Stag Do Idea - Circle Line Pub Crawl, London UK
Posted on October 20 2015
One popular pub crawl that has been gaining ever increasing popularity of the years is the Circle Line Pub Crawl in the big smoke of London. In fact so popular is this hardcore pub crawl I have done it three times, the third being on my very own Stag Do back in 2013. The Circle line is a London Underground service that runs from Hammersmith to Edgware Road. The railway is below ground and it sits at the heart of London's most famous tourist attractions which makes it perfect for an unforgettable day / night out that will look great on the pictures. According to Wikipedia, the Circle line and the Hammersmith & City line combined sees over 114 million passenger journeys made each year so why not add an extra Stag Do to the numbers.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it is to crawl 27 stations, 27 pubs, in a 12 hour sprint!
This is without doubt the most hardcore pub crawl I have ever undertaken and I will admit now, despite having attempted it three times, the closest we came on my own Stag Do was number 18 at Bishopsgate. From what I can remember this was a lovely venue known as Dirty Dicks be sure to check it out when your next in London town.
Believe it or not this pub crawl actually requires some skill which involves you exercising time, pace and stamina. Whilst it does takes you round the centre of London we haven't got any time for sight seeing, this is a stag do after all. Its designed to test you and your stag mates endurance and ability to navigate London's underground system (whilst drinking responsibly of course).
The objective of the pub crawl is to disembark at each station, find the nearest a pub (not bar) to drink in, completing the circle and finishing at no 27. Some do add in a 28th pub which is effectively making your way to the very first pub you started in.
Obviously there is going to be a high quantity of beer to consume and 27 pints in 12 hours just isn't going to seem achievable. Therefore we would suggest that you instead reduce this to half pints. It not only prolongs the likelihood that you will all finish the crawl but it adds significant speed to to the Stag Do and prevents that one friend from engaging any random strangers with ears and a pulse to hear his best chat up line.
So how much does it cost? Well it can be done on a 'budget' but this is London after all so its going to make a dent in your wallet. Here are some general ideas of cost:
Accommodation - Travelodge is always a reliable hotel and there are many of them scattered around the city, if you stay on the outskirts and travel in to town you can stay for as little as £50pp sharing a double room per night.
Food & Drink - Lets assume the worst and for one day you are going to actually make it around all 27 pubs (you won't, but lets pretend your better than the rest of us). An average half pint in London ranges between £2.20 and £3.80. Yes I did say £3.80 and no I will not mention the pub. So taking an average down the middle that's £3 per half times 27 which is a total of £81. With regards to food, eat on the go as you pass fast food outlets. Lets budget £20 for this as you are bound to get the munchies in the latter part of the crawl. So in summary £100 would probably be more than sufficient.
There are many companies out there that offer the great ideas for Stag Costumes, some of what that are even dedicated to Stag Do Costumes. To name but a few these include; StagSuits and StretchySuits. For example Stag Suits are dedicated to producing some of the best men's patterned suits / costumes on the market with up to 7 sizes of 25 styles to choose from. These include a Union Jack / Flag Suit (perfect for London), Camo, Shamrock (for the Irish Bars) etc.
Feel you are up to the challenge of the Circle Line pub crawl? Be sure to get in touch and let me know who you get on and any suggestions you have to make the crawl even better.
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