Emirates Spinnaker Tower Portsmouth Review
Spinnaker Tower
Portsmouth
Reviewed by Ellie Hanks
Last week, I was lucky enough to visit the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth with my husband and two children, aged 4 and 1.
We picked the best day for it – the sun shone gloriously and visibility was definitely at its best. No wind was also a complete bonus when you’re up that high.
We arrived around 11am and went straight to the Tower. There was no queue whatsoever and it was very quiet. We were welcomed by the lady on the front desk who friendly and immediately showed us through and we were given a stamp on the hand for unlimited admission all day. The staff that manned the elevators were extremely welcoming and I had a particularly nice conversation with a young lady who was very chatty and friendly. The staff were excellent.
Admission is fairly reasonable and cheaper if you book in advance online. Just under £9 for an adult and £8 for a child (online booking prices). Under 3s go free. A family of four ticket is £33.
We travelled up in the elevator to the 1st viewing platform (there are 3). The first one is by far the best. It comprises of windows floor to ceiling around about 220 degrees (of a 360 turn) looking out over the Solent and in the middle, a 2 metre by 3.5 metre rectangle of glass set into in the floor called the Sky Walk. Shoes off, you can walk over the glass and experience “walking on air”. This was fabulous and the kids and I loved walking over it and sitting on it, knowing only a sheet of glass a few inches thick was between us and a fatal fall. A thrilling experience.
Looking around at the view, which was crystal clear on that magnificent day, you were able to see all the way over Portsmouth, across west towards Southampton and east towards Chichester. The Tower is 110 metres high and on this floor you are 105 metres up. Definitely not one for the faint hearted. There were also audio guide ‘books’ to rent and a flight simulator which we didn’t use but it looked popular.
The second viewing deck is a smaller viewing deck. The third was open air (wire netting over the roof so not completely exposed to the elements) and had pay per view telescopes.
The Spinnaker Tower was definitely good value for money and having had a fab time, I would most definitely recommend it to others. I would score it a 4.5 stars out of 5. I think the only thing that loses half a star for me is the fact there isn’t an elevator to the very most top floor, making accessibility difficult (but I understand why this would be hard to put in place, due to the design and architecture).
A fab day out! We all thoroughly enjoyed it!
Rating: 4.5/5
Tickets: Adult £9.95, Child £7.95 (book online to save 15%), Family Ticket £33. Portsmouth residents discounts also available with valid proof of residence.
For more information or to book tickets visit www.spinnakertower.co.uk.
Spinnaker Tower, Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 3TT
