7 Alcohol-Free Activities to Celebrate the end of Assessments
Picture this, the semester has finally come to an end and you’ve completed all of your assessments. Whether they were exams, papers or presentations… it’s all finally done and you can’t wait to celebrate with friends! However, it seems as though the only plans that anyone can think of are drinking and bar hopping and you’re just not into that.
If you’re interested in finding out other ways to celebrate, you’ve come to the right place. Lucky for you, I’m Derencia, an international postgraduate Marketing student and I’m here to help!
Seven Activities to Celebrate the End of Assessments (Or Any Time) Without Alcohol:
1. Concerts
I’ve always enjoyed going to concerts. It’s such an amazing feeling to watch your favourite artists perform live and living in Manchester makes this really easy to do. There are always concerts and other live musical performances happening in the city. Earlier in the year, I attended two concerts and already have two more booked for the summer and I’m so excited!
Websites like Songkick and Ticketmaster have become my go-to whenever I’m searching for concerts. With concerts having a variety of drinks and snacks, there’s no pressure at all to have alcohol. You’ll be too busy singing your heart out anyway to even think about it.
2. Museums or Art Galleries
If you’re a lover of the arts or looking for something different to do in the city, visiting a museum or art gallery may be the perfect place to celebrate the end of assessments, and Manchester has many art spaces for you and your mates to take advantage of.
If you’re into dinosaur skeletons and ancient Egyptian history Manchester Museum is the museum for you. Or maybe you’re into learning about old cars and machinery, then the Science and Industry Museum is the place to be. Better yet, you love taking in the beauty of paintings and sculptures. If that sounds like you, I’d recommended checking out HOME.
After soaking up all that history and culture, if you do become a bit thirsty, each of the museums has a coffee shop to enjoy. See, no alcohol here!
3. Dinner
Nothing says celebration time, like a wholesome gathering of great food and amazing company. Celebrating without alcohol at a dinner with friends can easily be done.
Manchester has a huge variety of restaurants and with many people drinking less alcohol these days, so lots of them have mocktails available. You can always enjoy a mocktail if you still want to have a cute little drink to toast to the end of assessments with!
4. Sporting Event
Manchester’s love for football runs deep and what could be a better way to embrace the city’s love than celebrating with Manchester United or Manchester City football teams! If you’re a sports lover, you know how special it is to watch a home game and even if you’re not into sports, it’s something magical about being in a large stadium, seeing everyone dressed up in the home colours, cheering along their favourite team.
Similarly to concerts, sporting events have a selection of food and drinks so there is something for everyone! However, if you’re not a fan of crowds or not able to make it to a game, there is also the option of a stadium tour. You’ll get to experience walking through the players tunnel, seeing their dressing room and access much more of the stadium that usual game-goers don’t.
5. Game Night at Home
Speaking of games, why not invite a few friends over for a game night? Everyone can prepare a dish or you guys can have whatever you’re craving delivered. If you’re feeling really fancy, you can make speciality non-alcoholic drinks for the game night like flavoured lemonade or fruit punch.
Whether it’s Monopoly, Head’s Up or Cards Against Humanity, a little competition amongst friends means a lot of laughter and fun.
6. Mini Golf
The weather in Manchester can be unpredictable and that’s why indoor activities are always a good idea. If you enjoy casual day or night outs, mini golf with friends is an excellent way to celebrate the end of assessments.
With the golf club in one hand and the scoring card in the other, you won’t have any free hands for drinks. Plus you’ll definitely need to concentrate if you’re going to manoeuvre the crazy golf course and win the mini golf competition against your friends at Junkyard Golf.
7. Candle Making
One of the best things about living in a big city is that there is always something fun to do! I recently discovered that there are candle making classes at Gwong Candle Studio located in Kampus (which also happens to be the home of the alcohol free bar Love From, how convenient right?!) and I was so intrigued.
How fun would it be to celebrate the end of assessments by getting creative and making your very own candle? This isn’t your traditional candle making class though, you can choose between making flowers, pastries and even drinks. So, while you’re not drinking any alcohol, who says you can’t turn a cocktail into a candle!
Well there you have it, there are so many ways to celebrate without alcohol. From concerts, to candle making and everything else in between, celebrating does not have to be limited to alcohol only activities. When you really think about it, you can do everything without alcohol so there’s no need to feel uncomfortable or insecure about having fun with your friends when you’re not drinking, because that does not limit your experience.
