London, evenings and weekends
Date Ideas in London: Beyond the Dinner Table
Canal walks, galleries that stay open late and big views, plus how to get home once it’s dark.
For a first date in London that isn’t dinner, try a walk up Primrose Hill or along Regent’s Canal, an evening at Tate Modern (open until 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays) or the National Gallery (Fridays), or tickets at no charge for Sky Garden. Then check the Night Tube map before you set off.
London is big, so choose a spot you can both reach without a heroic effort. The date ideas hub lists every city we cover, and first date ideas has the basics for any of them.
Daylight and dusk
Walks that give you something to talk about
Regent’s Canal towpath
Follow the water from Camden Town towards King’s Cross, or round the top of Regent’s Park past London Zoo. The canal runs 8.6 miles and the towpath is a busy cycle route, so listen for bells.
Primrose Hill
A 64-metre hill just north of Regent’s Park, with a clear view of central London from the top. Chalk Farm and Camden Town are both on TfL’s Night Tube map.
Hampstead Heath
Climb Parliament Hill, 98 metres up, for a skyline that takes in Canary Wharf, the City and St Paul’s. The Heath covers 320 hectares and is open year round, so you can keep walking or turn back.
Greenwich Park
One of London’s eight Royal Parks, with a hilltop view over the Thames to Canary Wharf and a National Maritime Museum with no entry fee at its northern edge. Greenwich itself is off the Night Tube map.
Easy to leave
Something to look at together
Tate Modern
The collection has no entry fee, and the gallery stays open until 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays (6pm the rest of the week). Booking is recommended for exhibitions.
National Gallery
Trafalgar Square’s gallery charges nothing for general admission and stays open until 9pm on Fridays. Walk-up entry is available, which suits a plan you make that afternoon.
Borough Market
No entry fee to wander the stalls beside London Bridge station. It is closed on Mondays and shuts at 5pm Tuesday to Saturday (4pm Sundays), so think daytime date ideas.
Columbia Road Flower Market
Open on Sundays only, along a road of Victorian shops off Hackney Road in east London. Wander the stalls, buy one bunch to share and be gone within the hour.
Lights on
After dark, with the city lit up
Sky Garden
A public garden at the top of the 20 Fenchurch Street tower. Tickets are at no charge and booked online, but the site warns that holders may miss their slot when capacity is cut, so keep a plan B.
The South Bank
Stroll the pedestrianised Queen’s Walk by the river, with the Southbank Centre, the National Theatre, BFI Southbank and the London Eye close by. Waterloo and Southwark stations are both on the Night Tube map.
Covent Garden
The piazza has street performers who audition for their slots, and the London Transport Museum on the square’s east side is a dry back-up. Check its price before you go.
The last bit
Getting home after dark
Friday and Saturday nights: TfL runs the Night Tube on the Central, Jubilee, Northern, Piccadilly, Victoria and Windrush lines.
The Elizabeth line isn’t one of them, so look up its last train before you commit to a late finish. TfL says night buses run 24 hours a day, and that Tube, Elizabeth line and Overground stations are staffed from first train to last.
In a taxi, only a black cab can be hailed in the street or picked up at a rank. A minicab must be booked in advance with a licensed company, and TfL says to match the number plate and driver’s name to your booking: if either differs, don’t get in.
Chat first, meet second
Meeting someone from Forget Dinner
Forget Dinner has members across London, so you can often meet halfway rather than at one end of a Tube line. Start with a chat on the site, and treat the warning that appears when someone wants to switch to another app as a reason to slow down.
Pick somewhere busy with staff about, such as a gallery foyer or a market on a trading day. Tell a friend your plan and sort your own way home. The safety page covers the site’s tools, and singles near you shows who is around.
Keep the first meeting to an hour or so. If it goes well you can extend it, and dinner can wait until you’ve decided you like each other.
Among UK members there are about as many women as men, and around six in ten are aged 35 to 54. This is the UK age mix.
Members in the UK by age, as shares of everyone listed.
Meet members in London
A few of the people on Forget Dinner in London and nearby, if you’d like to see who’s around before you choose a place.
London date questions
What can we do in London if it rains?
Head to Tate Modern or the National Gallery. Neither charges for its main displays, and both open late at the end of the week. The London Transport Museum in Covent Garden is another dry option; check its price first.
Is anything open late on a Friday night?
Tate Modern is open until 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and the National Gallery stays open until 9pm on Fridays. Sky Garden has tickets at no charge, booked online. Check each venue’s page on the day, as times can change.
How do I get home after a late date in London?
On Friday and Saturday nights the Night Tube covers six lines, and TfL says night buses run around the clock. The Elizabeth line isn’t a Night Tube line. For a taxi, flag a black cab or book a minicab ahead, and check the car against your booking.
Where should I meet someone from Forget Dinner in London?
Somewhere public, busy and easy to leave: a gallery foyer, a market on a day it trades or a stretch of the South Bank with people about. Keep early chat on the site, tell a friend your plan and arrange your own way home.
Someone in London fancies a walk
Say what you’re after, see who’s nearby and take it from there.
Say hello