First Date Ideas in Birmingham That Aren't a Bar: Galleries, Gardens, Canals and a Park

Why a non-bar first date works in Birmingham

A first date with something to look at takes pressure off the conversation. You are both reacting to the same painting, plant or boat rather than trying to fill silences across a table. Birmingham's city centre is compact enough that a free gallery, a canal walk and somewhere to eat can all fit into one afternoon on foot.

The catch is opening days. Several of the places below are closed on Mondays, one is only open Thursday to Sunday, and two well-known options are currently shut. This guide gives the hours each venue published when it was checked. Confirm them on the day, especially around bank holidays and school holidays, when hours change.

Free art in the centre: BMAG and Ikon

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery is on Chamberlain Square, B3 3DH. General admission is free and you don't need to book, though some exhibitions and events charge. In term time it is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm. During Birmingham school holidays it opens every day, and it also opens on bank holiday Mondays. Last entry is 4.45pm, and it is closed from 24 to 26 December and on 1 January.

BMAG's highlights include the Pre-Raphaelite Galleries, the Staffordshire Hoard Gallery, the Birmingham History Galleries, the Round Room and the Industrial Gallery. When this guide was checked, the museum said the Art Galleries on level 2 and the Ancient History Galleries on level 3 were closed, so look at its site if there is a particular room you want to see. The tearoom is open from 10am to 5pm, which makes it an easy place to sit down afterwards. There is a lift entrance at Gas Hall.

Ikon is a contemporary art gallery at 1 Oozells Square, Brindleyplace, B1 2HS, in a Grade II listed Victorian school building. Entry is free, with donations welcome. The gallery is open Tuesday to Sunday and bank holiday Mondays from 11am to 5pm, with temporary exhibitions across two floors. The Ikon Shop, a specialist art bookshop, opens an hour earlier at 10am. Contemporary art gives you plenty to disagree about, which can be a good thing on a first date.

• Birmingham Museum and Art GalleryMuseum and gallery

  Chamberlain Square, B3 3DH

  Free; term time Tue–Sun 10am–5pm, daily in school holidays; last entry 4.45pm.

• IkonContemporary art gallery

  1 Oozells Square, Brindleyplace, B1 2HS

  Free; Tue–Sun and bank holiday Mondays 11am–5pm, in a Grade II listed Victorian school.

A canal walk from Gas Street Basin

Gas Street Basin is where the Worcester and Birmingham Canal meets the Birmingham Canal Navigations main line. It sits on Gas Street, off Broad Street, between the Mailbox and Brindleyplace, so it pairs naturally with a visit to Ikon. Walking the towpath is free and gives you something to look at while you talk.

The basin has history to point out. According to Wikipedia, the canal company that ran the Birmingham Canal Navigations insisted on a physical barrier to stop the Worcester and Birmingham Canal taking its water. The result was the Worcester Bar, a straight barrier 84 yards long, which meant cargo had to be moved between boats by hand. An Act of Parliament in 1815 opened the bar and led to a lock where tolls were collected. The bar still exists, with boats moored on both sides, and a footbridge links it to Gas Street.

Wikipedia also says the wall and ramp down from Gas Street are Grade II listed, along with the Tap and Spile pub and its neighbouring building. Much of the area around the basin was redeveloped in the 1990s. Use the towpath in daylight if you don't know the route, and keep to the busier stretches near Brindleyplace and the Mailbox.

• Gas Street BasinCanal basin

  Gas Street, off Broad Street

  Free to walk; the Worcester Bar, listed canal-side buildings and moored boats between the Mailbox and Brindleyplace.

Two gardens in Edgbaston

Winterbourne House and Garden is at 58 Edgbaston Park Road, B15 2RT, on the University of Birmingham campus. It is an RHS partner garden and an accredited museum, and you can explore the house as well as the Walled Garden, the Pergola and the Sandstone Rock Garden. From November to February it is open from 10.30am to 4pm, and from March to October from 10.30am to 5pm. It opens seven days a week, including bank holidays, and closes briefly over Christmas and New Year. Last entry to the site and the tea room is 30 minutes before closing.

An adult ticket at Winterbourne costs £10.20, or £11.25 with Gift Aid. Concessions for over-65s and students who are not at the University of Birmingham cost £8.85, or £9.75 with Gift Aid. University of Birmingham staff and students get in free with a valid ID card. The site is cashless, so bring a card.

Birmingham Botanical Gardens is on Westbourne Road, B15 3TR. It has more than 30,000 plants, four Victorian glasshouses, Alpine Gardens, Bog and Fern Gardens, a Japanese Garden and a Pinetum. The gardens say they are open every day except Christmas Day and Boxing Day, with current hours of 10am to 5pm that change with the seasons. They sometimes close early for evening concerts or theatre. Ticket prices only appear once you choose a date on the booking page, so check there or call 0121 454 1860. The glasshouses are a good choice for a cold or wet day.

• Winterbourne House and GardenHistoric house and garden

  58 Edgbaston Park Road, B15 2RT

  Daily 10.30am–4pm (Nov–Feb) or 5pm (Mar–Oct); adult £10.20, £11.25 with Gift Aid; cashless.

• Birmingham Botanical GardensBotanical garden

  Westbourne Road, B15 3TR

  Four Victorian glasshouses and 30,000+ plants; open daily except 25–26 December, currently 10am–5pm.

Cannon Hill Park and MAC

Cannon Hill Park is a 250-acre public park in south Birmingham, run by the city council. Wikipedia describes it as the most popular park in the city and says it has formal, conservation, woodland and sports areas, along with a boating lake crossed by the Grade II listed Red Carriage Bridge. The park opened to the public in September 1873 after Louisa Ann Ryland gave the original meadow land to the city.

MAC, the Midlands Arts Centre, is inside the park at Cannon Hill Park, B12 9QH. Wikipedia says it opened in 1962 on the site of the park's former lido. MAC says it is open daily from 9am until late, though times can vary, and its First Floor Gallery is usually open Tuesday to Sunday from 11am to 5pm. There is a café and bar, KILN Café and MAC Bar, on site. MAC is cashless and takes card and contactless payments. A walk round the lake followed by the gallery or a programme event is an easy, low-cost afternoon.

• Cannon Hill ParkPark

  South Birmingham

  250-acre council park with a boating lake and the Grade II listed Red Carriage Bridge.

• MACArts centre

  Cannon Hill Park, B12 9QH

  Open daily from 9am; First Floor Gallery usually Tue–Sun 11am–5pm; café and bar; cashless.

A guided tour: the Museum of the Jewellery Quarter

The Museum of the Jewellery Quarter is at 70–80 Vyse Street, Hockley, B18 6HA. Entry is by guided tour only, which suits a first date because someone else sets the pace and supplies the talking points. Tours run from Thursday to Sunday, starting at 10.45am, 11.15am, 11.45am, 12.30pm, 1pm, 1.45pm, 2.15pm, 2.45pm and 3.15pm, and last about 45 minutes. The museum is open from 10.30am to 4pm on those days.

Adult tickets for anyone 16 or over cost £10, or £11 with a Gift Aid donation. The museum advises booking ahead. It is closed on bank holiday Mondays, from 24 to 26 December and on 1 January.

• Museum of the Jewellery QuarterMuseum (guided tours)

  70–80 Vyse Street, Hockley, B18 6HA

  Thu–Sun 10.30am–4pm, guided tours only, about 45 minutes; adult £10, £11 with Gift Aid.

Science, and two places that are currently shut

Thinktank, Birmingham's science museum, is at Millennium Point, B4 7XG. In term time it is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm, and it opens every day in Birmingham school holidays and on bank holiday Mondays. Last entry is 4.30pm. Admission is charged, but prices are on a separate ticket page, and the museum advises booking ahead at weekends and in school holidays, when it will be busy with families.

Two places that often appear on Birmingham date lists aren't available at the moment. The Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham says its building is due to reopen to the public in the latter part of 2027. The Electric Cinema on Station Street opened in 1909 and, according to Wikipedia, was the oldest working cinema in the country until it closed on 29 February 2024. Don't plan a date around either until they announce they are open.

• ThinktankScience museum

  Millennium Point, B4 7XG

  Term time Tue–Sun 10am–5pm, daily in school holidays; last entry 4.30pm; admission charged.

Before you go

• BMAG and Thinktank are closed on Mondays in term time; Ikon is closed on Mondays except bank holidays.
• The Museum of the Jewellery Quarter only opens Thursday to Sunday, and only by guided tour, so book ahead.
• Winterbourne and MAC are cashless; bring a card or phone.
• Botanical Gardens prices only show once you pick a date online, and the gardens can close early for evening events.
• The Barber Institute is closed until the latter part of 2027, and the Electric Cinema closed in February 2024.

Questions people ask

What is a free first date in Birmingham?

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and Ikon are both free. A walk along the canal from Gas Street Basin to Brindleyplace costs nothing, and Cannon Hill Park is free to walk round.

Is Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery open on Mondays?

Not in term time. It is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm, but opens every day during Birmingham school holidays and on bank holiday Mondays.

How much is Winterbourne House and Garden?

An adult ticket is £10.20, or £11.25 with Gift Aid. University of Birmingham staff and students get in free with valid ID.

Is the Barber Institute open?

No. The Barber says its building is due to reopen to the public in the latter part of 2027.

Where can we go on a rainy first date in Birmingham?

BMAG and Ikon are free and indoors, the Botanical Gardens has four Victorian glasshouses, and Thinktank is a ticketed indoor science museum.