The Best Places To Go In London If You’re Still A Big Kid
‘Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional’ – this quote perfectly sums up what I mean by the word ‘kidults’. It is a hybrid word that I have invented to refer to those adults who refuse to grow up, and who are still very young at heart. Personally, I think it is the best way to be, and to ensure that you get the most out of life and live life to the full. This way of looking at the world is also extremely liberating, nothing is off limits just because ‘you are too old’. London is a fantastic city and the perfect backdrop for such personalities to exist. This article will list the best places to go in London if you’re still a big kid.
1. Ballie Ballerson.
Located in the hip and trendy area of Shoreditch, Ballie Ballerson is an adult bull pit and without a doubt every big kid’s dream. With its club atmosphere and cocktail bar adults are really encouraged to let loose and unleash their inner and childish sense of ‘play’. In the absence of any set rules, you are expected to dive into, dance, and throw balls until your heart is content. Like I did, you will inevitably find yourself giggling as you are transported to the soft play areas of your infancy. The psychedelic lighting and repetitive artwork on the walls are truly hypnotic and disorientating, creating the illusion that you have travelled back in time to your childhood. The cocktails also seem to confirm this, with names such as ‘Dibbie Dabberson’ and ‘Skittle Sour’, and decorations such as glitter and flames, you are bound to get a sugar rush and be filled with endless waves of excitement!
2. Bounce Ping Pong.
Located on Old Street, a stones throw away from the centre of Shoreditch is ‘Bounce’ – a venue which incorporates three different but very crucial elements: a bar, a restaurant and ping pong! Bounce is unique in the sense that it has transformed a humble sport into an immersive experience. If you’re a big kid, you will love the fact Bounce uses state of the art projection mapping to create the illusion of their ping pong tables as being a giant computer game- it doesn’t get much better than this right? Again like with Ballie Ballerson, adults can unleash their inner child and work up a sweat as they compete against their friends. It is the perfect venue to experience unlimited fun and to also help relieve some of the tension of adult life!
3. Junkyard Golf.
Memories of beach visits as a child are simply wrong if they do not include crazy golf at seaside attractions and fairgrounds. Junkyard Golf is the perfect place to go in the city if you’re still a big kid. Located in the quirky backstreets of Brick Lane, Junkyard Golf boasts of four 9-hole crazy golf courses all with bizarre themes and obstructions such as scrapyard slides and jungle bathtubs! If you sign up to play the course named ‘Bozo’, there is every chance you will be transported back to your childhood nightmares due to its set up which includes dark fairgrounds, circus freaks and twisted clowns! Like the above two venues, Junkyard Golf also offers big kids a wide variety of food and drink. You can expect to sip on the following cocktails: Ribena Turner and Hotling Ting, both of which are garnished with childhood treats such as party rings and fizzy sweets!
4. Flip Out.
Located at the Granada Theatre in East Ham, London, as the name suggests, Flip Out is the capital’s largest trampoline park! It is the ideal location for kidults and is composed of rows of inter-locked trampolines, indoor caves, an indoor potholing zone, themed climbing walls, a laser maze, dodgeball, and a giant slide with an almost vertical 30ft droop (eek!). I got tired just listing all that the venue has to offer; it really will satisfy all of your childish cravings and your sense of youthful abandon and adventure…
5. Draughts Board Game Café.
Located in Haggerston, Draughts has earned the reputation of being London’s first ever board game bar; it is home to over 800+ board games from vintage classics to more contemporary inventions. For as little as £5, you can spend the night playing the games you played as a child such as Hungry Hungry Hippos alongside more adult games such as Cards Against Humanity. Draughts also serve high quality food, snacks and a range of alcoholic beverages to keep you refreshed throughout your visit and to give you the energy needed to beat your opponents – not that I am competitive or anything! I mean it is the taking part that counts right?!
So there you have it, a list of the best places to go in London if you’re still a big kid; there were loads that I had to leave off of the list such as London’s wealth of museums from the Natural History Museum, to the Science Museum. Are there any other places in London you think I should have mentioned? If so, then answer in the comments section below.
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