Up at the O2

Time Out says

Fri Jun 29 2012

This new attraction, designed to bring first-time visitors to the area and encourage people attending concerts and other events at The O2 to linger, takes the form of an expedition across the roof of Richard Rogers's millennium dome.

The nature of the 90-minute experience depends on the weather. We struck lucky but the trek takes place regardless; you could be very glad of the protective gear supplied.

From a distance, the canopy of the Dome doesn't look particularly steep and, to be honest, I wasn't really expecting anything more challenging than an elevated stroll and a bird's-eye view of east London. But the guides are professional climbers for a reason, and remaining securely clipped to a cable during the ascent and decent is not optional.

On the large viewing platform at the summit, we were free to unclip and take in a panorama that includes the new cable car and the Thames Barrier, the lighthouse straight across the Thames at Trinity Buoy Wharf and the Royal Observatory at Greenwich to the west. From this perspective Anish Kapoor's helter-skelter in the Olympic Park carves a place on skyline along with the Shard and St Paul's and, at last, starts to make sense.

London is unbeatable for cultural experiences but there's certainly room for innovation when it comes to catering for visitors looking for more active ways to explore. Up at The O2 offers a meticulously organised experience. By day it's unexpectedly exhilarating; at dusk it would be really magical.