Top Outdoor Cinemas in London to Visit this Summer

Are you looking for the ultimate summer experience as a film buff?

Perhaps you want to find a new place to spend time with friends during the summer in London, with cocktails, food and a great movie?

In this blog, I share my top finds for outdoor cinema experiences across London, as well as when to visit and the top movies they’ll be showing.

Hideaway Cinema

Hideaway Cinema is setting up its screen in Honourable Artillery Company five minutes walk from Old Street roundabout, as well as Kew Gardens and Hampstead Heath. Hideaway shows new movies only two weeks after their theatrical release so you can see the latest films under the stars.  It all kicked off on May 20th. 

Openaire Float

2021 is the second year that the float-in cinema experience is being offered.  Yes you heard right, a float-in cinema experience where you can hop aboard one of sixteen eco-friendly picnic boats provided by GoBoat, and dock up for an evening of al fresco cinema.   In partnership with Häagen-Dazs, Openaire Float-In Cinema is setting up a six-by-three-metre LED screen at Merchant Square in Paddington Basin (audio is provided via wireless headphones).  

You can check out movie favourites such as Pretty Woman, Mamma Mia and Joker in addition to The Greatest Showman, Rocketman, and Bohemian Rhapsody. Tickets are £30 per person and the boats seat 8.  Tickets can be found here. There’s also an option to stay on land and hire a deckchair for £18.  

Bar Elba

Bar Elba in Waterloo not only offers an outdoor cinema experience, but also fabulous cocktails including a bottomless bubbles option.  This weekly rooftop experience is one of London’s most exciting with incredible views of London on offer. You can catch films such as Mamma Mia, Magic Mike, Call Me By Your Name, Deadpool, and Hustlers. Projected on a large screen, each viewer will have personal headphones, and you can enjoy treats including popcorn and prosecco. Get your tickets here.

Rooftop Film Club

Talk about a long running staple, Rooftop Film Club has been going for 10 years!  Currently it’s in two venues – one in Stratford (from May 18) and the other in Peckham’s Bussey Building (May 21).   Here you’ll have great views of the city, comfy deck chairs and wireless headphones to enjoy the experience.  Expect new releases as well as iconic favourites like ‘Princess Bride’ and ‘Dirty Dancing’, all served with a side order of wood-fired pizza, gourmet burgers and cocktails orderable by app and delivered direct to your deckchair. 

The Luna Cinema

With 13 outdoor venues across London, from Bexleyheath to Brompton Cemetery, the Luna Open Air Cinema experience is extensive.  You’ve got some incredible venues such as Kenwood House, Kensington Palace, Hampton Court Palace and Royal Hospital are some of the grander backdrops for the outdoor screens, while Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is swapping plays for motion pictures for a couple of late summer screenings of ‘Moulin Rouge!’ and ‘The Shining’.   Tickets are approximately £15 and it starts on 30 June. 

St. Katharine Docks Floating Film Festival

Rock out at the dock this summer with the return of the Floating Film Festival, an outdoor cinema experience on a floating pontoon at St Katharine Docks. Along with outdoor cinema favourites like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Rocketman’, you can catch Wonder Woman,  ‘Toy Story 4’, ‘Jojo Rabbit’ and Lion King Live Action.  

Screenings kick off on July 13 and run until Sunday July 25, with tickets for a single deck chair setting you back £14 per person or there is even a two-seater sofa option for £30.