Evening Activities for a non-drinker

Hi gingerwa:

How about quiz/trivia night at a pub? I did this twice on my 2014 trip to London. The following blog entry briefly describes my experience at the Warwick pub in the Victoria neighborhood. A video clip is included:

http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/georgelondon/2/1409931996/tpod.html

I will be heading off to London in two weeks so I am looking for things to do in the evening. Some museums stay open late maybe one day a week if that interests you.

Geor(ge)

Check out nighttime walking tours. Weather may be cold, but bundle up and step out.

For example, London Walks has some nighttime tours
http://www.walks.com/our-walks/monday-walks/

I don't understand the need for nightlife. I like to be up at 6 AM, time for a leisurely shower and breakfast, then out-and-about by 9 AM. This means to bed by 10 PM, and by the time I write in my journal, send email, enter my expenses for the day, and rinse out my clothes, it pretty much fills up the time between dinner and bed. There are plenty of places for nightlife at home. I go to Europe for the sightseeing. Stuff after dark just detracts from what I came to do.

Also look at Peg's thread: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/england/what-are-your-favorite-things-to-do-in-london-in-december

Try looking on the bulletin boards in grocery stores or the city information centers. Look on church fronts. Sometimes they post activities taking place. In Edinburgh, Scotland I once found a local dance group in a local Presbyterian church inviting outsiders to join in to learn to Scottish country dance. I was amazed how close it was to our (USA) country western dancing. I learned from them and then taught them a few new steps and dance routines. We all had a great time of sharing. They were thrilled a "foreigner" took the time to check them out. Maybe a local birding night walk? How about local lectures? One would be surprised at what goes on in the evening hours at the local level. I love to find those nuggets that allow me to be introduced to and join in at the local level. Not all has to be tourist based. Locals love it when an "outsider" joins them, especially a knowledgeable "outsider" that can join in the conversation. Do you play cards? Bingo? Be creative. Oh yes, I nor my husband drink.

There are often good concerts- from 'traditional' rock stars (we saw Fleetwood Mac and Yes in London), to church choirs, opera, symphonies and 'locals'. The theatre was always a draw for us, as we really enjoy musical theatre. Check to see if London Walks has anything you'd be interested- I'm sure there'd be pub walks and probably a Jack the Ripper or a ghost walk or two, and maybe others. I know Edinburgh and York have several 'ghost' walks and similar things. There are usually bus tours of 'London by Night' to see the major sites lit up. Check with the universities for lectures.

How do you spend your evenings while at home? Start thinking about how you can do those things, or modified versions of them, while in the UK.

Wow, thank you for all the replies! I'll definitely look into many of these things. It didn't occur to me that there would be night walking tours! That's fantastic. Pub trivia (as well as many of the other things mentioned) sounds fun too.

Lee, as I think most of the posters understood, it's not that I'm looking for nightlife (at least as I generally think of it). I tend to keep similar hours to you. But I think if I wrote off my day after 4pm I'd feel like I missed out on almost half of my available time. This is almost certainly a once in a lifetime trip, I'm willing to push myself a bit :) Though I'm sure there will be a few nights of collapsing in exhaustion as well!

In my real life I've been a SAHM to small children most of my adult life. I don't even remember what I used to do with my evenings before diapers and bath times took them over. Too much Internet and TV, probably ;)

Thames Clipper boat ride on the river after dark. The London city lights are beautiful from the river at night.

A ride up on the London Eye after dark. The city and its lights spread out below you. Stunning.

The British Museum is open later on Friday evening. Open daily 10.00–17.30 (10 AM to 5:30 PM), open until 20.30 (8:30 PM) on Fridays. There's plenty to see there. You said you wanted something more active. You will be doing a lot of walking here.

Walks, as already mentioned. Check out all the choices from the fine company London Walks--www.walks.com

If you change your mind about seeing a show........There are some great shows playing in London at any given time. They're much better than you'd think. I was hesitant about doing this the first time I went to London, but.....oh my gosh, the shows turned out to be so fantastic.

List of theatre productions in London in November here:
https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/whats-on/calendar/nov

I've always wanted to do the Jack the Ripper walking tour but it's still light out when I've been in London. So that's what I would do, but as they say it might not be your cup of tea

Saint Martins in the Field often has concerts in the evenings.

You mention you're not a show person, but perhaps a play if you don't like musicals. Also there might be Shakespeare at the Globe theatre.

Finally you can get the Rick Steves app and download some walks. I have done a few at night and enjoyed them.

Hi gingerwa:

Here is another suggestion which I use. If you are not a member of meetup.com do register with them; it's free. Then do a search where you specify events within 25 miles of London. Select "All Meetups" and "Calendar" and you will be shown a list of all the meetups taking place on that day. Here is an example for November 9:

https://www.meetup.com/find/events/?allMeetups=true&radius=25&userFreeform=london&gcResults=London%2C+UK%3AGB%3AEngland%3AGreater+London%3ALondon%3Anull%3Anull%3A51.5073509%3A-0.12775829999998223&change=yes&month=11&day=9&year=2016&eventFilter=all

You might find something of interest. For my upcoming trip I used meetup.com to sign up for the following events: performance of the Royal Ballet, Bonfire Night in Lewes, visit to the largest mosque in the city plus a visit to the zebra stripes on Abbey Road that were made famous by the Beatles, viewing the Lord Mayor's parade, visiting St. Paul's (free admission on this day). For each event I will be part of a group ranging in size from 15 (Bonfire Night) to 100+ (St Paul's). The participants in these events are for the most part approachable for conversation. I have heard that it is difficult to connect with Brits outside of a pub setting; they are more reserved than folks in, say, the USA.

Have a good trip.

Geor(ge)