Unique Liverpool Hen Do Ideas & Activities (Friday-Sunday plan)
By Bea, Treasure Hunt Liverpool.
Updated June 2024
Liverpool has become something of a mecca for hen parties. Come the weekend, you can’t move for gangs of girlfriends (and mums and aunties and GBFs….) sashaying their way across Concert Square.
Leave them to it! They’re having fun. If your bride-to-be prefers crement in a coupe to prosecco in a pint glass, this part of town is best avoided. There are loads of other fun and classy hen party ideas that won’t leave a blackhole in your bank account or a trail of embarrassing incidents behind you.
Striking the balance between a fun plan and planned fun is difficult. We’ve all been on hen parties where the maid of honour is trying just that bit too hard. You don’t want anyone to be bored but too much enforced fun can be a real downer, especially when you’ve got a group of different ages, tastes and interests.
Never fear! Liverpool has a little bit of something for everyone. From private wine tastings and personal magicians to sunset picnics and Sunday strolls, I’ve pulled together this fail-safe plan that will have your hens gelling in no time.
And the best thing? There’s not a willy-shaped straw in sight!
- Friday evening
- Pace yourselves with a private wine tasting
- Put some magic into the evening with the Oracle Bar
- Saturday
- Take a ferry across the Mersey
- Explore the city while you shop/snack/sip with Treasure Hunt Liverpool
- Strike out for PINS bowling
- Whip it at the Invisible Wind Factory’s roller disco
- Paint away with Pinot and Picasso
- Fill up with a cookery masterclass
- Start the night in St Luke’s bombed out church
- Dine at Duke Street Market
- (Bar) crawl your way around Cain’s Brewery
- Bongo's Bingo
- Sunday
- Stroll around Sefton Park and Lark Lane
- Have a slap-up lunch at Hanover Street Social
- Don’t miss a thing!
Friday evening
Choosing the right activity to kick off the festivities can make or break a hen weekend. The key to Friday night is not to go too hard straight away – it’ll ruin the rest of the weekend. But there’s nothing worse than making awkward small talk while the wine is locked away in the fridge.
The answer?
Photo from instagram.com/randhfinewines
Pace yourselves with a private wine tasting
Give getting to know each other some focus over a glass of Felicette Grenache Noir. This instant start to the weekend stops any awkward silences and guards against your hen’s old school friend working her way through the best part of a bottle of gin before the party’s even started.
R&H Fine Wines do tastings that can be tailored to your group size and budget. Groups of 6-10 can visit their shop on Queen Avenue, while larger groups are catered for at Queen’s Bistrot. Pick a price per head and they’ll do the rest.
If your hens are coming from different parts of the country, they’ll be peckish and you’ll want to get R&H to put in an order with their friends at the Liverpool Cheese Company too.
Alternatively, and if you’re on a budget, do your own wine tasting! Ask each hen to bring a couple of bottles of her favourite tipple. Prepare some score cards with your own categories such as intensity or complexity, and let’s face it, what’s the price and how nice is the label? and taste away! Do it anonymously and get to know each other by guessing who brought what. Or just drink them… your call.
Photo from instagram.com/theoraclebar
Put some magic into the evening with the Oracle Bar
Calling all witches, mavens and magicians! I’m a huge fan of The Oracle Bar where the drinks come with a serving of table-side magic.
If you want to get a taste of this before the big weekend, I highly recommend swinging by the non-descript townhouse 83 Seel Street for a not-so-dry run.
The downside is that it’s not the place for groups. The upside is that you can hire their magicians to come to you!
So stock the bar, stop anyone creeping off to bed too early and settle in for some truly mind-bending trickery, all from the comfort of your Airbnb.
Saturday
Photo by Tim Dutton from Wikimedia, CC BY 2.0
Take a ferry across the Mersey
This weekend might all be about your soon-to-be-wed best friend, but you chose to have the party in Liverpool for a reason and now is the time to take a wholesome moment and appreciate the city in all its waterside glory.
You’ll see The Three Graces – that’s the iconic Royal Liver, Cunard and Port of Liverpool Buildings – and a bit of sea air is the best medicine to blow away any cobwebs before you head towards the crescendo of the weekend: Saturday night.
It’s gorgeous and wholesome. Just try not to punch the guy who thinks singing “ferry, cross the mersey…” is a sure way to woo his poor date.
Explore the city while you shop/snack/sip with Treasure Hunt Liverpool
Despite best efforts, there’s always one who overindulges on the first night. In which case, bobbing around on the water might not be the best activity. Did anyone bring a sick bag? (Asking for a friend ;) )
Ian and Paul designed Treasure Hunt Liverpool so that players could explore the city on their own terms. That means no tour guide chivvying you past a welcoming coffee shop and plenty of time to stop and browse if you pass an interesting shop. No one’s going to complain if you pop into a pub for a hair of the dog either!
Maps and clues are sent to your phones so everyone can follow as pirate queen Captain Bess guides you around the best of the city, setting cryptic questions as you go.
Play free demo of Treasure Hunt Liverpool & save 15%
Experience the fun of Treasure Hunt Liverpool with our free demo! Solve one of Captain Bess’s cryptic clues and claim a 15% discount on the full adventure—perfect for your hen weekend.
Play FREE demo nowWhat’s best is that you can start when you want and there’s no set finish time – the perfect activity if you want to have a plan without too much organised fun. No hen-zillas here, you’re in safe hands with Captain Bess in charge!
Saturday evening
Blown away those cobwebs? Tick! Seen some of Liverpool? Tick! Now it’s time to get on with some indoor activities that will make sure your hens are getting on as you ramp up for Saturday evening.
Photo from facebook.com/pinssocialclub
Strike out for PINS bowling
Now your hens have got to know each other, why not throw some gentle competition into the mix? Bowling is a great way to do this as, let’s face it, it’s more about luck than actual skill. That’s what I tell myself anyway.
If the idea of bowling conjures up cheesy Americana and stinking plimsolls, think again. PINS Social Club is more high-end industrial with a bit of Bauhaus thrown in.
Your friends can sip a cocktail on a chesterfield sofa while they wait for their turn or forgo the bowling altogether and make use of the tabletop games. They’ve got pool, shuffleboard, ping-pong (and it’s beer-related counterpart) as well as karaoke.
On a nice day there’s a huge rooftop terrace. The food is fresh and there’s a very decent bar.
Photo from facebook.com/iwf.rollerdrome
Whip it at the Invisible Wind Factory’s roller disco
If the last time you wore skates they had Barbies on them, let me tell you, things have changed! Active hens will love this take on a night’s dancing, with lights, laszers and pumping tunes.
You could surprise your bride-to-be with a pre-choreographed dance or invent roller derby-style monikers for each other. Nicknames are a true sign of friendship after all! Are you ready to meet the Bouquet Bruiser, the Maid of Mayhem or the Tulle Tornado? Go wild and unleash your roller warrior queen – although bear in mind, the Rollerdome insist that a dance off is the only acceptable form of fighting!
There’s always loads going on at this events-space-come-art-experiment so check their calendar and combine skating with some of the other weird and wonderful events or exhibitions.
Photo from instagram.com/pinotandpicassoliverpool
Paint away with Pinot and Picasso
Okay, okay, not all of us want to give a young Eliot Page a run for his money. For hens whose idea of a workout is lifting a glass of wine to their lips or paintbrush to canvas, this is the activity for you. It’s chilled, comfortable and you can take your creation home with you.
Pinot and Picasso put on regular sell-out nights in Liverpool with themes like “lemoncello”, “dahlia daydreams” or “paint your inner drag queen”. They also do private hen parties where you can decorate the studio and spend three hours sipping and painting under the expert guide of a professional artist.
Photo from instagram.com/flourwillfly
Fill up with a cookery masterclass
Now you’ve worked up an appetite, you’re going to need some sustenance to carry you through the night ahead. Sure, you could just plonk for Pizza Express, but why not turn the evening meal into an activity in itself? I promise it’ll taste at least twenty times better.
A few roads back from the Liver Building on Water Street, Italian kitchen Flour Will Fly have a plant-filled workshop with long wooden benches and all the kit you need to roll, crimp and cut your way to a delicious meal.
Think of this as a tactical class. It’s the right kind of messy – the flour will indeed fly – and while you’re positively encouraged to crack open a bottle of chianti, Auntie Jackie won’t be under the table just yet.
(Don’t worry Jax, there’s still plenty of time!)
Start the night in St Luke’s bombed out church
So. You’re fuelled up, you’ve forged new friendships and you’re ready for a night of fun.
In the summer months, there’s no better place to begin than the spectacular, community-run ruins of St Luke’s. The church was bombed in WWII and never repaired. Sitting in the grounds as the sun goes down is hauntingly beautiful and strangely wholesome – you’re soaking up a bit of history with your beer.
It also presents another excuse for some fancy dress. All it takes is a pencil skirt and some victory rolls and bingo. Go blitz to get blitzed! (Boom, boom.)
Opening times are sporadic and this is definitely one for pleasant weather (bombed out = no roof!) but if the stars align, it’s a magical place for some laid back boozing.
Photo from facebook.com/dukestreetmarket
Dine at Duke Street Market
If you didn’t opt for the pasta workshop – or even if you did – you’re well overdue some scran and this food hall with a difference is the place to head.
You won’t find any falafel in soggy cardboard here. The plates are ceramic, the glasses are, well, glass, and you can fill them with a range of speciality wines or cocktails that will please even the most particular bride-to-be.
It’s often pumping so give yourselves time to bag a table. But when you’ve ordered there’s barely time to blink before your food arrives and the great thing about going to a food hall is there’s no faffing around with the bill at the end.
Photo from instagram.com/cainsbrewery
(Bar) crawl your way around Cain’s Brewery
If you’ve made it this far, you’ve arrived! Time for a night to remember … or not…
Cain’s Brewery in the trendy Baltic Triangle offers a heady range of bars (and shops, studios and workspaces during the day). It’s a great alternative to the Saturday night xxxx show that is Concert Square.
There’s nothing worse than getting stuck in one spot for an entire evening because no one wants to risk choosing the next venue. Here’s a great way to take the decision-making out of your hands and get some local knowledge while you’re at it: Pick a bar, any bar, and when you buy your first drinks, simply ask the bartender to choose your next spot. Easy! This will keep everyone moving, boozing and the energy flowing.
Photo from facebook.com/BongosBingo
Bongo’s Bingo
You’ve probably heard of it, what with it going national, and then global, and founder Jonny Bongo being on just about every radio station and morning tv show there is. But did you know Liverpool is the home of this anarchic bingo-comedy hybrid?
If your bride-to-be needs a hen party with something a little more … traditional, shall we say … you could do a lot worse than the original (and best, obvs) Bongo’s Bingo.
This is the place to get your fill of dance-offs and dancing on tables, mingle (or mangle) with other hen- and stag-dos and generally let it rip. Do your best to bag a prize in the form of a hot pink Henry Hoover – it might just come in handy for tidying up the Airbnb in the morning!
Sunday
The day of reckoning!
You made it. Well done. Give yourself a pat on the back. Or a seltzer and a couple of ibuprofen.
Some people say Sunday is the most important day of a hen weekend. It’s the make or break, when together you brave warriors have to face what happened the night before and look into the cold light of day.
The worst thing you can do is let people slink away, shelving their embarrassment and their newly formed friendships until half-way through the toasts at the wedding. Thankfully Sundays are simple: you need a walk and good pub lunch.
Stroll around Sefton Park and Lark Lane
Whatever state you find yourselves in, on Sunday morning go directly to Lark Lane. Do not pass go, do not collect £200. Get yourself a strong coffee from one of the bougie cafes and be soothed by this vibrant little community.
Sefton Park is just around the corner and a great place to stroll while you appreciate the beauty of the Palm House and seek out the famous statue of Peter Pan. Like Wendy, it’s time to leave your Neverland weekend hen and grow-up, oof!
But not before one last chance to fill your bellies and soak the very last of last night from your bloodstream.
Photo from instagram.com/hanoverstsocial
Have a slap-up lunch at Hanover Street Social
There are few problems in life that can’t be solved, or at least soothed, with a traditional Sunday roast.
My pick of the best in Liverpool is the magnificent Hanover Street Social where the menu offers all of the classics, including the all-important Yorkshire pudding, and some less traditional options, like arrabiata gnocchi or cauliflower steak.
There’s not much more I can say, except that it’s a really solid Sunday roast that will help you solidify the friendships you’ve forged over the course of the weekend and make sure that everyone goes home content.
Don’t miss a thing!
Before you go your separate ways, there’s still time to squeeze in a hen party treasure hunt if you didn’t already opt to do that.
Captain Bess is recruiting for her ship and might just invite you to join if you can get through the cryptic questions tailor-made by Ian and Paul to showcase the very best Liverpool has to offer.
Treasure Hunt Liverpool is the most flexible and fun way to get to know this stunning spa town. Of course we’re biassed, but we don’t think any hen party in Liverpool is complete without it!
And that’s a wrap! My tried and tested recommendations for a hen party in Liverpool that won’t have your bride blushing too much.
Don’t forget – it’s always worth having some extra ideas in your back pocket and we’ve put together some non-cringey hen party games to fill those awkward silences and add some silliness to your weekend. They can be played anywhere and they’re absolutely free!
🎉 FREE Treasure Hunt Demo
If you’ve done a great group activity in Liverpool that you think should be on this list, let us know! We love to hear about fun hen party activities and will be sure to check it out.
Thank you for letting us know!