Bowling, darts & pool stag do

In Amsterdam bowling is usually sold as a combination with laser tag: one 15-minute laser game, then an hour on the lanes, about 90 minutes in all at a central venue. The package normally includes shoe hire, two drinks each and a plate of Dutch bar snacks to share, so it doubles as a light early-evening warm-up. Digital darts with automatic scoring is the other option, and it suits a group that wants to stay near the bar. Both are 18-plus and ID may be asked for. It is an easy fallback on a wet winter afternoon.

Ten-pin bowling for groups is easiest in the Bullring, right in the centre, where lanes are reserved for you and a welcome drink is included. Each player gets roughly a ten-minute turn rather than a full game, which keeps a large group moving. Groups of six to 28 can be handled in one booking, and it is over-18s only. Being central, it fits as a short first stop before dinner or a Broad Street night, with no transport to arrange.

Digital darts in Bournemouth is centred on a bar on Westover Road, close to the pier, with 90-minute sessions on boards that keep score automatically, a buffet option for groups of ten to 30 and a smaller package for two upwards. It is 18+ and everyone must bring ID. Hours run noon to 10pm Sunday to Thursday and 11am to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, so a late Saturday slot is possible. Groups of ten or more can add a buffet, and cancellations need seven days' notice.

For darts, the easy Cardiff option is an hour of electronic darts at a games bar in the centre, about 12 minutes' walk from Queen Street station. The board keeps score and runs several game modes, so nobody has to do the maths, and food and drink are bought at the bar. It works for groups of any size from two upwards. Pair it with pool or shuffleboard in the same building and the first two hours of a Saturday night are sorted without a taxi.

Group bowling in Edinburgh is mostly in the city centre, including up in the St James Quarter, where packages for 6 to 28 come with a welcome drink and reserved lanes. Turns are timed at about ten minutes per person, with a pizza break on the food version. A boutique bowling package adds an hour of pool, table tennis, darts or shuffleboard. For pool, there is a hall with 18 American pool tables and a reserved area, and two-hour interactive darts sessions where the board keeps score. Packages run about two hours.

Bowling and darts are all walkable from the main stations. A boutique bowling alley sits a stone's throw from Liverpool Central, and a lane-and-drink package in Clayton Square gives each player around ten minutes' bowling. Electronic darts run in one-hour blocks near Lime Street and on College Lane and Rainford Square, typically for eight to twenty people with two drinks each; one venue caps each oche at twelve. American pool tables are hired for about 45 minutes. Packages with drinks are over-18s only.

This all happens in the city centre. The leisure complex on Newgate Street has short-format bowling on reserved lanes, with a pizza break option, and a bar in the same complex has interactive darts with live sport on the screens. One of the larger bowling venues adds pool, ping pong and karaoke under one roof and takes groups of up to 50. A pool lounge offers a private room with its own table and darts for ten or more. Allow two hours. Each darts oche takes about eight players, so a group of 16 should book two.

Bowling in Prague is usually sold as a one-hour session with a beer each included and a lane for every four to six people. One venue caps a single booking at five lanes, which puts the ceiling at about 30 people in one slot, so larger parties need a second session or a staggered start. An English-speaking guide can take the group there. It is a low-effort first activity on arrival day, or a fallback for a cold or wet afternoon. Confirm final numbers before you travel, since lanes are allocated by headcount.