London Helicopter Tours
See London from a completely different point of view – from a first glimpse of the skyline to almost an hour above the capital. Welcome to London’s best vantage point.
Explore the Tours
Glimpse of London
For anyone who wants the helicopter experience as much as the destination, the Glimpse is the natural place to begin. Around 18 minutes in the air puts you above the landscape with the London skyline forming part of the view – a shorter introduction to flying over the capital without stepping straight into one of the longer sightseeing tours.
Explore the GlimpseCity of London Helicopter Tour
This is where London becomes the reason for the flight. With around 30 minutes in the air, the City of London Helicopter Tour is the classic shared sightseeing experience. There is time to settle into the view, take in the skyline and see how the capital fits together from above.
Explore the City Tour
Grand Tour
Fifty minutes in the air turns the flight into the ultimate London sightseeing experience.
Stay with the view for longer, watch the capital stretch away beneath you and give London the time and scale this kind of flight deserves.
flying
London, with the helicopter to yourselves.
Private London sightseeing for your party, from a 30 minute flight over the capital to a longer 60 minute bespoke experience planned around what you want to see.
Get to know the city beneath you.
London is more than a collection of famous shapes on the skyline. Every landmark has a story, and seeing the city from the air puts those stories into a completely different perspective.
The Shard
The Shard stands beside London Bridge Station on the site of Southwark Towers, a 1970s office complex once occupied by PwC. Developer Irvine Sellar acquired the building in 1998 and later brought in architect Renzo Piano to rethink the site as a “vertical city” of offices, restaurants, a hotel, homes and public viewing space.
From the air, its appeal is not simply that it is tall. The eight sloping glass shards rise abruptly from the older, lower streets around Southwark and London Bridge, catching the light differently as your angle changes. It is one of those buildings that seems to move with you – exactly the kind of landmark that rewards seeing London from a helicopter.
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace began as Buckingham House, a private residence on the western edge of St James’s. George III acquired the site for Queen Charlotte in the 18th century, before George IV asked architect John Nash to transform the house into a palace. Queen Victoria became the first sovereign to rule from Buckingham Palace in 1837.
From street level, most people know the famous east façade, balcony and forecourt. From the air, the scale changes completely: the quadrangle, long wings and private garden appear together, revealing a working royal complex that is far larger than the familiar view from the Mall suggests.
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge was Victorian London’s answer to a difficult problem: the East End needed another road crossing, but the busy Pool of London still had to remain open to shipping. More than 50 designs were considered before the bridge associated with architect Sir Horace Jones and engineer Sir John Wolfe Barry emerged. Construction took eight years and the bridge opened in 1894.
From a helicopter, the engineering suddenly reads as one complete idea. The twin towers, lifting bascules, high-level walkways, road and river all sit in view together. Follow the Thames through London and Tower Bridge is one of those landmarks that instantly fixes your position in the city.
St Paul’s Cathedral
The St Paul’s we know today rose after the Great Fire of London destroyed the medieval cathedral in 1666. Sir Christopher Wren’s replacement took 35 years to build and was officially declared complete in 1711, creating a dome that would dominate London’s skyline for generations.
That history becomes unusually clear from the air. The dome still holds its own in the middle of the modern City, even as glass towers rise around it. A helicopter view lets you see both Londons at once – the skyline St Paul’s once ruled, and the city that has grown up around it.
The O2
Before it became The O2, this vast white structure was the Millennium Dome – built on the Greenwich Peninsula to house the Millennium Experience at the turn of the 21st century. Its dimensions were deliberately tied to the idea of time: 365 metres across, 12 yellow masts and a 52-metre-high centre.
That symbolism is especially easy to appreciate from the air. Seen from above, the roof becomes an enormous white disc beside the Thames, with its masts radiating around the edge. Few London landmarks change character quite so dramatically when you stop looking at them from ground level.
Big Ben & the Houses of Parliament
Much of the Palace of Westminster standing beside the Thames today exists because of disaster. A huge fire in 1834 destroyed most of the old Palace, leading to a new Gothic Revival building by Charles Barry, with Augustus Pugin responsible for much of its extraordinary detail. The rebuilding was completed in 1870.
And strictly speaking, Big Ben is the Great Bell – the tower is the Elizabeth Tower. From the air, though, the bigger surprise is the Palace itself: the famous clock tower becomes one punctuation mark in an almost 300-metre riverside façade. Seeing the whole composition at once makes Westminster feel completely different.
London Eye
The London Eye was conceived and designed by architects David Marks and Julia Barfield as a new way of looking at the capital for the Millennium. Launched in 2000 and originally intended to be temporary, it proved far too popular to disappear and became a permanent part of the South Bank skyline.
There is something pleasingly upside-down about seeing it from a helicopter. The Eye exists to lift people above London, yet from the air you look down on the viewing wheel itself. Its almost perfect circle, sitting beside the Thames opposite Westminster, is far more graphic from above than it ever feels from the pavement.
For a moment, the whole city is beneath you.
The landmarks stop being separate sights. The river, parks, streets and skyline become one London – seen in a way that only really makes sense from the air.
A few useful answers.
You may not need any of these. But if a question comes up while you are choosing, the answer may already be here.
Which London helicopter tour should I choose?
It depends on how much of the experience you want. The Glimpse is the natural starting point if the helicopter experience is as important as the destination, with around 18 minutes in the air and London forming part of the view. The City Tour gives around 30 minutes and makes London the focus of the flight. The Grand Tour stretches that experience to around 50 minutes, while Private London gives a group of up to four the helicopter to themselves.
Where do the tours depart from?
London helicopter tours depart from a choice of airfields and launch sites around the capital. If the south or south-east works best for you, Redhill Aerodrome and Biggin Hill Airport provide convenient starting points. From the west, Fairoaks Airport near Woking serves the shared London tours, while Redcroft Fields at South Ockendon and Grays Helipad serve the eastern side of the capital.
Private sightseeing opens up additional choices, including White Waltham Airfield near Maidenhead and Blackbushe Airport near Camberley. Availability varies by departure point, so the location section above shows which tours are offered from each one.
What can I expect to see from the air?
The London skyline and its iconic landmarks are the focus of the experience. Depending on the tour and departure point, views can include the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, St Paul’s Cathedral, the London Eye, Tower Bridge and The O2, with The Shard and the wider skyline rising around them.
The real difference is seeing those landmarks in context. From the air, the Thames gives the city its shape and familiar sights stop feeling like separate attractions. Exact routing and views can vary with air traffic and operating requirements.
How long will I actually be in the helicopter?
The times shown on this site are approximate flying times. The Glimpse gives around 18 minutes in the air, the City Tour around 30 minutes and the Grand Tour around 50 minutes. Private London sightseeing is available with around 30 or 60 minutes flying, depending on the experience and departure point you choose.
Can children take a helicopter tour?
Yes. Children from the age of six are most welcome on the shared London sightseeing tours, with children under 12 accompanied by a fare-paying adult. If you are considering a private London tour, younger passengers can join from the age of two, making it an option for families who want to experience London from above together.
Are there passenger weight limits?
Yes. Passenger weight is an important part of safe helicopter flight planning, and the limits can vary between experiences and aircraft. Passenger weights are collected during the booking process so the aircraft can be planned and balanced correctly for the flight.
What happens if the weather is unsuitable?
Helicopter sightseeing is weather dependent, so a flight only goes ahead when conditions are suitable. If the weather prevents your tour from operating, the experience can be rearranged for another suitable date in line with the booking terms and availability.
Can I book the helicopter just for my group?
Yes. That is exactly what Private London is for. Couples, families and small groups of up to four can have the helicopter to themselves, with around 30 or 60 minutes of London sightseeing available from selected departure points.
Which view of London is yours?
Start with a first glimpse, stay longer over the capital, or make the helicopter your own.
Glimpse of London
A shorter introduction to the helicopter experience, with the London skyline becoming part of the view.
City of London Tour
The classic shared sightseeing tour, with time to immerse yourself in the view and see the capital from above.
Grand Tour of London
More time in the air turns the flight into an unforgettable London sightseeing experience.
Private London
London sightseeing where the sense of occasion is matched only by experience that awaits.