The Re-Opening of the British Airways i360: Get Ready to Enjoy Brighton’s Best Views Once Again
Along with many UK attractions and hospitality businesses Brighton’s BA i360 re-opened it’s doors this Saturday. Since closing back in March the team here have clearly put a huge amount of effort into making sure that the attraction is as safe as possible for both guests and staff. We were invited to experience a flight on their grand re-opening day to see for ourselves the measures that have been put in place to reduce risk associated with the presence of Covid-19. Here’s what to expect:
Pre-Visit
You’ll need to pre-book your ticket before arrival. There are a range of tickets on offer depending on how flexible you want to be with your booking. An adult ticket for a fixed time slot is £14.85; an anytime ticket is £15.75 and if you fancy treating yourself there is currently a re-opening 20% discount offer on their sparkling wine experience at £21.20.
Obviously if you are displaying any symptoms of the virus you should not visit. Face masks are not mandatory.
On Arrival
If you’ve visited the BA i360 before you’ll know that you usually enter via the lower promenade. Due to a one way system now being in place the entrance is now found on the upper promenade where you’ll be guided through security checks.
I’ve always been impressed by how thorough the security are here, now in addition to the usual bag checks you’ll have your temperature taken before being allowed into the main waiting area. Be aware that if you’re early for your flight you’ll have to wait outside at this point – great on a warm sunny day but you may need to come prepared if it’s going to be wet. There are also toilet facilities here.
Staff
All the staff we encountered were either wearing face masks or full face shields. Everyone was great at explaining the new procedures and showed great patience. It’s quite hard to hear what staff are saying whilst they wear the face shields so we had to ask for instructions to be repeated a few times.
On the Flight
A team of professional cleaners spend 5 minutes wiping down all the surfaces in the pod between every flight. Once the cleaning is complete we were asked to follow social distancing finding a space to enjoy the views. Some seating had been cordoned off to ensure social distancing was maintained even when sitting down – it’s easy to forget sometimes!
We were looked after incredibly well by Aimee and Sharna who were our flight hosts. Both hosts were wearing face shields whilst serving drinks and sharing information about the pod and views. Empty glasses were placed directly into the glass cleaning tray so that staff could place the try directly into the washer.
Leaving the Flight
The pod will take you back down to the lower promenade as your flight finishes. You can then access the toilet and gift shop before exiting directly opposite the West Pier.
Key points:
- Book ahead online
- Enter via the upper promenade
- Arrive 30 minutes before your flight
- Respect social distancing
- Toilets available on site but not on the pod
- Staff are fantastic! Tell them.
If you’d like more information on the British Airways i360 or to book tickets please visit their website here.