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If you’re thinking about booking a helicopter flight in the UK, you should think carefully about the areas you’ll fly over and the sights you’ll see. Getting an aerial view of a landscape, a monument or a city can really change your perception of it, but we’d point out that some things deserve this enhanced viewpoint more than others.
And we should know - as a helicopter pilot is able to see the big picture better than people on the ground can, so our point of view, that of a leisure activity directory, allows us to contemplate and compare the flights on offer around the United Kingdom. At the end of the day, helicopter flights don’t come cheap, and you want to make sure that the area you’re going to see from the cockpit is really worth getting a bird’s eye view of.
NATURAL SETTINGS
The Jurassic Coast, Southwest England
The Jurassic Coast is a crowd-pleaser close up and from a distance. If you go to the beaches of Kimmeridge or Lyme Regis, you’ll see people wandering across the sands and at the bases of the cliffs with their heads bent low. They’re looking for fossils! But zoom out and observe this 100-mile stretch of coastline on the south coast of England from the window of a helicopter and you’ll see it in a whole new light.
Dramatic headlands rise above sandy beaches and hidden coves, natural rock arches plunge into the sea and brilliant white sea stacks erupt from below the waves. Taking off from Bournemouth Airport, a helicopter tour of the Dorset coast should be at the top of your bucket list.
The Lake District, Northwest England
England’s land of lakes and mountains inspired Wordsworth to pen his famous poem “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud.” Whereas William, writing over 200 years ago, could only imagine what the spectacular landscape must have looked like from above, we now have the opportunity to do just that. Take a flight in Cumbria over the National Park and you’ll find out that it’s just as majestic as he dreamed it would be.
The Cotswolds, the West Country
Not as dramatic, but equally evocative are the Cotswolds. These rolling chalk hills extend over a large area in southwest England, covering parts of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, Somerset, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. There’s a literary connection here as well: various landmarks and locations in the area helped fuel the imagination of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings creator J. R. R. Tolkien. Peter Jackson may have chosen New Zealand to represent Middle Earth on the big screen, but you can see the original if you book here.
HISTORIC SITES
Bath, Somerset
Almost two thousand years of history are on display in Bath, from the Roman baths themselves, to the mediaeval abbey to the elegant Georgian crescents and Pulteney Bridge. It’s no surprise that the city centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. What is surprising is that, unlike most cities with similar status, you can take a sightseeing tour of the city by helicopter.
Edinburgh, Scotland
Anyone in the northern half of the British Isles will be pleased to know that we might have spoken too soon. Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is another UNESCO site which you can overfly in a helicopter. The highlights of this tour will be Edinburgh Castle, home to the Scottish crown jewels and the Stone of Destiny, Arthur’s Seat and the legendary Forth Bridge.
MODERN ARCHITECTURE
The London Skyline, Southeast England
London is undeniably a historic city, but it’s the modern skyscrapers and towers that dominate the cityscape when viewed from the air. The best helicopter tours of the capital begin to the southwest of the city, heading first for the chimneys of Battersea Power Station, then to the Shard - the tallest building in th United Kingdom - before rounding the towers of the financial districts of the City of London and the Docklands.
Football Stadiums
Fans of the beautiful game will appreciate this one. It’s natural that football stadiums become important emblems of the teams that play there - scenes of great drama, emotion and excitement. Seeing your team’s home ground from a helicopter can bring back all of those memories and feelings, whilst putting the stadium firmly in its local context. We recommend helicopter tours that take in various - often rival - football grounds in a single flight. A Liverpool flight that takes in the stadiums of both Liverpool and Everton Football Clubs - set just a mile apart - is a popular choice, as is or a tour of the Old Firm in Glasgow (Celtic and Rangers, that is).
If any of these flights catch your eye, follow the links to find out more or visit our complete guide to helicopter flights in the UK. If you’ve taken a helicopter tour of an area we haven’t mentioned and want to tell us why it’s worth it, let us know in the comments!
