Like It or Not, London's New Olympic Tower is Almost Ready for Business

May 16, 2012 at 9:50 AM | by kjb | Comments (0)

If there�s one city around the globe that doesn�t need any more attention�or tourists�this summer it�s got to be London. The UK is throwing a sick anniversary party for the Queen, Will and Kate are doing their thing, and there�s a little sporting event rolling into town as well. Some added excitement comes from the city�s latest addition to the Olympic landscape, and it�s known as the ArcelorMittal Orbit. However, we're just going to call it the Olympic Tower.

Rising almost 400-feet into the sky, the steel sculpture sits right by the Olympic Stadium, so you can kind of use it to find your way while meandering between venues and events in just a couple of months. Obviously the design is causing mixed reactions, especially as some think this could be London�s version of the Eiffel Tower. We�re not going to jump that far, but we�d definitely take a snapshot.

The only bummer might be the price of admission. Like most tourist traps, the view of the city doesn�t come cheap, and that looks to be the case here as well. Tickets to the top start at around �15�like $24�per person, and it�s roughly half that if you�re brining the kiddos along. Even if you have the cash to climb up to the top you still might have to wait. It sounds like access is going to be limited during the games, and the general public might not even get full access to the tower and the revitalized area until early in 2014.

[Photo: George Rex]

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