I have no idea how this happened but the weather is the UK has transformed into a tropical heatwave! Maybe I managed to bring a slice of it back home with me when leaving Crete. Who knows? Lol.
My parents are visiting for a few weeks and they were actually staying home in London while I was on holiday. Now I'm back and welcomed by this "roasting humidity", I thought why not take everyone on a trip to the seaside. The closest one to me being Brighton beach! Another reason for visiting there was to check out the British Airways i360.
The tallest moving observation tower in the world!
I am so glad I did as the views of Brighton from above were incredible and breath-taking. Clear blue skies with not a cloud in sight, the calm sea water below and picturesque green, rolling hills in the distance. Awe-inspiring stuff, I tell you!
Located at the end of the West Pier, the British Airways i360 is a colossal 162 meters tall situated next to the seafront of Brighton. It was designed by architectural company Marks Barfiedl, who also created the London Eye. To see it before your very eyes allows you to realise just how much planning and effort must have gone into creating this grand structure.
This attraction is a relatively new addition to Brighton's entertainment venues with the tower opened only in August last year. It has regular “flight” times every 30 minutes. The ticket prices are £16 per adult (£14.50 if booked online).
The whole operation is run by British Airways. The staff were all sporting the official attire of stewards and stewardess's who all displayed their usual helpful and friendly manner. From the entrance onward, you are treated as if boarding a real airliner. I had to go through the routine checking procedures such as bag searches and a full body scan. I suppose is all adds to the authentic experience they were trying to provide us with.
Next up was the “departure lounge”. A small cordoned off section comprising of a ringside view of the tower itself and a few deck chairs facing the seafront for more serene relaxation.
Once in the pod, the glass fibre doors shut and we began ascending. The movement was so smooth, it was hardly noticeable at first, lol. Thank god for that as I've always been a little scared of the heights.
But this was just perfect. :)
The viewing area was very impressive indeed, with the pod protecting us all in a strong steel and glass encasing. There was plenty of room to walk around and take in the 360 degree spectacle showcasing all of Brighton. I was told that on the clearest of days, you could see all the way across to the Isle of Wight in the west! I looked out of it but got too distracted with the other unbelievable sights all around me, lol!
Comfortable seating arrangements were provided around the central core for those who cannot bear to look down, lol. Glad I wasn't one of them and bravery managed to get the best of me. :)
On board, there was also the Nyetimber Sky Bar serving a range of fine drinks for all the passengers. With English “champagne” at £10 a glass, it was a little expensive I feel. But that's the image they were trying to portray. A life of luxury and freedom, high up in the clouds above.
I can't express how truly stunning the view from the top was! I've been to Brighton quite a number of times in the past but never thought I'd ever view it in such glorious detail. The South Coast being a particularly beautiful sight! However, as you can see, my photographic shots were somewhat hampered by the reflective glass panelling.
I do apologise for that but there didn't seem to be a way round it. :(
The whole process was ultra slick and expertly delivered. My only mild suggestion would be to say that it could have been more interactive. They did have television screens advertising the different countries British Airways travel to in the pod, but I thought it would have been nice to have some featured points of interest so people could look out for them.
The “flight” was over after twenty-five minutes. The pod came back down (several minutes duration in each direction) and the passengers exited via another glass door into a small exhibition centre and souvenir shop.
The exhibition boosted photographs and historical videos explaining how the British Airways i360 was built, which I found very interesting. Not only did it take 200 tonnes of reinforced steel bars to make it's solid foundation, but this tower was also assembled in a very innovative way – from the top down!
What a nice little touch to end with!
The ride was memorable and the views utterly fantastic and not for the faint of heart. An overall fantastic experience that I would recommend to anyone visiting good old Brighton seaside!
这阵子英国的天气异常炎热，或许是我把希腊岛的热天气给带回家了，哈哈。
父母正好来伦敦探望我几周，我决定带他们到海边玩玩。离伦敦最近的海滩就是布莱顿海滩，我们也顺便参观一下这里的新景点“英航i360 ”- 世界上最高的移动观光塔！
事实证明这个决定是正确的，观光塔上的风景美得让人难以置信，头上蓝天白云，脚下平静蔚蓝的海水，密密麻麻的城市建筑，还有远处绵延起伏的山丘，真是风景如画!
英航i360位于布莱顿西码头的末端，距离布莱顿海滨仅有一公里。观光塔高162米，是由建造伦敦眼的同家建筑公司Marks Barfiedl设计的。亲眼看到这么壮观的建筑，我也可以想象得出多少规划和努力才能创造出这么宏伟的结构！
塔楼仅在去年8月才开放，算是布莱顿的一个新景点。每30分钟一次“航班”，成人票价为16英镑（如果在线预订，则为14.50英镑）。
整个观光塔都由英国航空公司运作，包括穿着正式服装的空姐以及他们彬彬有礼的服务态度。从入口开始，我就被视为登上真正客机的乘客，必须通过例行检查程序，包含随身物品搜查及全身扫描。我想这些额外的细节都为大家提供了更真实的乘机体验，也增添了不少乐趣，呵呵。
接下来我进入了“出发休息室”。一个小小的平台，就在观光塔的入口旁边。这儿提供了不少躺椅供大家在静待“航班 ”出发的同时，休闲欣赏海边美景！
进入观光塔后，玻璃门关上，我们就开始缓慢上升了。整个过程还挺顺利，我几乎感觉不到它的移动，真是谢天谢地，因为我还是有点儿畏高的，呵呵。
在塔上观光的确令人印象深刻。观光塔外型有如甜甜圈，整个外壳是由坚硬的钢化玻璃制作，非常安全。塔里面有充足的走动空间，大家可以360度地自由观赏布莱顿的全景，最远的甚至能看到西部的怀特岛呢！
塔中央的位置还为有需要的人提供了舒适的座位。
这里面有一个名叫Nyetimber Sky的酒吧，为乘客提供一系列精致的饮品。英国的香槟酒10英镑一杯，我感觉有点儿贵。这也许是英航试图为大家描绘的他们的品牌形象：高高在上穿梭于云层中，提供豪华自由的生活方式。
我以前来过布莱顿几次，但从未如此清晰细致地俯视它。南海岸的美丽景色，简直是言语都难以表达的美！可是正如你们所见，我拍的不少照片都因为反光玻璃导致部分不清晰，在此抱歉啦！
整个“飞行”过程非常顺利，我唯一的建议是增加互动性。塔上的电视屏幕只是宣传乘坐英航到不同国家旅游，我想如果能在屏幕上展示布莱顿不同方位的景点，提醒初到布莱顿游客注意观看，那就更完美了。
二十五分钟后，整个“飞行”过程结束了，乘客通过另一个玻璃门退出到一个小型展览厅和纪念品商店。
展览厅里的照片和视频，为大家介绍了英航i360观光塔是如何建造的。原来它不仅需要200吨强化钢筋以作为其坚实的基础，而且这座塔也是以非常创新的“自上往下”的方式组装！我对这些额外的信息特别感兴趣。
这次布莱顿英航观光塔一游很令人难忘，犹如梦幻般的飞行体验，风景更是美丽如画！强烈推荐给所有来布莱顿观光的朋友们，呵呵。