Cambridge Stag Do

Picture Harry Potter crossed with The Hangover and you’re close to what a Cambridge stag do can be. The colleges and the river make it feel very grand, but there’s a young crowd of students and professionals here who know exactly how to have a night out. Better still, the centre is small, so every bar is within easy staggering distance.

It’s a good shout for a stag who likes a proper pint, a bit of history and a sunny afternoon by the river. It also suits a group who’d rather spend the weekend talking than queueing for a club.

Punting is the one everyone does, and for good reason. Hire a punt and take it along the Backs behind the colleges, or book a chauffeured punt if you’d rather the stag didn’t sink you. Watching a grown man’s pole stick in the mud while the punt drifts off without him is worth the trip on its own.

Out of town there’s open countryside for clay pigeon shooting and paintball. Newmarket, the home of British horse racing, is just up the road, so a day at the races is an easy add-on in season. Dress smart, back a few horses with silly names and let the stag pick the favourite. He’ll lose, but he’ll enjoy it.

The Eagle on Bene’t Street is the pub everybody visits. It’s where scientists announced they’d cracked the structure of DNA in 1953, and the ceiling of its RAF bar is covered in graffiti left by airmen during the Second World War. Get a pint, look up and pretend you’re interested in science.

After that, the city centre has plenty of pubs and bars, and the riverside pubs are perfect for an early evening sit-down while you watch tourists getting punting wrong. Mill Road, a short walk out of the centre, has a great run of independent pubs and places to eat, and it’s where I’d send a group who prefer real ale to cocktails. The late bars and clubs are dotted around the centre, so you’re never far from your next stop.

Cambridge is easy by train, with fast services from London King’s Cross and Liverpool Street and good links from the Midlands and East Anglia. Driving into the centre is a headache, so use the Park and Ride if anyone must bring a car. Once you’re there, walk. Cycling is how the locals get about, but I wouldn’t hand the stag a bike after lunch.

Weighing it up against the alternatives? Oxford does a very similar weekend, and London is close by if the group wants something bigger.

• Go in late spring or summer. The river and the beer gardens are the best bits, and they need sunshine. The Cambridge Beer Festival on Jesus Green usually runs in late May, if your stag likes his ale.
• Don’t punt drunk. Do the river first and the drinking after. The water is cold and muddy, and the phone in your pocket won’t survive.
• Bring ID. It’s a student city, so bars and clubs check.
• Book rooms early. Summer weekends and graduation weeks get busy, so lock in a Cambridge stag weekend as soon as you have a date.

The centre of Cambridge is small, so I’d base the group right in the middle. Every bar is within easy staggering distance, the Eagle on Bene’t Street is on your doorstep and the riverside pubs are a short wander away. That also puts you close to the Backs for the punting, which means nobody has an excuse for turning up late to the river.

If your lot are real ale people rather than cocktail people, look at a base near Mill Road instead. It’s a short walk out of the centre, it has a great run of independent pubs and places to eat, and you can still stroll into town for the late bars and clubs.

Two practical tips. Don’t bring the cars if you can help it: driving into the centre is a headache, so use the Park and Ride if anyone must. And book rooms early, because summer weekends and graduation weeks get busy. Lock in beds as soon as you have a date.

Friday Get a fast train from London King’s Cross or Liverpool Street, drop the bags and walk into town. First stop is the Eagle on Bene’t Street, where the stag can sink a pint under the graffitied ceiling of the RAF bar and pretend he’s interested in DNA. Then work round the centre’s pubs and bars. Bring ID, because it’s a student city and they check.

Saturday Pick your daytime damage out in the countryside: clay pigeon shooting, archery or go karting all work. If it’s racing season, swap that for Newmarket, the home of British horse racing, and dress smart. Back in town, settle into a riverside pub for an early evening sit-down and watch the tourists getting punting wrong. Then head out to Mill Road for the independent pubs and a bite to eat, before finishing in the late bars and clubs dotted around the centre.

Sunday This is when you do the river, sober. Book a chauffeured punt along the Backs behind the colleges so the stag can lie back and nurse his head while someone else does the work. Brave souls can self-hire, but remember the water is cold and muddy and the phone in your pocket won’t survive. Finish with a gentle pint by the river and a walk back to the station.