I guided my 17 year old daughter through the hustle and bustle of the South Bank (a rather exciting “Streets of Spain” event was taking place, the Udder Belly theatre was doing a brisk trade and the street entertainers were out in force) and we arrived at the London Eye river boat pier 20 minutes before our tour at 5pm.
The people were lovely as they helped us into thick, waterproof coats and life jackets. It was safety all the way as another member of staff checked that we were properly locked into those vests.
I was just asking about whether there were any age limits when they introduced us to a couple of fellow passengers – Elly (9 months) looked cuter than a button in her tiny life jacket and Maisie (a rather brave five year old) was happy that even her teddy was given a life jacket. Then 12 of us stepped over onto the boat into the capable hands of Stephen the Guide (from Wales) and Stephen the Skipper.
As there is a speed limit until you reach Tower Bridge, Stephen takes on the role of education. In between chatty happily with the passengers, he pointed out important sights such as the Palace of Westminster, the RAF Monument, Cleopatra’s Needle and HMS President (The “Dazzle Boat”).
He told stories of pirates as we passed The Golden Hinde. He also gave us the background on each of the bridges we passed under. As a born and bred Londoner who has done a fair few tours in my time, I was impressed that even I learned a few new things - Like I never knew which bridge marked the end of the freshwater and start of the sea water parts of the Thames.
Anyway, we thoroughly enjoyed admiring London from the water and listening to Stephen. He made us laugh a lot.
Then we reached Tower Bridge and Stephen the Skipper – in charge of exhilaration - took over. Suddenly, the music was ramped up, the throttle was opened and off we went bouncing up and down on the waves and swerving from left to right creating great splashes of spray.
Everyone on the boat was laughing with the sheer joy of the experience – and I am sure that we were all hanging on for dear life to the large chrome rails placed reassuringly in front of us. They had said we would reach speeds of 35 knots (about 40 miles an hour) but it felt much faster. We were told that we should put our hands in the air if we were uncomfortable but no one did. How could we when young Elly and Maisie were having such fun?
Our laughs (and delighted screams) continued as we enjoyed the music – everything from “London Calling” to “Rock the boat” and then theme tunes to Titanic and even James Bond. Someone with a keen sense of humour put that playlist together. And I am fairly sure that we all joined in singing along to “Happy” as well.
After a few more dramatic turns and teasing the passengers on the slow-moving cruise boats (who waved back enthusiastically as we zipped past) we were on our way back. Stephen kindly offered to take photos of us with our cameras and phones.
We were on the Ultimate tour which lasted 50 minutes (and passed in a flash and a splash). There’s also an 80 minute tour to the Thames Barrier and an All Speed 40 minute tour which leaves from Tower Bridge (there is a minimum age limit of 10 years old for this one though).
Adult tickets (usually £42.00) are £37.95 and kids (14 years & under) are £22.95. Be aware that those who are pregnant are not allowed to ride and you are advised against it if you have a back or neck or heart problem. And they still have a few spaces for tour on Bank Holiday Monday! Definitely a 10 out of 10 from both of us.
See more: londonribvoyages.com
