Inside ‘UK’s best shopping centre’ with designer discounts, disco balls, new Wetherspoons & restaurant 170ft in the air
A SHOPPING centre dubbed one of the best in the UK comes complete with mega designer discounts, disco balls and a restaurant 170ft in the air - as well as a new Wetherspoons launching today.
Only a few miles away from the famous Westfield Stratford complex, the Icon Outlet at the 02 in London remains relatively unknown among shopping superfans.
Its upper level is decorated with giant silver baubles which welcome shoppers with flashing disco lights.
Quieter than Westfield, close to the Tube and brimming with discounts, the Icon Outlet is also home to a flashy new Wetherspoons pub, The Stargazer.
The £2.9million boozer has a 3,800 square foot riverside beer garden with views of Canary Wharf across the Thames.
The centre hosts shops as varied as the Body Shop, Superdry, Skechers, Adidas, Hallmark and Claire's Accessories, as well as higher-end options like Ted Baker, Clarins, Calvin Klein, Radley, Gant and Hackett.
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Downstairs, shoppers can feast at classic chain restaurants like Slug and Lettuce - but the centre's culinary highlight is the London in the Sky outdoor dining experience.
Customers can gorge on cocktails, Freixenet wine and either afternoon tea or a Sunset Dinner while sat 170ft above the ground on top of the Millennium Dome.
If high-altitude dining is not to your taste, you can still enjoy the Icon Outlet's cinema, arcade, bowling alley, trampoline hall, indoor-parachuting facility and Selfie Factory.
The likes of Ed Sheeran, Michael Buble and Lizzo have all performed at the 20,000 capacity O2 Arena next door, with many concert-goers visiting the Icon Outlet before a performance.
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The Cineworld multiplex is London's biggest cinema, with a whopping 19 screens including the massive Superscreen.
The cinema also hosts a Screen X theatre with 270-degree surround views, a 4DX screen with moving seats, scent, water, wind, fog and snow, and the ViP theatre, where filmgoers can lie back in luxury recliners with drinks from the exclusive bar.
Unlike many shopping centres, including Westfield, the Icon Outlet also has free parking for customers.
Shopping superfan Tilly Alexander told : "At risk of sounding like an incredibly dull person, visiting the Icon Outlet at The O2 for the first time was surprisingly exciting.
"It's far more exciting than either of London's Westfields.
"In fact, I can't think of a more exciting shopping centre I've visited as an adult."
It comes after an Aldi superfan went inside the "most luxurious" branch of the supermarket - but not everyone was impressed.
Queen Reen picked up some of the glass-fronted Aldi branch's luxury products, including mango mochi and Minis chocolate ice cream.
