Guided city tour stag do

Amsterdam's guided tours are mostly done by bike: two hours round the main sights of the centre with a local guide, a bike each, theft insurance and a safety briefing first. Standard bikes use back-pedal brakes, which take a few minutes to get used to, and hand-brake bikes can be requested. If the group would rather ride on its own, all-day hire runs roughly 10am to 6pm with locks included. For the view, the 100-metre lookout tower has a 360-degree deck and an optional swing over the edge. Bike tours are 18-plus, and riding the morning after a big night is worth thinking twice about.

Most Barcelona tours used by groups are on wheels rather than on foot. The guided bike tour takes about two hours with an English-speaking guide, helmets and insurance included, and it covers far more ground than a walk would. The open-top bus takes 90 minutes with English audio and suits a slower morning after a late night. For something louder, a stretch Hummer does a one-hour door-to-door loop of the city for up to 12 people, with a couple of bottles of Catalan cava on board, and it is 18-plus. Wear trainers for the bike, and avoid the midday heat in summer.

Brighton's guided options are mostly on two wheels. A guided e-bike ride follows the seafront to Rottingdean, passing the i360 tower and the Palace Pier, in about two and a half hours; a three-hour e-bike tour heads into the South Downs National Park and covers 20 to 25km. Both run daily between 8am and 8pm, with bikes and helmets provided. For something shorter, a ride in the i360 viewing pod lasts about 25 minutes and rises to 132 metres. A Saturday morning ride works well as a reset after the Friday night.

The stand-out guided option for a Cardiff group is a three-hour coach tour of TV comedy filming locations at Barry Island, leaving from Barry Island station. It suits a group that knows the show well. Barry is on the coast south-west of Cardiff, so allow for the train there and back. Otherwise the centre is compact enough that the castle, the arcades and the bay are best seen on foot between other plans.

Dublin's tours come in a few formats that work for a group: a hop-on hop-off bus with local guides on a 24-hour ticket, a 75-minute amphibious tour in Viking costume that splashes into the Grand Canal Docks, and a two-hour ghost bus through the city's darker history. There is also a viewing tower in an old boiler-house chimney, 60 metres up, with drinks at the bar afterwards, which takes about an hour. Any of these fits a Friday afternoon before the pubs. The amphibious and ghost tours set minimum group sizes, so book them early.

Edinburgh's tours lean on its history and its hills. A 75-minute ghost bus leaves from Waverley Bridge, and private one-hour ghost tours take groups of 8 to 20 into the hidden streets beneath the Old Town. E-bike tours run two to five hours with helmets and rain capes provided, which saves the legs on the climbs. A 75-minute walking tour of the places linked to a famous wizard series starts at the Greyfriars Bobby statue. Dress for the weather whatever the season, and save the ghost tours for an evening.

Lisbon's hills and narrow streets are why most tours here come with wheels. Tuk-tuks collect the group from the hotel for an hour round the old districts, six to a vehicle, between about 9:30am and 5:30pm. Segway tours of downtown run an hour with a guide, at set start times through the day. The little self-drive cars follow a GPS audio route, two to a car, and each driver must be 18 or over, hold a driving licence and leave a deposit. For a half-day out, a four-hour jeep trip heads out of the city to Pena Palace. Tuk-tuks suit the morning after the big night.

The tour with real local interest is a four-hour coach tour of filming locations from a well-known 1920s gangster drama, much of which was shot in Liverpool rather than the city it is set in. It takes in more than ten locations with a guide and drops you back centrally, ready for the evening. It suits a group of fans and works on a Saturday afternoon before Mathew Street or Concert Square. For a shorter look at the waterfront, the Albert Dock is walkable from the centre.

The tours that work for a London stag do something more than walk. There is a guided roof climb on the Greenwich Peninsula, 52 metres up, which takes about 90 minutes. The harness limits are strict: under 130kg (21 stone) and within set waist and thigh sizes. A guided kart tour starts near Marble Arch and takes an hour, two to a kart, past the landmarks, with a full driving licence and closed-toe shoes required. The Olympic Park in Stratford has an 80-metre observation tower, and a 75-minute ghost bus covers the city's darker history.

The guided format with the clearest local detail in Newcastle is a ghost-hunting walk through the city centre, which runs year-round and lasts about 90 minutes on foot, so dress for the weather. The centre is compact, with the Quayside and the old streets around the Cloth Market close together, which suits a short guided walk. It works best on the Saturday morning or early afternoon, before the main activity, or as a lower-effort option for anyone sitting out the sport. Ask us what is running on your dates.

Prague's historic centre is compact enough to cover on foot, and a walking tour is the easiest way for the group to get its bearings on the first morning. Expect a route through the old town and down to the river, with the castle hill as a longer optional leg. Cobbles and slopes make proper shoes worth packing. A morning start avoids the heaviest crowds in the busy summer months, and it sits well before a late lunch and the afternoon activity. Ask for a private guide if the group is large, so the pace suits everyone.