5 Great Places to Meet New People in Your City

Today, I’m going to be going to list and elaborate on the top five places I believe you should visit in your city, as well as things you can try, when looking to meet new faces. Yes, your city — that’s right. I haven’t been to every city in the world (unfortunately) but I’m confident I’ve been to enough to make the assumption that almost every first-world city in the world has at least one of each of these.

Meeting new people can be difficult but it doesn’t have to be. Here are the top five places in every city that I suggest you visit to do so:

1. The City Centre

Now, I’m no expert (or am I?) but I’m pretty sure that every geographical region in the history of the universe requires a centre in order to exist. Well, cities are no exception.

The centre of a city is the heart of a city. And where there’s a heart, you’ll find other humans. Humans that you can see, meet and converse with. There are plenty of ways to start conversations with people in the city centre.

The challenge is initiating conversation. Everybody’s different: maybe you’re the kind of person that would be open to telling jokes to strangers, maybe you’re not. Maybe you’d rather wait for a talking point to occur and then proceed from there. Either way, once the conversation takes off, don’t be afraid to ask about the person. People to talk about themselves, or at least the majority do. It’s the bottom line of conversation 101.

2. Comedy Functions

Attending a local comedy gig can be a wonderful way to meet new people. Entertainment, laughs, drinks (I’m referring to a glass of Coca Cola if you’re under eighteen, just to clarify…) and more laughs. What better of an environment to bump into a new face?

You could comment on a joke to the person sat next to you, for example. There are tons of ways to go about it and an abundance of talking points that will come your way. Be sure to use them when you get the chance.

3. Join a Local Club, Team or Class

This one, in my opinion, is where you stand the greatest chance of meeting people that you may build longer-term friendships and relationships with.

Think about it – if you join a swimming team, chess club, art class or football team for example, you’re going to be meeting these same people once, twice or maybe even three (or more) times each week. That’s one hell of a chance of developing a lasting friendship or relationship with someone. You’ll also have new members joining the club/team every so often that will bring you opportunity after opportunity of meeting new faces. Not to mention the chance it brings to work on a new or existing skill/interest — “two birds with one stone”, am I right?

Here are some other ideas of local teams, clubs and classes you could consider joining:

• Dance club

• Archery club

• Cycling team

• A martial arts class

• Writing or poetry club

• Book club

• Hiking team

• Photography club

• Drama club

• A language class

• Film club

I recommend searching Google for ones in your area and then finding their contact details on their website or Facebook page so that you can inquire about joining/signing up.

4. Open-Mic Night

Perhaps you’re a musician, perhaps you’re not. It doesn’t matter — everyone can have fun and let their hair down at an open-mic night. It’s a great way to relax in an environment filled with people you’re yet to meet.

Again, Google is your best friend; simply search for open-mic nights in your area and find one that’s on when you’re next available.

If you don’t know what an open-mic night is, it’s an event (usually hosted in bar, a pub, a coffeehouse etc.) in which anybody is free to sign up for a slot on stage and perform. It’s often a very fun, laid-back kind of atmosphere. In other words, it’s the perfect venue for talking to new people!

Side note: If you are a musician by the way, you should totally consider performing at these. I think you’ll be surprised by how many new faces you’ll meet by having people come over to talk to you after your set. I used to be in a local band and the amount of people I met through music was beyond rewarding.

5. The Gym

Okay, so, this one might not be for everyone. Some people just simply don’t like the gym.

Some might prefer home workouts, running/swimming or just not really care much for the idea of getting sweaty and pulling some rather strange faces around a bunch of people that they don’t know. And that’s fine. But for those who are open to the idea of a gym, this one’s for you.

At the gym (and this applies to both newcomers and seasoned gymgoers), what do you do when you’re unsure of how to use a certain piece of equipment or perform a particular exercise? Well, here’s what you should do: you should ask someone. Anyone. It could be a gym instructor or it could simply be a fellow member using the gym. This is conversation gold.

Perhaps you’ve spotted someone performing an exercise that you’re unfamiliar with and would like to know more about or learn it for yourself. Bingo — ask them!

Perhaps you’re about to hit the bench press and you’ve not got a friend with you to spot you (“weight spotting”; Google it if you’re unfamiliar with the term). You know what to do — look around you and ask the nearest person if they’ve got a moment to spare to spot you.

These are all brilliant ways to meet new faces and spark conversations. Get the ball rolling and try a few of these yourself! Yes, it can be daunting, but if you don’t manage to pluck up the courage to start a conversation the first-time round, just come back another time and try again. What’re you waiting for?

If you want to contact the author: dan@bwent.co.uk.