A cable car mission

The Emirates airline is a cable car that travels across the river Thames from Greenwich to the docklands and back again giving a unique view of the area.

Opening in 2012 it is used as another leg of the transport for London network but is also popular as an attraction for tourists and visitors of the area.

I have wanted to take a ride on the cable cars for a while but wanted to visit on a clear day so I could make the most of the views and Greenwich is quite awkward for me to get to so it’s not somewhere I frequent often.

The cable car is pretty easy to find, as you exit Greenwich north station, the O2 is on the left hand side and the cable cars are towards the right amidst a load of building works.

As it is part of transport for London you are able to use your Oyster cards on the cable cars but if you don’t have one you can just buy a ticket from the ticket office, although this is slightly more expensive as the oyster gives you the discount rate.

As we were not sure that there was anything else to do in the area we decided to take part in the cable car mystery trail with Treasure trails who produce trails all over the UK to make exploring different areas more fun!

Getting onto the cable car was simple and quick and each group got to travel in their own cars so it was just the three of us, although I assume when it is busy they do fill them up with 10 in each car so you may have to share with others.

The journey was around 10 minutes and it was further to get across than I expected but we had some lovely views to look at on the way. As well as endless building works we also spotted people taking part in water sports and a cute beach.

As we approached the other end Kieron made himself familiar with the clues to look out for which was just as well because there isn’t much else to do over there. Some people were obviously aware of this and they stayed on the cable car and went straight back!

Although there wasn’t much to do we decided to take a walk down the riverside and it was really empty and peaceful which was surprising considering the area is quite built up. We continued our clue hunting and not sure if it was because of the way we printed the booklet out but Kieron found it a bit confusing following the order so I had to help him out. We definitely built up an appetite with all the walking and decided to return to the O2 arena to find somewhere to eat.

It was a fun day getting out, exercising our legs and exploring a new area of London that we hadn’t visited before. Not sure if I will go on the cable cars again but I have spotted a travel exhibition on at the Excel centre in November which I would love to visit so it may be sooner than expected!

Have you had a trip on the cable cars before?