STAFF REVIEW: UP AT THE O2 CLIMB

Lots of my family and friends have participated in the Up At The O2 climbing experience, and it is something I’ve always wanted to do. Luckily for Annie and I, we were invited to come along and do the climb for their 10 year anniversary celebration. Although we had both heard lots about it, we couldn’t wait to see what was actually in store.

Our travels there were quick and easy. We hopped on the train from Brighton and headed to London Blackfriars station. We got on the tube, and jumped off at North Greenwich. There were signs all over directing the public to The O2, so luckily our sense of direction was not needed! As we stepped outside the station, The O2 was standing right in front of us, and no further walking was necessary.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by The O2 climbing team, who were all particularly welcoming and friendly. Once wristbands were put on and check-ins were done, Annie and I had made our way into a room where further members of the team introduced themselves, and our quick introductory briefing video began. Being ok with heights myself, I wasn’t too scared, but others attending the climb noted that this video really helped to ease their nerves as they had an idea of what to expect.

Next, we were taken through to the equipment room. We put our belongings into a box each, and were handed our harnesses and gilet. Annie and I were given a pair of climbing shoes that were “less fashionable” but “more practical”. I didn’t quite realise how handy these would be until we made our way to the starting point, and we saw how steep the climb was! This was when I knew I was going to be left with a real sense of achievement.

At the start of the climb, a professional photographer took a picture of us stood with the immense climb behind us, we then zipped up our phones into the gilets, and the mighty climb commenced…

The climb to the top had us super sweaty, but it was so fun! We all climbed up in a line, one-by-one. Annie and I would pause every now and then to get a good look of our surroundings and watch our views progress the higher we went up.

After a lot of climbing, we finally made it to the top! The views were incredible, and the team made sure they got lots of great photos of us. We could see a 360-degree view of amazing locations such as Greenwich, The Olympic Park and Canary Wharf. A member of the team told us about famous landmarks we could see, such as London’s smallest lighthouse, the world's longest tunnel slide (40 seconds!) and many more. We learnt some interesting facts behind all of these too, but I won’t ruin those for you.

The way down to the bottom was the steepest and most challenging part, but the team were consistent in chatting to all of us and ensuring everyone was at ease. It felt amazing to finish the climb and look behind us at what Annie and I had just achieved! We made our way to get our final picture taken, hand back our equipment and get back to our belongings. 

The gift shop had lots of exciting souvenirs to take home, and Annie and I even bought a T-shirt each. We then had a quick look at the professional photos taken during the climb (which were also emailed to us.)

As we walked out of the equipment room, we were all surprised with champagne and amazing cupcakes that had been personalised for the Up At The O2 10th birthday! This was the perfect end to the perfect experience, not to mention how yummy the cupcakes were…

We made our way out past a variety of restaurants, shops, and bars as we headed to the station. We then hopped back on the train to make the return journey to Brighton.

Annie and I had a truly amazing time at The O2, and we enjoyed every minute of it. Thank you to the team who looked after us, they were all incredibly thoughtful and accommodating to everybody in attendance, and we felt they gave the whole experience a really nice touch.