14 top Manchester activity bars for games, cocktails & competitive nights out

Flight Club pairs interactive gameplay with a lively social atmosphere, featuring 14 private spaces designed for group bookings, alongside a large central bar and a dedicated cocktail menu. Guests can play automated, multi-player dart games suitable for all skill levels, and the location also hosts regular bottomless brunches and features live DJ sets.

Visitors can descend an alleyway staircase to discover a subterranean ping pong venue at Twenty Twenty Two, featuring multiple seating areas outfitted with leather Chesterfield sofas for socialising. At the back of the venue, guests will find rows of ping pong tables alongside a dedicated small bar, with the option to hire a table and organise private tournaments.

Roxy Ball Room operates two adult-only gaming venues in Manchester, located on Deansgate and the Arndale Centre. Visitors compete in interactive games including bowling, crazy pool, beer pong, shuffleboard, and classic arcade machines, pairing gameplay with an American-style menu serving burgers, wings, nachos, and stone-baked pizzas. The bar pours drinks from sixteen draught lines and mixes a dedicated selection of cocktails.

A huge dose of nostalgia hidden away down an alley-like street in the Northern Quarter, NQ64 is the home of retro gaming here in Manchester – doubling up as a fun bar. Offering classic games such as Mortal Kombat, Pac Man, Street Fighter II, Tekken and newer classics such as Guitar Hero, guests can take their pick of games to play, as well as try out consoles such as the Sega Mega Drive, Super Nintendo, N64 and an original Playstation. Located in the former Dive Bar space, and the smaller Peter Street arcade, allows plenty of space for retro gaming.

Junkyard Golf Club challenges players with unconventional mini-golf courses, with themed holes across distinct environments, including a dark fairground, a dense jungle, and an automotive scrapyard. Post-game, groups can socialise at the venue’s colourful central bar, where a signature menu of sweet-topped cocktails pairs perfectly with the quirky experience.

King Pins operates an extensive entertainment complex inside both the Arndale and Trafford Palazzo. Visitors can compete in ten-pin and duck-pin bowling, tech darts, ice-free curling, and Wild West shooting, plus karaoke rooms, batting cages, American pool, and arcade machines.

When hunger strikes, guests can head to Marvin’s, the onsite eatery serving up pizzas, fried chicken and loaded sides, alongside a fully stocked bar serving cocktails, beers and more – perfect for a pre-travel pick-me-up or a full delay-day escape.

Wynwood Lanes replaces the former Dog Bowl with a Miami-inspired bowling and street food venue. Play across five upgraded bowling lanes featuring celebratory smoke machines and enhanced lighting effects, and enjoy new pool tables, basketball hoops, and a coconut shy set against bold geometric murals.

Kong’s NQ runs the kitchen, serving a menu of Cuban sandwiches, meat-filled arepas, and fried chicken tacos. The bar mixes Southern-style drinks, including frozen margaritas and creamy piña coladas, and groups can book bottomless brunch at the weekend, which pairs Miami brunch plates with 90 minutes of unlimited drinks.

Sixes Social Cricket challenges visitors with an interactive cricket simulator. Players of all ages and skill levels compete in batting bays, transforming the traditional sport into a fast-paced social game.

Groups can pair their gameplay with a menu featuring BBQ-inspired dishes, whilst the bartenders pour craft beers and mix cocktails to complete the experience.

Pixel Bar Manchester allows visitors to hire dedicated console booths equipped with PS5, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch systems. The venue also features free-to-play arcade cabinets distributed throughout the space, set to a soundtrack of pop-punk music.

Players can pair their gaming sessions with a food and drink menu featuring pizzas and Pokémon-themed cocktails.

Located within Manchester Arndale, Urban Playground is home to tech-infused crazy golf Putters as well as The Cube Live Experience. Recreate the gameshow IRL by stepping into the iconic Perspex box with up to seven challenges to choose from, some of which are single or two player games.

Or putt your way round the crazy golf course by taking on nine holes amplified by on-screen animations and audio before finishing your game with some scran at haute couture burger joint The Butcher or a mouthwatering cocktail at the bar.

Electric Shuffle comes from the team behind the hugely popular Flight Club and is the biggest Electric Shuffle venue in the UK, with 15 play spaces and a capacity of 450 people. Located on Manchester’s Deansgate, Electric Shuffle promises “a social experience like no other”.

Mancs can expect addictive and high-energy games, semi-private shuffleboard areas dotted around a stylish art-deco-inspired central bar, DJ sets, an impressive cocktail list and a mouthwatering menu of small plates and sourdough pizza.

Visitors to Black Cat Club can play interactive group games, including Flyby Darts and Manchester’s first interactive shuffleboard. The venue hosts sports viewing experiences and provides touch-button table service, ensuring guests catch every moment of the match.

Players can pair their activities with a contemporary food menu featuring pizzas, burgers, and small plates developed by chef Simon Shaw, and vinyl DJs play regular sets to soundtrack the space.

Pong & Puck is a competitive entertainment bar inside Great Northern Warehouse, where visitors can play a diverse line-up of interactive games, including Skee-Ball, shuffleboard, drink pong, table tennis, and pool. Groups can also book private karaoke rooms and watch major sporting events broadcast across a giant central screen and multiple secondary displays.

After working up an appetite, order food directly from the indoor retro pizza van, and grab custom cocktails alongside an extensive selection of beers and wines, which you can take out to the venue’s dedicated outdoor terrace to socialise.

If you don’t fancy the bright lights of the city, Whitefield has a high-energy offering of its own. Northern Social offers interactive games including shuffleboard, classic arcade machines, and beer pong across glowing tables. The Northern Social venue operates with a neon-lit aesthetic, featuring comfortable booth seating, a bright blue central bar, and a dedicated photo booth.

Players can pair their gaming sessions with an unconventional menu of New York-style fusion pizzas, selecting from toppings like spaghetti and meatballs, doner meat, or a Katz Deli-inspired pastrami stack. The bar boasts three boozy slushie machines and quirky piña colada soft serve alongside a standard selection of beers, wines, and spirits.