Things to do in London this week for £5 or less.
1. Score yourself a £1 salad
Salad bar restaurant Choppaluna celebrates the launch of its new Holborn branch with £1 salad bowls this week. Every day from Monday-Friday, a different Choppaluna signature bowl is available for a quid, between 11am and 3pm (limited to the first 300 people). It's Spring Chicken on Monday and Mango Chicken on Tuesday (vegan swaps available for both), with Nacho Avocado on Wednesday, Falafel Habibi on Thursday, and Nut & Berry on Friday.
Plus, everyone who visits during the opening week can spin the wheel for a chance to win discounts and prizes, including free salad for a year.
13-17 February.
2. Let them eat (free!) cake at Leadenhall Market
Valentine's Day is celebrated with several different activities at Leadenhall Market, including free cake. Head along to French patisserie Aux Merveilleux de Fred from 11am on 14 February to claim one of 160 free mini cakes being given out, all in the name of love.
Free, 14 February.
3. Bloomin' lovely free Valentine's bouquets
It's not only free cake that's up for grabs this Valentine's Day. Online florist Bloom & Wild is giving away mini bouquets at Battle Bridge Place in King's Cross. They come with a blank greeting card, so you can quite easily pass them on as a gift to your significant other (or a mate), and they'll be none the wiser about your thriftiness. But if you want to keep them for yourself? Absolutely fine.
The flower stall is open from 8am, and there while stocks last — we'd suggest you get down there early if you're keen for a free bouquet. Plus, if you're so inclined, you can share a photo of the stall on Instagram, tagging Bloom & Wild, to enter a competition to win free flowers for a year. Bloomin' lovely.
Free, 14 February.
4. Woo on the cheap with a free candlelit concert
If it's a cheapo V-Day date idea you're after (times are tough, no judgement here), head to The Sound Shell in Wembley Park for a free concert of love songs and romantic ballads, performed by candlelight, by musicians including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Plus, the first 100 people to arrive can bag themselves a free hot chocolate and doughnut courtesy of Bread Ahead.
Free, 14 February.
5. Brave a pop-up haunted dolls' house
For one day only, a haunted dolls' house pops up in a secret London location yet to be announced. It sounds like something you'd expect to see around Halloween rather than February half term, but it's a promo event for a spooky new ride, The Curse at Alton Manor, at Alton Towers. We don't know exactly what to expect, but it's definitely not one for younger kids.
Free, 15 February.
6. Have you got the guts to visit this pop-up museum?
Yoghurt brand Activia opens a pop-up What the Gut? Museum in Soho, which aims to demystify the workings of the gut and teach visitors how their body really works. The museum begins with a walk through a giant digestive tract, followed by an installation which shows you how your gut affects the rest of your body, and a video by Dr Zoe Williams about how to look after your gut.
Yes, it's a promo for the yoghurt brand (and an aptly-located one, being on Greek Street), but it sounds... unusual, and you might just learn something too.
Free, 15-16 February.
7. See a new installation at Somerset House
There's a new treat in store at the ever-changing Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court at Somerset House from Thursday this week, as art installation Whorled (Here After Here After Here) is unveiled.
The outdoor installation, by Mumbai-based artist Jitish Kallat, resembles an oversized, unspooled ribbon. In reality, the blue and white steel sculpture is designed to resemble road signs, and is marked up with the distance between Somerset House and over 300 locations across the planet and beyond, including the Moon, Mars, and distant stars in the Milky Way.
Visitors can walk among the spirals — which would reach 168m long if stretched out — reading the names of places, including locations which are under environmental threat or have already been lost to rising sea levels, accompanied by warning and hazard symbols.
Free, 16 February-23 April.
8. Rock All Over The World with Status Quo
Whatever You Want, get down to Barbican Library to see free new exhibition, Celebrating Seven Decades Of Quo. Hard to believe the band have been Rockin' All Over The World for more than 60 years, but the proof is in the photos, posters and other memorabilia on display here, in a collection curated by FTMO (the Official Status Quo Fan Club) and Status Quo fan and record collector, Andy Campbell.
Free, 16 February-22 May.s
9. Bethlem history walk
The Bethlem Museum of the Mind shares a site with Bethlem Royal Hospital, which was the first institution in the UK to specialise in mental health care, founded in 1247, and at its current location since 1930.
On Saturday, the museum offers a guided walk around the hospital grounds, focusing on the history of both the land where the hospital now resides, and the hospital itself at its previous locations.
£3, 18 February.
10. Budget-friendly half term fun
There are ways to keep little ones entertained during half term without spending a penny — we've got a section dedicated to free fun in our half term guide, including a map of playgrounds in central London, ideal for burning off excess energy when the weather is on your side.
Looking for more free things to do in London? Here are 102 of em!
We've also compiled this epic map of free stuff in London.
