10 Things to Do After Work in London (No Pub Edition)
Ten activities you can do after work and thirty places to go, none of which involve the pub. Games, saunas, films outdoors and more, for a weekday or a weekend.
By Settle & Kettle Published 09 July 2026
It’s six o’clock. You’re done with work but the day hasn’t quite ended yet, and you’re wondering what you could do instead of going home and falling into the repetitive cycle of work-home, home-work. That’s exactly why we put this list together.
Best part is that this is a sober list. Not anti-alcohol, just for those times when you want to do something rather than sit in a bar with a pint, whether that’s a Thursday after work or a slow Saturday.
Every place listed has a Google rating of 4.5 or higher, and most of them work just as well if you’re figuring out what to do in London for a day at the weekend. Let’s get started.
In this article
At a glance
Thirty places across London, all rated 4.5 or higher. Tap an activity to jump straight to the venues, prices and times.
| No. | Activity | From |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Sauna | £7 |
| 02 | Late cafés | À la carte |
| 03 | Comedy | £5 / PWYC |
| 04 | Padel | £5 |
| 05 | Bouldering | £8 |
| 06 | Board games | £7pp |
| 07 | Outdoor cinema | Free |
| 08 | Life drawing | £12.50 / PWYC |
| 09 | Late museums | Free |
| 10 | Theatre | £10 |
Recharge
01Sauna
The sauna scene has swept across London. The idea is simple: alternate the heat of a sauna with a cold plunge. It’s good for stress, sleep and muscle recovery, and it’s one of the best ways to wind down after work. Most places let you book a single session with no membership.
Sauna Social Club
What started in 2024 with one question (what if you met friends at the sauna instead of the pub?) has become the world’s first sauna listening lounge. Based under a railway arch in Peckham, there’s a Finnish sauna, ice baths and a lounge area, with live musicians and DJs during ambient sessions on Friday and Saturday nights. Longer sessions add breathwork, sound healing and aufguss.
Price
From £14
Time
Wed to Sun; evening sessions to 9:30pm
Address
Railway Arch 842, Brayards Road, Peckham, London SE15 2AG
Sauna and Plunge
Beautifully designed with Finnish and infrared saunas, cold plunges and a café lounge. Their signature contrast session is £30, with add-ons you can bundle in. If you’d prefer to move than sweat, the studio classes in yoga, breathwork, Pilates and sound sanctuary are £15 each, with the power yoga starting from £7. Designed around short 30-minute sessions that slot into a busy evening.
Price
From £7
Time
30-min slots; bookings to 7:30pm
Address
124 Tabernacle Street, Shoreditch, London EC2A 4SA
Community Sauna Baths
The affordable, community-minded choice, run as a not-for-profit. Each location has saunas, cold plunges, showers and a garden to rest in, plus a full events programme and massage treatments at some locations. Concessions start from just £5.
Price
From £9.50; concessions from £5
Time
7am to ~9:30pm (varies by site)
Locations
Multiple locations: Camberwell, Hackney Wick, Peckham, Stratford and Walthamstow
SOMETHING SWEET
02Late-night cafés
Sometimes the reset you want is just cake and a hot drink somewhere that stays open past the usual café hours.
L’ETO Caffe Soho
Known for its daily-changing counter of cakes and desserts, L’ETO is the kind of place where the display alone is worth walking in for. The Soho branch on Wardour Street is open until 11pm every day, which makes it one of the few cafés in central London where you can sit down with something sweet late into the evening. Prices sit at the higher end, so it’s more of a treat than an everyday stop.
Price
À la carte; treat-priced
Time
9am to 11pm daily (Soho)
Locations
155 Wardour St, Central London (plus 8 other locations across Central and West London)
Kipferl
A Viennese coffee house and restaurant in Islington, serving Austrian food, house-made cakes and pastries, and proper Viennese coffee since 2003. If you want more than cake, the dinner menu runs from 6pm and covers Austrian classics like Wiener Schnitzel, goulash and cheese-topped Spätzle, with Austrian wines and beers to go with them. It’s the kind of place where you can pop in for just a coffee and a slice of something, or sit down for a full evening meal. Open until 10pm Tuesday to Saturday.
Price
Cakes from ~£5; dinner mains from ~£16
Time
Tue to Sat 9am to 10pm; Sun 10am to 8pm; closed Mon
Address
20 Camden Passage, London N1 8ED
Greenberry Café
A neighbourhood café in Primrose Hill that doubles as a restaurant in the evening. The evening à la carte menu runs from 6pm to 10pm, Tuesday to Saturday, and it’s a good middle ground when you want something more substantial than just a coffee.
Price
Pudding from ~£9
Time
Tuesday to Saturday 9am – 10pm; Sunday & Monday 9am – 3pm
Address
101 Regent’s Park Road, London NW1 8UR
For a laugh
03Comedy
A comedy club is a reliable way to end a heavy day with a proper laugh, and London’s best clubs are cheap and run most nights of the week.
The Top Secret Comedy Club
One of the highest-rated clubs in the UK, and household names regularly drop in to trial new material. They don’t sell food, but you’re welcome to bring your own takeaway, and if you fancy a drink, pints start from around £4. Sunday to Wednesday shows are pay-what-you-can, and tickets vary on other nights depending on the show.
Price
Pay-what-you-can Sun to Wed (and Thursdays on Kingsway site); Thu to Sat ~varies
Time
Doors 6:30pm, to ~11pm, nightly
Locations
170A Drury Lane, London, WC2B 5PD and York House, 23 Kingsway, London, WC2B 6UJ
Big Belly Comedy Club
Comedy every night. Their Midweek Madness shows start from just £5 and include a free drink when you sign up to the free loyalty card. Food comes from an on-site truck serving pizza, and there’s a bar with cocktails and craft beer. They also do sports viewing, so you can catch things like the World Cup on a big screen.
Price
From £5 (includes a free drink)
Time
Mon to Thu from 8pm, ending around 10pm; Fri and Sat shows can run until midnight depending on the lineup
Address
Unit 6 & 7, 30 Stamford Street, London SE1 9LQ
The Comedy Store
Running since 1979 with a rich history behind it, and still the benchmark for stand-up in London. They sell food and drinks on site, so you can grab a bite before the show starts. There’re reduced tickets for students, NHS staff and over-65s, and no booking fee if you buy on the door.
Price
Varies; concessions available
Time
Doors 6pm to 6:30pm to ~11:30pm
Address
1a Oxendon Street, London SW1Y 4EE
ACTIVE
04Padel
Padel is having a real moment in London and other parts of the UK. It’s beginner-friendly and genuinely fun to play. The best part for an after-work plan is that you don’t need to commit to a membership or a course of lessons. You can book a one-off intro session, have a go, and leave it there if it’s not for you.
S3 Padel
One of the most affordable and beginner-welcoming clubs going, with open-air courts, drop-in social sessions and intro classes from as little as £5. Racket hire is available on site, there’s a bar, and even a private golf simulator if you fancy switching sports.
Price
Intro from £5; court from £20/hr
Time
Daily, ~7am to 10pm (varies)
Locations
Multiple locations: Wembley Park Boulevard, London HA9 0TG and Finchley Road (opening summer 2026)
Padel Social Club
Pay and play, so no membership is needed. There’s a lot more here than padel: a bar and restaurant, a wellness pod with a sauna and cold plunge, a rooftop terrace, and coaching and fitness classes if you want them.
Price
Court from £50/hr; racket hire £5
Time
Evening sessions to 11pm daily
Locations
Empress Place, SW6 1TT,
London and Peninsula Square, London SE10 0DX and more
Padium
Also pay and play, so no membership needed. It has seven indoor courts and an AI centre court that films and analyses your game. If it’s your first time, book a 60 to 90-minute Intro to Padel session led by a coach. Going solo and don’t have others to play with? You can join an open match. The Ace Bar does protein shakes, beer and wine for afterwards.
Price
Intro from £20; court from £80/hr
Time
6am to 12am daily
Address
10 Bank Street, Canary Wharf, London, E14 4DE
ACTIVE
05Bouldering
Bouldering is climbing without ropes, over thick crash mats, and it’s a brilliant after-work reset because it’s absorbing enough to push everything else out of your head. It’s beginner-friendly too, so you don’t need experience or a partner to get started.
Substation Brixton
A modern bouldering gym with its own grading system. There’s a lot more here besides climbing: a gym, a hot yoga studio, a sauna and cold plunge, and a treatment room. The on-site café and pizzeria serves vegetarian food, coffee, pizza and beers. Free parking available.
Price
Price: From £12.50 per climb
Time
Mon to Fri 7am to 10pm; weekends and bank holidays 8am to 8pm
Address
Unit 13, Ellerslie Square Industrial Estate, Brixton Hill, London SW2 5DZ
The Reach Climbing Wall
South London’s biggest climbing wall, right by the Thames. You can start bouldering any time without booking, though you’ll need to register if it’s your first visit. There’s auto-belay climbing too after a quick free induction. There’s a café on the upper level serving food, drinks and homemade cakes, plus free parking on site.
Price
From £8; £5 one-off registration for new climbers; concessions available
Time
Mon to Fri 10am to 10pm; weekends and bank holidays 10am to 7pm
Address
Unit 6, Mellish Industrial Estate, Harrington Way, London SE18 5NR
RavensWall
A bouldering-only centre in West London with a friendly, social feel. Over-18s can drop in from their first visit with no booking, once you’ve watched a short induction video. There’s a training board area, a strength gym and step-free access throughout.
Price
Day pass from £13
Time
Mon to Fri 6am to 10:30pm; weekends and bank holidays 9am to 9pm
Address
Arch 105, Ravenscourt Road, London W6 0UQ
SOCIAL
06Board games
Somewhere between a café and a games night, board game cafés are one of the easiest ways to wind down with friends without a screen in sight. You pay a small fee to play, order food while you go, and stay as long as you like.
The Ludoquist
Has over 1,400 games on the shelves and Games Gurus on hand to help you pick. From 6pm there’s no time limit, so an evening game can run as long as you want it to. The kitchen does stone-baked pizzas, paninis, cakes and bowls of sweets, plus craft beer and cocktails. Just a heads up, they’re cashless so bring a card.
Price
£8 per adult for 3 hrs
Time
Mon to Thu 12pm to 10pm; Fri 12pm to 11pm; Sat 11am to 11pm; Sun 11am to 8pm
Address
63–67 High Street, Croydon CR0 1QE
Bad Moon Café
A board game café with a big selection, from casual party games through to Warhammer and Magic: The Gathering. They also serve pizzas, sandwiches, milkshakes, craft beer and cocktails.
Price
£7pp for up to 4 hrs
Time
Mon to Fri 2pm to 10pm; Sat 10am to 10pm; Sun 10am to 6pm
Locations
Two locations – 159A Great Dover Street, London SE1 4GZ and 303 Holloway Road, London N7 8HS
The Arcanist’s Tavern
A fantasy-themed tavern with candlelight, a board game library and custom tables for Dungeons and Dragons and wargaming. The food and drinks menu is fully themed, with toasties, pizzas and cocktails all on offer.
Price
Game library from £7 for 3 hrs
Time
Mon to Thu 2pm to 10pm; Fri and Sat to 11pm
Address
The Arcanist’s Tavern, 87-91 Hackney Rd, London E2 8FE
Movies
07Outdoor cinema
When the weather plays along, there’s little better than a film under the open sky. London’s outdoor cinemas run through the summer, and some of them are free.
Summer Screens at Canary Wharf
In Canada Square Park, and completely free. It runs across the summer, showing a mix of films and live sport, including Wimbledon and family films at the weekend. Bring a blanket and snacks, with the surrounding bars in the park on hand for drinks.
Price
Free
Time
Summer; films from ~7pm on weekdays, plus daytime sport
Address
25 Canada Square, Canary Wharf Estate, London E14 5AH
Barbican Outdoor Cinema
Takes over the brutalist Sculpture Court for a stretch in late August, leaning towards cult classics and international gems. There are food stalls and bars serving hot dogs, Middle Eastern food, Japanese desserts and popcorn. Seats open an hour before on a first-come basis.
Price
£10 to £20
Time
19 to 30 Aug 2026; screenings from ~8:30pm
Address
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
Rooftop Cinema Club
Every seat comes with wireless headphones, and there are single deckchairs and two-person loveseats. There’s a bar plus popcorn, pizza and snacks, though outside food and drink isn’t permitted. Adults-only after 5pm.
Price
From £14 (loveseats from £20pp)
Time
May to Sept. Peckham: Mon to Thu 5pm to 11pm, Fri 4pm to 11pm, Sat 12pm to 11pm, Sun 12pm to 10pm. Stratford: Tue to Sat 5pm to 11pm, Sun 5pm to 10pm
Locations
Two locations – Bussey Building, 133 Rye Lane, Peckham, London SE15 4ST and Roof East, 8th Floor, Stratford Shopping Centre, Great Eastern Road, London E15 1XE
CREATIVE
08Life drawing
Life drawing is more relaxing than it sounds, and you don’t need to be able to draw. Most classes are one-offs you can just book into, no commitment and no course to sign up for, and several run online too if you’d rather stay home.
Life Drawing at Hackney Picturehouse
An untutored life drawing session every Tuesday evening in the attic of Hackney Picturehouse. It’s open to all skill levels, materials are provided, and because it’s untutored you just draw at your own pace with no pressure. Being inside a cinema, you can also make a proper evening of it.
Price
£12.50 advance; £15 on the door; £10 a session with a 5-pack
Time
Tuesdays from 7pm
Address
Hackney Picturehouse, 270 Mare Street, London E8 1HE
Neon Naked
A playful twist on the traditional class, models are painted in neon that glows under blacklight, and you draw with fluorescent pastels. All materials are included and beginners are very welcome. There’s a free online taster on YouTube and paid Zoom classes too.
Price
From £17 (deals from £12)
Time
Evening classes from ~7pm; weekend brunch slots
Locations
Multiple pop-ups: Angel, Shoreditch, Soho, Brixton, Camden + more (plus online)
Brixton Life Drawing
A friendly, inclusive class started in 2019 by two textile designers. In-person sessions run about an hour and a half with a break for a drink and a chat. Their online classes have always been pay-what-you-can, with a suggested donation of £5 to £15, so the sessions stay accessible and the models get paid fairly.
Price
From £17; online pay-what-you-can (suggested £5 to £15)
Time
Evening classes on Tuesdays from ~7pm (90 min)
Address
443 Coldharbour Lane, London SW9 8LN
Art
09Late-night museums and galleries
You don’t have to save galleries for the weekend. A handful stay open into the evening, which turns “what to do in London for a day” into a perfectly good after-work plan too.
The Photographers’ Gallery
A gallery dedicated entirely to photography, just off Oxford Circus, with exhibitions spanning everything from major retrospectives to emerging work. It stays open until 8pm on Thursdays and Fridays, and entry is free from 5pm on Fridays, which makes it one of the easiest free things to do in central London after work. One ticket covers all exhibitions, and there’s a specialist photography bookshop, a café and a photobooth on site.
Price
£10 general admission (booked in advance); free from 5pm on Fridays
Time
Mon to Wed and Sat 10am to 6pm; Thu and Fri 10am to 8pm; Sun 11am to 6pm
Address
16–18 Ramillies Street, London W1F 7LW
Barbican Art Gallery
Currently open until 8pm on Thursdays and Fridays, though hours vary by exhibition, so check ahead before going. Alongside the major exhibitions there are talks, screenings and tours, and you can make a night of the wider Barbican Centre, which also has a cinema, live music, restaurants and bars, and a tropical Conservatory (free, but book ahead).
Price
From £10, varies by exhibition
Time
Thu and Fri to 8pm (varies by exhibition)
Address
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
Frameless
The UK’s largest permanent digital art experience, with four galleries projecting more than 40 famous works across floor-to-ceiling screens. Frameless Lates run every Friday and Saturday night from 6pm to 10pm, they’re strictly 18-plus, with a Soho Radio soundtrack, drinks allowed in the galleries, and £5 off if you book in advance. Allow around two hours for a visit, with last entry two hours before closing.
Price
From £20; book in advance and save
Time
Mon to Thu 11am to 6pm; Fri 10:30am to 10pm; Sat 10am to 10pm; Sun 10am to 6pm
Address
6 Marble Arch, London W1H 7AP
Summer VAT savings are currently applied to tickets in full for visits up to 1 September. Summer opening hours run 26 July to 31 August: Sunday to Thursday 10am to 7pm, Friday and Saturday 10am to 10pm.
Art
10Theatre
An evening at the theatre is one of the best after-work resets going. Most shows start around 7:30pm, they’re usually done inside a couple of hours, and all three venues here have a bar or café where you can settle in beforehand.
Bush Theatre
One of the country’s most respected homes for new writing, set in a converted Victorian library. Shows run Monday to Saturday, and the Library Bar opens from 5pm on performance days, serving wood-fired pizzas and craft beer (card only). A nice touch: the bar creates a bespoke cocktail for each play. Tickets sell quickly, so book ahead.
Price
From £10, varies by show
Time
Shows Mon to Sat; bar from 5pm on performance days
Address
7 Uxbridge Road, Shepherd’s Bush, London W12 8LJ
Arcola Theatre
Bold international and political work across a 200-seat main space and a smaller studio. A limited number of Pay What You Can tickets are available in person from 6pm on Tuesday evenings, which keeps it accessible. The café-bar opens an hour before the show, serving craft beer, wine and snacks.
Price
From £15, varies by show; Pay What You Can Tuesdays (in person from 6pm, max two per person)
Time
Evening shows usually start at 7:30pm; bar opens 1 hr before
Address
24 Ashwin Street, London E8 3DL
Park Theatre
An award-winning theatre two minutes from Finsbury Park station, mixing new plays, classics and revivals across two stages. The on-site Park Pizza & Bar does fresh sourdough pizza and craft beer, open from 10am on weekdays, and under-30s can sign up free for £10 tickets to any show.
Price
From £15, varies by show; £10 for under-30s with free membership
Time
Evening shows usually start at 7:30pm; box office 10am to 8pm
Address
Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, London N4 3JP
For one-off or short-run productions, Pay What You Can tickets may not be available. Check their website for more info.
That’s the list. Ten activities, thirty places, and not a pub in sight. Bookmark this page for the next time you clock off and don’t fancy going straight home, and if you try one, we’d love to hear what your settle and kettle moment was.
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