Go Sober for October: 13 ideas for a no-alcohol night out in Wales
Macmillan Cancer Support’s Go Sober for October challenges social drinkers to give up alcohol for a month to help raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Care and support those living with and beyond cancer.
We know it can be tough giving up the booze when so much of your social life revolves around the pub or drinking with friends. So here are 13 ideas for nights out in Wales which are so much fun we promise you won’t even miss the alcohol
The money raised from Go Sober will help Macmillan Cancer Support in continue to provide services. In Wales, this includes funding nurses, physiotherapists, welfare benefits advisers and information centres in some of Wales’ hospitals, as well as campaigning for better cancer care for patients. One in three of us will get cancer, with more than 130,000 people in Wales currently living with and beyond cancer.
Go Sober for October is a fundraising campaign aimed at challenging social drinkers to change their habits for a month and make some healthy lifestyle changes.
Although if you do have a special occasion where a drink is in order, you can donate a minimum of £15 for a Golden Ticket, giving you a night off while still making a difference to the lives of people affected by cancer.
We would encourage people to drink responsibly and stick to the recommended daily guidelines for the rest of the year. We advise heavy drinkers or people dependent on alcohol to speak with their GP before signing up to Go Sober.
For information or support from Macmillan, call us free on 0808 808 00 00 (Monday to Friday, 9am-8pm) or visit www.macmillan.org.uk
Get cultured with a night at the theatre
There’s Mamma Mia at Wales Millennium Centre (11 October-13 November), Ghost The Musical (17-22 October) and Dead Sheep (11th-15th October), about the downfall of Margaret Thatcher both at New Theatre, Cardiff; Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story ( 18-22 October) at Swansea Grand Theatre; The Woman In Black (5-22 October), billed as the world’s most terrifying stage play, at Torch Theatre Milford Haven; and Aberystwyth Mon Amour (1 & 2 October), based on Malcolm Pryce’s crime-comedy novel at Aberystwyth Arts Centre.
Bounce around at a trampoline park
Channel your inner kid and spend an evening bouncing around wall-to-wall trampolines; not only will you not be drinking, but you’ll be getting fit too. In Cardiff, there’s Go Air and Infinity; Jump Jam in Bridgend; Hangar Five in Haverfordwest;
Be a live action adventure hero
Solve the clues and beat the clock to break out of a locked room in a live action exit game. Cardiff has Break Out Cardiff; Escape Rooms Cardiff; City Mazes; Xscape Reality; and Adventure Rooms Cardiff; in Swansea try Break Out Swansea or Lock and Key Swansea; and Ultimate Escape in Llandudno. Click here for a full list of all UK exit games.
Face off with some live ice hockey
Cardiff Devils ice hockey team have plenty of evening home fixtures. Head to the new Ice Arena Wales to watch them compete in the British Elite Ice Hockey League.
Go crazy for indoor golf
Aim for a hole-in-one with a game at Treetops Adventure Golf in Cardiff’s St David’s shopping centre. Choose from two indoor 18-hole mini golf courses, with either a tropical or ancient explorer theme. They’re open until 11pm Thursdays-Saturdays, and 10pm all other nights.
Chef-tastic!
Improve your cookery skills with an evening class. Try Angela Gray’s Fast Fish course, 6-9pm on Thursday 13th October; at Llanerch Vineyard.
Strike action
Put on your bowling shoes and knock down those pins! There are loads of bowling centres in Wales – Hollywood Bowl in Cardiff; Bowlplex in Nantgarw; Tenpin Swansea; Ten Pin Wrexham; Flint Bowl; Xcel Bowl in Carmarthen to name a few.
A spooktastic experience!
Take a ghost tour with Cardiff History and explore some of South Wales’s most famous buildings at night, visiting areas where spooky sightings have been reported and learn more about local ghostlore and superstition.
Go on a night-time wildlife hunt
Look for bats, moths and other nocturnal creatures with an after-dark nature hunt. Parc Slip in Bridgend has one on Wednesday 26th October, 5.30pm-8pm (£4)
Star gaze in a castle
Take a tour of the night sky, visiting different constellations and finding deep sky objects. Cadw have events at Strata Florida Abbey, near Tregardon, Ceredigion on 7 October (7.30pm-9.30pm; £5); and Harlech Castle on 21 October (7.30pm-9.30pm; £10) where you’ll learn how to set up a telescope correctly before viewing and photographing sights of the night sky.
Get on your dancing shoes
We promise you don’t need ‘Dutch courage’ to give you the confidence to get up and dance. Ceroc South Wales runs classes in Barry, Bridgend, Cardiff, Newport, Penarth, Port Talbot and Swansea, fusing salsa, ballroom and latin, American, hip hip, street dance and more. It’s suitable for beginners and you don’t need to take a partner with you.
Babysit for a friend with children
Have a night out in front of someone else’s TV! We promise your parent friends will love you forever if you offer to babysit so they can go out for a night. If you’re lucky, they might even buy you a takeaway to say thanks.
Challenge your friends to a sober night at your local pub
Pubs don’t just serve alcohol, you know? Why not ask your friends to support your Go Sober challenge by accompanying you on a sober night out to your local pub. They may not want to do the whole month, but one night is the least they could do. Make it a coffee and cake night, or enjoy a meal, and ask them to donate the money they would have spent on alcohol to your appeal.