8 delightful Covent Garden cocktail bars

A place of exploration and adventure, the Society of Exploration boasts wood-panelled walls, warm leather seating and shelves laden with eccentric artifacts. Guests can enjoy intimate gatherings in the Map Room, housing an impressive collection of antique maps, travel books, souvenirs and more.

Alongside the cocktail bar lies the Orient Express - the life-size model of a Victorian train carriage is perfect for seated and standing events, complete with banquette seating, brass lamps and windows overlooking the bar area. Hire the whole venue with room for 200 standing guests of 80 seated.

This basement cocktail bar offers Covent Garden revellers an eclectic, loose and outrageous vibe. The psychedelic interior takes inspiration from Jimi Hendrix, with a mix of pink and green, lined with velvet booths and pink neon lights. Throwing a party? You can hire the whole venue, with room for up to 225 pals.

Head below the acclaimed Lima Floral restaurant to find the Lost Alpaca, a casual cocktail spot inspired by the south American continent. Pisco, tequila, mezcal and rum reign supreme on the short, superb drinks list – wines, too, are all sourced from the New World. Hire it out for events of up to 45 people. Arriba!

Even a tourist wonderland like Covent Garden still has its hidden corners. Hidden beneath the famous Piazza, the 100-capacity Cache Cache offers 17 killer cocktails in a deeply atmospheric, brick-clad vault – the perfect spot for libations clandestine and otherwise. The whole venue can also be hired for subterranean soirees.

Based in the riotous headquarters of the secret society that ran Victorian London, The Escapologist is styled as part ‘modern day Victorian Member’s club’ and ‘part Masonic lodge’. An inviting list of some 30 cocktails offers seasonal drinks, tropical tiki selections and alcohol-free options.

This Covent Garden cocktail bar has room for 220 guests in total, and is available to hire for any occasion (there are also private rooms for smaller parties).

Almost 225 years old, Rules has a strong claim to being London's oldest restaurant. Upstairs, their cocktail bar is equally old-school, serving up a strictly shortlist of 10 exclusive-to-Rules cocktails where simplicity is king. It doesn't get more classic than a short, sharp drink handcrafted by one of the city's best – so go on, take a sip of history.

Rules' Cocktail Bar cannot be hired, and reservations for smaller groups are nor available either: it's strictly for drop-ins.

A truly multi-talented cocktail bar, Mrs Riot offers food, drink, live music, and yes, of course, cocktails. (Despite the name, not Molotovs.) Riot's Covent Garden location attracts all manner of West End performers on their free days, while the vibrant decor is too glam not to 'gram. Drop by with a friend, or take the whole joint over with up to 120 guests.