The Emirates Air Line – flight review from, erm, Royal Victoria to North Greenwich!

I spent a chunk of last week at World Travel Market, the biggest travel show in the world and, in fact, the biggest trade show of any sort hosted in London.

Whilst I was over at Excel, I thought it was worth reviewing the Emirates Air Line cable car which runs between Royal Victoria DLR station and North Greenwich underground station.

As the terrible usage numbers bear out, this is pretty much a cable car ride from nowhere to nowhere.  The only reason I could see someone using it is if you were at a concert at the O2 and were staying in a hotel at Excel.  This would work fantastically well as you would be in your hotel room within 15 minutes of leaving the arena.

The Emirates Air Line cable car is now available on Oyster Pay-As-You-Go.  I was charged £3.40 for a one-way trip which, to be fair, makes it pretty good value compared to most other London tourist attractions!

This is the station at Royal Victoria:

Boarding

Security was not an issue (there isn’t any) and, surprised to find that there was no Emirates lounge, headed straight for the departure gate:

There was no boarding announcement and no attempt to board by status or ticket class.  Instead, the three of us who were waiting just hopped into the next available car.

Take-off

There was no time for any pre-departure drinks to be served (and indeed no-one to serve them) and we were soon in the air.

As this is essentially a short-haul economy service there was no in flight entertainment.  However, the views were impressive:

and

Landing

We landed promptly at five minutes past departure.  Oddly, at weekends, it runs at half speed with the trip taking ten minutes.  As I was travelling with just hand baggage, I was able to quickly depart the pod and was back on the street within seconds.

You are just a short stroll from North Greenwich underground station.  There are a huge number of bars and restaurants both inside and outside the O2 these days so it is not a bad spot to take a break from sightseeing.

The biggest problem with the cable car is you need to fit it in with some other sightseeing activities.  On its own, it doesn’t really merit the detour.  You could potentially visit on the way to Greenwich itself – perhaps going from North Greenwich to Royal Victoria and then taking the DLR to Cutty Sark.  You could also make a detour if you are heading to the Westfield centre in Stratford.  I wouldn’t necessarily head out from Central London just to ride it and come back.

There is another attraction in the station at North Greenwich – the Emirates Aviation Experience, which includes flight simulators.  I did not have time to visit.

If you happen to be down at Excel or the O2 and you have a pay-as-you-go Oyster, however, it is worth a trip for the novelty value.

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How to earn Emirates Skywards miles from UK credit cards (April 2025)

Emirates Skywards does not have a UK credit card.  However, you can earn Emirates Skywards miles by converting Membership Rewards points earned from selected UK American Express cards.

Cards earning Membership Rewards points include:

• American Express Preferred Rewards Gold (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 20,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 15,000 Emirates Skywards miles. This card is FREE for your first year and also comes with four free airport lounge passes.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

• The Platinum Card from American Express (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 50,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 37,500 Emirates Skywards miles

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

• American Express Rewards credit card (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 10,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 7,500 Emirates Skywards miles. This card is FREE for life.

Membership Rewards points convert at 4:3 into Emirates Skywards miles which is an attractive rate.  The cards above all earn 1 Membership Rewards point per £1 spent on your card, which converts to 0.75 Emirates Skywards miles

The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card earns double points (2 per £1) on all flights you charge to it, not just with Emirates but with any airline.