Top London Crazy Golf Courses You Must Visit

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It’s not just the dinosaurs that are monstrous at this South London venue. With a whopping 36 holes, the course itself is a bit of a beast – apparently, there used to be a choice of two, which have now merged together. Geared to little ones, the eponymous Mr Mulligan character and his dog, Doug, join up with a chain of adventure-themed crazy-golf venues across the country, with a variety of themes from Jurassic to nautical – a perfect excuse for a family road trip?

London’s first dedicated crazy-golf bar, Swingers opened at the base of the Gherkin in 2016 after a successful pop-up version the previous summer. The brainchild of the Institute of Competitive Socialising (who believe ‘that life is better when it includes an element of competition’), Swingers packs two nine-hole courses, five bars serving golf-themed cocktails and a plethora of street food vendors into a 16,000-square-foot underground space, all modelled on a 1920s English country golf club. Filled with faux foliage – trees, ivy and wildflowers – and timber gazebos, the mainstay of the venue is a two-storey clubhouse with a gin terrace. As crazy-golf venues go, it’s a pretty special sight – as, by the by, is their fabulously floral website.

It’s over to West London now with Dinosaur Escape, an 18-hole, Florida-style golf venue that makes like the Americans and goes big. The dinosaur models here are almost life-size and are animatronic, moving, breathing and roaring – just don’t let them put off your game. This course is filled with jungle-style foliage, fossil rock paths, a vast blue lagoon and some blood-red water cascades àla Jurassic Park (as well as some inexplicable purple).

This sell-out subterranean crazy-golf course has upped sticks, pitching up atop Stratford’s Roof East – introducing one hell of a view into an already winning formula. The nine-hole course itself is a tricky devil, filled with loops, half-pipe ramps, tubes and an elevated drop. Run by pop-up cinema masters Rooftop Film Club, the food and drink side of things is unsurprisingly strong, with craft beers galore, cocktails courtesy of Spirited Mixers and RockaDollar Dogs from Hawksmoor, all complemented by sets from Resident DJs.

This pop-up course is one not to be missed. The offshoot of Manchester’s permanent venue, Junkyard Golf invaded Brick Lane’s Old Truman Brewery for three months and took London by storm in the process. This ramshackle course is made up of – as you can imagine – pieces of junk, ranging from twisted bits of genuine rubbish to simply tat-you-might-find-at-a-car-boot sale. Putt your way past mannequin-filled jacuzzis, through a graveyard where washing machines go to die, and under plastic cows. There’s a gritty ambience throughout, with a UV neon room, graffiti and blaring techno tunes – and, of course, the obligatory bars and street food. Read our full article on the Junkyard Golf experience.

Operating in four venues across London, Plonk’s golf game is seriously above par. Plonk Dalston was the first to open in the trendy watering hole that is Efes Pool Hall and remains the most ramshackle and OTT of the lot, with colourful, tiki-inspired décor and lashings of UV paint – this is crazy golf at peak crazy. Their Hackney and Brixton courses are al fresco, in the beer gardens of Victoria Park’s People’s Park Tavern and The Duke of Edinburgh respectively, allowing golfers to take advantage of great food and drink. The fourth course is indoors in Battersea’s The Four Thieves, an old Victorian Music Hall, and the smallest space of the bunch – but size is far from everything. The fun doesn’t stop with the golf here, with a massive games room just upstairs, packed with ping pong, vintage arcade games and even a mini-motor racing track.

To the delight of South London’s kids, Dragon Quest offers 18 holes of dragon-themed entertainment, with massive dragon models that are disappointingly static. The course is filled with fun features including monster footprints dotting the paths, turrets, caves, siege weaponry and plenty of water features, all washed down with shrieking, serpentine sound effects.