Club Pétanque | Boules in King’s Cross
Pétanque is a popular recreational game played in the South of France.
And in King’s Cross, which is universally considered to be the Provence of London.
This summer in Pancras Square, just behind Goods Way and Hoppers King’s Cross, you can play the sport (also known as boules) for free. And if you’ve never heard of pétanque or boules, you essentially throw a shiny steel ball (nonchalantly, if you can), underarm, towards a smaller, wooden ball, called the ‘jack’. You have to get your ball as close to the jack as you possibly can. Same as lawn bowls really, but with sand instead of grass.
Immaculate form…
Stereotypically this might all take place in a beautiful garden estate somewhere in the Riviera with a spritz in your hand and a panama hat on your head, but King’s Cross is probably the next best thing – there’s tons of bars nearby for al fresco drinking and the weather will (hopefully) be good, so it’s not a huge stretch to say that a similar sort of scene can be replicated here.
The Club Pétanque organisers have set it all up very professionally with two 15m sand courts, and it’s totally free to play on a first-come, first-served basis. So if you can’t get a slot right away? Mosey over to Coal Drops Yard between 15th-26th August to enjoy live music as part of Summer Sounds, or see if there’s a film showing at Everyman On The Canal.
Just like in Provence.
NOTE: Club Pétanque runs from 19th June – 1st September, with the opening hours of 10am-9pm Mon-Fri & 10am-7pm Sat-Sun. It’s completely free – you can find more info here.
Club Pétanque | Pancras Square, N1C 4AG
After more inspiration? Here are some more wonderful summer date ideas…