millenuim Dome with London behind it. On the other side is the Docklands. You won’t be able to see the most well known London landmarks from here.

At 30 minutes The London Eye lasts longer than the cable car ride. The cable car ride is fairly quick. However, the cable car is much cheaper, so if you are on a budget it’s a great alternative.

Both are fun! For me the fun elemenet of cable car is slightly more exciting than the cabin of the London Eye. However, that’s just my perspective! I’m very familiar with central London so I also don’t have the novelty factor of seeing all the buildings for the first time.

What Else is in the Area?

The O2 Arena

The O2 arena is a 5 minutes walk from the cable cars. If you want another adrenaline filled experience you can climb the roof of the O2 for more amazing views at the top. We saw some people doing this while we were there.

Inside the O2 area there are plenty of restaurants where you can grab a bite to eat. There’s also a cinema, shopping and a variety of shows and events take place here too. On top of this you can also bowl, play VR, take an indoor skydive and lots more. Check out the O2 website to see everything thats going on.

Museum of Docklands

Hop back on the tube to get to Canary Wharf which is the next stop along on the jubilee line (about 5 minutes away).

Here, the Museum of Docklands is free and worth a visit. If you have children under 8 they will enjoy the Mudlarks family gallery. There are also some fantastic trails around the museum for older kids.

Visit Greenwich

In under 10 minutes you can be in Greenwich if you hop on a bus at North Greenwich. Alternatively it takes 15 minute to walk. I would recommend using the Citymapper London app to guide you. There are a host of attra ctions in Greenwich including the Cutty Sark, the Maritime Museum, the Royal Greenwich Observatory and Greenwich Park.

More Reading

Find out everything you need to know from the Travel for London Cable Car website

Pin Me For Later

You May Also Like…