Admire the street art in Bristol

England

The southwest English city of Bristol is the former home of provocative street artist Banksy and the local art community has taken up the mantle when it comes to creating interesting, vibrant pieces of work on the city’s walls and alleyways. Join a street art walking tour or head to Stokes Croft, Bedminster, the Bearpit and North St to see a large concentration of dynamic works; there’s also a “Banksy Bristol Trail” app to help you find what’s left of his art around town. Every July the city hosts Upfest, Europe’s biggest street art festival, which sees live painting being created around town.

Go to the rugby in Cardiff

Wales

If you thought a crowd of All Blacks’ fans baying for victory at Eden Park was passionate, you should check out the 70,000-strong Principality Stadium in the centre of Cardiff come game time. From the moment the Welsh Dragons belt out their stirring national anthem to the chirp of the final whistle, the atmosphere at Wales’ national stadium is electric and a heck of a lot of fun. And following several years of loutish behaviour in the stands, there are now sections of venue that are permanently alcohol-free, if that sounds more appealing to you.

Watch a comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Scotland

The capital of Scotland comes alive for almost a month every August when the world’s largest arts festival takes over the city’s streets, theatres and bars. The Edinburgh Fringe Festival features nearly 60,000 performances during this time across all disciplines, from theatre and opera to circus and spoken-word, but it’s the comedy programme that gets most of the attention.

Some of the Kiwis who have regularly performed include Flight of the Conchords and Dai Henwood, while Rose Matafeo took out the award for Best Show last year. It’s bound to be hit and miss but you might just end up seeing the next big funny thing in a tiny venue with 10 other people — at the very least, you’re guaranteed some belly laughs.