The Most Fun Activities in London for your City-Break

You’ve just arrived in London for a few days and don’t know where to start exploring? Whether you want to have fun like a local or just discover the off-beaten path of the city, you’re in luck – down below you’ll find five of the most fun activities you can do in your London city-break.

Hint: the touristy stuff was intentionally left out, so you can actually discover the true essence of the city.

TOP 5 Fun Activities for a City-break in London

1. Go Ape – Literally

If you’re up for adventure and climbing trees, you could use an adventure park. Check out the Go Ape venues in London to climb the treetop platforms, defy the obstacles and get your adrenaline high. They’ve got multiple routes and their difficulty level varies from beginner to advanced. Even though these activities require a basic degree of physical fitness, you can easily swing like Tarzan (or Jane) on the zip-line.

You can choose from six different adventures, including Forest Segway. This is a one-hour trip with an all-terrain Segway through the forest trails and is the best way to explore nature and spot wildlife.

Price: Prices range from £18 to £55, depending on the ticket and location you choose.

Duration: Between 1 and 3 hours

Location: Alexandra Palace, Battersea Park, Chessington, and Trent Park.

2. Play a City Exploration Game with Questo

Sightseeing doesn’t have to be boring – not when you can explore the city as an undercover hero on a quest! All you need is your phone and Questo, the city exploration game.

There are plenty of routes to choose from and once you selected a quest, you become the main character of the story. You then receive a riddle that can only be answered by walking around the city and following the clues. For every right answer, you get a short story of the place you just visited and a new riddle that will help you solve the entire mystery.  

One of them is The Wizards of London, where you play the role of Theodgar, a powerful Wizard that vowed to protect his goddaughter. During the adventure, you will get to visit iconic places where the Harry Potter movies were filmed and keep the dark forces at bay.

The best part of the game? In only a couple of hours, you can get to discover amazing places in London that only a few people know about.

Price: Between £13 and £18 per quest (available to groups of 5 people or less)

Duration: Between 1 and 2 hours, depending on the quest

Location: Throughout the city. The starting point differs from quest to quest and is available in-app for iOS and Android.

3. Pay a Visit to Alcotraz Prison Cocktail Bar

Ever wondered what it’s like to be locked up in a cell? Wonder no more and go visit Alcotraz, the first theatrical cocktail bar in London. Once you get convicted and enter the gate of Alcotraz, don’t expect a menu of cocktails to choose from. After all, you’re in prison, and alcohol is not widely available at all times. Instead, you’ll get an immersive experience of what life in a penitentiary might look like, including the art of smuggling alcohol into the carcel.

If you want to serve your cocktail (and time) in style, you can book your cell here.

Price: Prices start from £35

Duration: 1h 45 mins

Location: 212 Brick Lane

4. Try FootGolf or Foot Darts

Don’t know what to choose between football, golf or darts? Now you don’t have to! FootGolf and Foot Darts might sound weird, but truth be told, they’re quite amazing.

FootGolf challenges your precision, as you’re supposed to kick a football to enter the hole. You can play it on typical golf courses where they allow it, or on a specially-designed FootGolf course.

On the other hand, Foot Darts implies kicking a Velcro football to hit the bullseye on a big, inflated darts board. It’s like the typical British pub experience, unless it’s outdoors, and you’re doing both the darts and the football.

Price: Footgolf prices start at £14 per adult and £10 per child, but groups larger than 4 people are offered group discounts. For Foot Darts, the price starts around £30 per adult.

Duration: A standard session lasts 60 mins, but if the group is larger, it can be maxed to 90 mins.

Location: There are multiple venues where you can play both FootGolf and Foot Darts, two of them being Golf Kingdom (for FootGolf) and Powerleague Shoreditch (for Foot Darts).

5. Experience the Post-Apocalypse World at Bunker 51

Bunker 51 is a nuclear bunker with a history tied to the Cold War, which now serves as the perfect place to enjoy laser tag, paintball or airsoft. If you’re rather into psychological thrillers, you can book an escape room or take part in one of the zombie experiences that run for 2,5 hours.

The bunker is located near the Thames River so you can enjoy the best view after having saved the world from all kinds of dangers.

Price: Prices range from 15 to 50, depending on the activity you choose.

Location: 3 Herringham Rd

Duration: Between 30 mins and 2 hours.

Have fun!