Set to stay open in London until September 2025 we headed down to the capital to bring you our thoughts on The Friends Experience London.
After visiting FriendsFestive in Blackpool a few years ago I enjoyed the interactive nature of the event with the set replicas, lovely meet and greet with the holiday armadillo and more but The Friends Experience London was a little familiar but also wildly different in the same breath.
Whilst there were amazingly detailed replica sets of Joey and Chandlers, Monica and Rachels, Central Perk and even the hallway between the two apartments there were other sets such as The Chapel where Ross says the wrong name at the alter and also a plane set flying to London as well as a map to ‘step into’ just like Joey.
Nostalgia oozes from every corner of this attraction but one thing that absolutely needs to change is the music, throughout the experience, music is playing but hardly any of the songs being played were used in the show.
I don’t remember Oasis being in any Friends TV show episode, do you?
The music instantly detached me from the immersion as they were playing just random songs throughout, this needs to change STRAIGHT away!
Prices for the attraction change throughout the day so it’s best to keep an eye on the website to grab a deal but I certainly felt like the 60 minutes we were inside the attraction whilst good was a little overpriced even at the cheapest price offered.
It’s great to interact with the sets and have your own photo opportunities but not everyone has the luxury of coming down on a weekday when it was completely empty to us to do this. On a weekend, queuing for photos in the sets would be a bloody nightmare!
Other than a handful of props and costumes from the show I found the interactive parts a little underwhelming so if you’re after more of a deep dive into the Friends TV show i’m afraid you won’t find it here.
It’s very much an Instagram reel photo opportunity attraction with some lovingly created sets and a retail store at the end and a pricey retail store at that with prices on the higher side compared to the Friends range you’ll find in Primark which is pretty much the same stuff just much cheaper!
The Friends Experience London is worth a visit if you’re a fan as you can’t deny the attention to detail and a nostalgic experience that any fan will enjoy but just keep in mind what has been said above.
There’s lots they could improve within this attraction to draw fans into the experience more but between this and FriendsFestive I did prefer the Blackpool offering which included a screening room playing episodes with food and drinks, it was more immersive and much more fun!
Make sure to get yourselves down to London (with the cheaper tickets) and I think any fan of the show will have a good time here, if you can make it during a weekday then please do so as you’ll get much more value for your money.
They also have various photo points around the attraction where you can scan a QR code and have photos taken at various points of your tour. There are screens at the end charging you for printed photos but if you scan the QR code and go on the app you can purchase unlimited digital photos for £20.
They don’t tell you this on the screen so make sure to take advantage of it before they rip you off!
Visit the official website to book your tickets today at https://london.friendstheexperience.com/the-experience
