Brighton Classic

Your weekend, day by day

1. 1

   Day 1

   

   Cocktail making class

   From about 15:00 · 1.5 hours

   Arrival day. Check in, then the cocktail class: each person makes two or three drinks behind the bar with a bartender and drinks what they make, usually finishing with a competition for the best one.

   More about this+

   Brighton's classes centre on West Street, the party strip just back from the seafront, with others on Middle Street and Castle Square, a few minutes' walk from the pier. Ninety minutes is standard, and some West Street sessions are paired with a buffet, pizza or burgers, with start times from late morning to early evening. Every venue is 18+, and several insist on ID for every guest. One speakeasy-style bar holds your slot for only 15 minutes, so do not run late. A mobile bartender can also come to your accommodation within about 15 miles of the centre.

   You stand behind a bar with your own kit and a bartender takes the group through two or three drinks, explaining the spirits, the shake and the balance. You make each one yourself and drink it. Most classes finish with a competition for the best drink.

   Sessions usually run around ninety minutes and include everything you make, with the option to stay on in the bar afterwards.

   No dress code beyond the venue's. It gets sticky, so nothing you are precious about.

   

   Club entry, VIP & booths

   From about 23:00 · 2 hours

   The first night finishes with guest-list club entry, past the queue. The seafront clubs are built into the arches. Dress codes are enforced on stag groups: no sportswear and no matching shirts.

   More about this+

   Brighton's biggest club sits on West Street by the seafront, across three floors, with guest-list entry on Friday and Saturday nights; you need to arrive before 11:30pm, and it runs until 4am. Packages add reserved areas and drinks bundles. Smart casual is the standard. Door staff refuse anyone who seems intoxicated, so keep the earlier part of the night steady. A reserved area at a seafront party bar near West Street, with cocktails and shots, is the usual warm-up, and it keeps the group together before the club.

   Standard entry gets the group past the queue on a guest list, which matters because large male groups are the first ones a door turns away. A booth adds a reserved table, a set number of bottles with mixers and a host who looks after the table.

   Booths are sold on a minimum spend rather than a flat fee at many clubs, so the bottles you order count towards it. Ask what the minimum is and what it includes before you agree to anything.

   Dress code is enforced hard on stag groups. No sportswear, no trainers at some doors, no matching shirts, and nobody visibly drunk gets in regardless of the booking.

2. 2

   Day 2

   

   Bubble football & human table football

   From about 12:00 · 2 hours

   Bubble football: five-a-side inside inflatable zorbs, refereed in short matches with breaks. Sportswear and trainers, no studs, and empty pockets. It is tiring, so it works best before the evening starts rather than after.

   More about this+

   Brighton's bubble football usually runs at a leisure centre on Falmer Road or at a gym on Manor Road, with the final venue confirmed around two weeks ahead, so build in travel time from the seafront. Sessions last an hour, and you should arrive 15 minutes early. Wear trainers and a T-shirt; football boots and bare chests are not allowed, and the limits are 6ft 5in and 22 stone. The double session, one hour of bubble football and one of beer-goggle football, is played on an outdoor 3G pitch, so bring a layer.

   In bubble football you climb into an inflatable zorb that covers you from the knees up, then play five-a-side. Most of the game is flattening each other, and the ball is close to an afterthought. Referees run short matches with breaks, because it is hot inside the bubble.

   Human table football straps the teams to horizontal bars in an inflatable pitch, so you can only move sideways. It is less physical and better for a mixed-fitness group.

   Sportswear and trainers, no boots with studs. Empty your pockets and leave watches and glasses with the kit bag.

3. 3

   Day 3

   

   Guided bar crawl

   From about 20:30 · 4.5 hours

   The guided bar crawl: meet the guide at a fixed point, move through a run of bars and finish with entry to a seafront club, with the doors handled. Eat first, and dress for the last venue: no trainers and no sportswear.

   More about this+

   Most Brighton crawls meet at Castle Square at about 7:30pm and run four to five hours, typically four bars and then a club. Bring a passport or driving licence, as screenshots are not accepted. Dress is smart casual, and some routes refuse tracksuits, beachwear, vests, flip-flops and shorts. It is all on foot, so wear shoes you can walk in. Another route starts on Preston Street, finishes at 11pm and bans fancy dress, and one crawl stays entirely within the Lanes, which keeps the walking short. Doors refuse anyone who has had too much, so pace the early rounds.

   You meet the guide at a fixed point and move through a run of bars across the evening, usually four or five, finishing at a club. The guide knows the doors, so you skip the queue and the group is not turned away for being too large.

   Most crawls include a welcome drink or a shot at each stop, and entry to the final venue. The rest is on you. Groups from several bookings are often merged, which some stags like and some do not, so ask whether yours is private.

   Dress code is the club's, not the guide's. No trainers and no sportswear at the last venue, and matching shirts get refused at some doors.