The London Frog Company is a
fleet of
18 improbable looking bright-yellow
vehicles which transport 30
tourists at a time on a
50-minute road tour of
historic London, departing from
County Hall and taking in all the city's
major landmarks.
The vehicles then plunge headlong into the Thames at great speed from a specially created slipway at Lacks Dock, Vauxhall, and the tour continues for a further 30 minutes from the river itself.
Launched on February 28th (by staging a race down the Thames between Sterling Moss and F1 star Jenson Button), the company is the brainchild of Professor Howard Slater, who has raised £1.3 million of private investement in the fleet of amphibious craft.
Originally known as 'DUKWS', and first used for the D-Day landings when more than 21, 000 were built to take the troops ashore, these vehicles have been totally rebuilt to meet the safety regulations set by the D.E.T.R. and Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
The "Frogs" are fully equipped with a Captain and a "crazy" guide who fills your head with facts and figures about Londinium's colourful past
On land or water, the vehicles may look completely ridiculous, but this doesn't matter one iota - no, because they give you the chance to live out that James Bond dream that you've suddenly accelerated into the river, leaving the baddies behind you, shaking their fists in your rear-view mirror, damning their evil employers' empire for its inferior technology. Hurrah!
The London Frog Company
County Hall
Westminster Bridge Road
London SE1 7PB (opposite the British Airways London Eye, London Aquarium and the Namco Station.)
Tel:0207 928 3132
Fax: 0207 928 2050
e-mail:bookings@frogtours.com
Cost:
Adult - £15
Child - £9
Concession - £12
Family - £42
DUKW Tours: London, England: www.frogtours.com
Boston: www.bostonducktours.com
Charleston, SC: www.lowcountryducks.com
Seattle, WA: www.ridetheducksofseattle.com
Chicago, IL: www.metroducks.com
Wisconsin:www.dellsducks.com
Dublin, Ireland: www.vikingsplashtours.com