London looks different from above. The tangle of streets and rooftops resolves into something you can actually read, with the Thames cutting a silver path through it all and landmarks you recognise from postcards suddenly making sense in relation to each other. Early April is one of the best times to see it. The days are getting longer, the light has that particular spring clarity and on a good day you can see for miles.

The Easter long weekend gives you time to get up high and take it all in. London has more observation points than most people realise, from the famous ones that top every bucket list to quieter spots that even Londoners overlook. Here's where to go and what you'll actually see from each one.

The London Eye

The London Eye remains the most iconic way to see London from above, and there's a reason it draws over 3.5 million visitors a year. A 30-minute rotation in a glass capsule takes you 135 metres above the South Bank, and the slow, steady movement gives you time to properly take in the view rather than just snapping photos and moving on.

What you'll see depends on the weather, but on a clear April day the visibility stretches up to 40 kilometres. Directly below is the Thames, with Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament to your right. Looking east you can pick out St Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge and The Shard. To the west, Buckingham Palace and the green sweep of Hyde Park. At sunset the whole panorama changes colour, which is why the later time slots are so popular over bank holidays.

The capsules are fully enclosed and climate-controlled, so rain doesn't ruin the experience. They're spacious enough to walk around freely and fully wheelchair accessible, with the wheel able to slow or stop for boarding.

Standard entry starts from £33 over the Easter weekend. If you want to skip the queue (and Easter queues can be substantial), Fast Track tickets from £44 are worth the upgrade. The nearest Tube stations are Waterloo (5-minute walk) and Westminster (10 minutes across the bridge).

Pair it with a London Eye River Cruise (from £16) for a 40-minute trip on the Thames that gives you the same landmarks from water level. Seeing London from both perspectives in the same morning is a brilliant combination.

The View from The Shard

If the London Eye gives you a panoramic sweep, The View from The Shard gives you vertigo. At 244 metres above street level, the viewing galleries on floors 69 to 72 are nearly twice the height of the London Eye, and the sensation of looking straight down at the city below is completely different.

The indoor galleries on levels 69 and 70 have floor-to-ceiling windows with digital telescopes that identify landmarks for you. Level 72 is the partially open-air sky deck, where you can feel the wind and hear the city below. It's exhilarating in a way the enclosed galleries aren't, and on a spring evening the combination of fresh air and city lights is hard to beat.

What makes The Shard particularly good value is the price. Standard entry starts from just £19, which is less than you'd pay for most London attractions. There's no strict time limit either, so you can linger as long as you want. For a special occasion, the champagne experience (from £36) includes a glass of fizz at the top of London's tallest building.

The Shard sits right next to London Bridge station, making it one of the most accessible viewpoints in the city. It's open until late, and evening visits have a completely different atmosphere to daytime ones.

Lift 109 at Battersea Power Station

Lift 109 is the viewpoint most visitors don't know about yet, and that's part of its appeal. A glass elevator rises through the northwest chimney of Battersea Power Station to an open viewing platform 109 metres above the ground. The experience of ascending inside the chimney itself is unlike anything else in London.

The view from the top faces east along the Thames towards Westminster, with the river curving away below you. It's a completely different angle from the London Eye or The Shard, and because Battersea Power Station sits in a bend of the river, the water dominates the scene in a way it doesn't from other vantage points. On a clear day you can see all the way to the City and Canary Wharf.

Tickets start from £22. The platform is small and intimate compared to the bigger observation decks, which means it never feels crowded. Allow about 40 minutes for the full experience. Note that Lift 109 is closed on Saturdays, so plan your visit for Good Friday, Easter Sunday or Easter Monday.

Battersea Power Station has its own Tube stop on the Northern Line extension, and the surrounding development includes shops, restaurants and the riverside walk. You could easily spend a morning here before heading into the West End for an afternoon show.

Up at the O2

Up at the O2 is the most active way to see London from above. Rather than taking a lift, you walk up and over the roof of the O2 Arena on a tensile walkway, climbing to a viewing platform 52 metres above the ground at the summit. It takes about 90 minutes including the briefing, and the combination of physical effort and panoramic views makes it feel like a genuine achievement.

The views from the top take in the Thames, Canary Wharf, the Docklands, Greenwich and the wider east London skyline. It's a different London from what you see at the central viewpoints, more industrial and modern, with the gleaming towers of the financial district right across the water.

Daytime climbs start from £37 and are suitable for ages 8 and up. For something more dramatic, the sunset and twilight climbs (from £40) time your summit arrival for when the sky is changing colour and the city lights are switching on. They're genuinely special on a spring evening when the light lingers.

The O2 is at North Greenwich on the Jubilee line, and you're within easy reach of Greenwich itself for a post-climb wander through the park, the market and the Cutty Sark. If you want to pair the climb with a show, The Hunger Games: On Stage at the nearby Troubadour Canary Wharf (from £39) is a short ride away on the Jubilee line.

Sky Garden

Sky Garden sits at the top of 20 Fenchurch Street (the building Londoners call the Walkie Talkie) and offers something the other viewpoints don't: a lush, landscaped garden 155 metres above the City. The three-storey glass dome is filled with tropical plants, trees and an open-air terrace that faces south across the Thames towards The Shard, Tower Bridge and beyond.

What makes Sky Garden worth knowing about is the early access breakfast option (from £18.50), which gets you into the gardens before the general public, with a breakfast treat included. It's a genuinely lovely way to start an Easter morning, with the city laid out below you and a hot drink in hand. The space is calm and uncrowded at that hour.

Sky Garden is right next to Monument Tube station, which puts it in walking distance of another viewpoint worth your time.

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge isn't technically an observation deck, but the glass-floored walkways 42 metres above the Thames give you one of the most distinctive views in the city. Looking down through the glass floor to the river below is thrilling, and the views up and down the Thames from the walkways are stunning, with the Tower of London on one side and City Hall and The Shard on the other.

The exhibition inside the bridge covers the engineering and history of how it works, and if your timing is right you might see the bridge lift to let a tall ship through. Tickets from £16. Tower Hill on the District and Circle lines is the nearest station.

The IFS Cloud Cable Car

For a view that comes with forward motion, the IFS Cloud Cable Car (from £14) crosses the Thames between the Royal Docks and Greenwich Peninsula, giving you roughly 10 minutes of aerial views at up to 90 metres above the river. It's particularly good for families and feels like a mini adventure rather than a traditional observation experience.

The cable car connects well with Up at the O2 (North Greenwich terminal) and the Royal Docks area, so you could combine the two for a half-day of elevated east London exploration.

Insider Tips for Viewpoint Visits This Easter

Visit high-up viewpoints in the first half of the day if visibility matters to you. London's clearest conditions tend to be in the morning, before any afternoon haze builds up. That said, sunset and evening visits have their own magic.

Book time slots in advance for the London Eye and Up at the O2. Both operate timed entry and Easter weekend slots sell out. The Shard and Tower Bridge are more flexible, but booking ahead still saves you queuing on the day.

Layer up for any outdoor viewing platform. At 100 metres or more above street level, the wind is noticeably stronger than at ground level. Early April temperatures around 12-14°C can feel several degrees cooler with wind chill at the top of The Shard or on the O2 roof.

If you're combining a viewpoint with a West End show, the South Bank viewpoints (London Eye, Lift 109) are the easiest to pair with an afternoon or evening performance. You can walk from the London Eye to Waterloo station in 5 minutes, and from there most West End theatres are within two Tube stops.

Book your viewpoint tickets and any shows through tickadoo to keep all your e-tickets in one place. Join the free tickadoo+ membership and you'll earn rewards on every booking, whether it's a London Eye ride or a West End matinee.

See London from Every Angle

Each of these viewpoints shows you a different city. The London Eye gives you the wide, sweeping panorama. The Shard gives you the vertigo of pure height. Lift 109 gives you the river. The O2 gives you the climb. You don't need to do all of them in one weekend, but doing two or three across the Easter break, mixing a classic with something less expected, is one of the best ways to really feel the scale of London.

Browse all London experiences and West End shows on tickadoo, and join the free tickadoo+ membership to earn rewards on every booking.