I have always wanted to try flying a plane myself. Finally, on my last trip to London I went for a half day flying trip at the Blackbushe Flying Club in England. It was an absolutely enjoyable experience. The place is around 1 hour away from central London. I took the express train to Farnbourough (~35 minutes) then took a taxi to Blackbushe Airport (~ 12 minutes) where the flying activity is done.

Difficulty level: absolutely safe and fun unless you have a fear of heights.

There are different types of experiences to try ranging between 20 to 60 minutes durations. They all offer spectacular views and the chance to take control of flying the plane. Some experiences include aerobatics moves while flying such as going for loops and stall turns with a qualified instructor of course. The aerobatic flights are harder to book. I think they only offer it on the weekends when qualified instructors are free. So before going you need to call and book with the club directly.

Check out all offered experiences on their page here.

What is nice about this activity is that you will be trying the real deal and somewhat learn how to fly the plane since it is an actual flying school for real pilots.

There are some other flying clubs who offer similar experiences near London. You can check out London Gliding Club for example. Note that I did not try them myself as they were busy the day I tried to book.

Happy flying.