Nightlife
Nightlife includes bars, lounges, nightclubs, and party events.
Venues
- A hotel bar is usually an upscale, rather quiet, venue for drinks. They might be overpriced.
- A dive bar is a derogatory term for a low-end bar, usually filled up by locals. These places might be a challenging but rewarding place for travellers.
- A sport bar displays sport events on TV screens.
- A nightclub is usually focused on dance and music.
- A disco (some overlap with nightclubs exists) can range from a rather exclusive affair where only a select few get past the bumper and fewer still can afford the drinks to rather run down places in rural areas
Do
Talk
As bars and nightclubs are frequented by younger, more globalized people, they are usually among the best places to find English-speakers. Don't expect too deep conversations late at night, though.
Buy
The revenue model of nightlife differs a lot between countries and venues. While some venues have a high cover charge (paid at entrance or at exit) others might be touted through discounts for newcomers. Some offer free entry but charge an arm and a leg for beverages.
Certain clubs sell costly membership cards, for a discount at subsequent visits.
Drink
While alcoholic beverages are the main attraction of nightclubs, each drink is usually more costly than the same drink at a restaurant.
Destinations
While the nightlife scene generally grows with city size, and most megacities and capitals have some decent nightclubs, a few destinations stand out for attracting, or deserving, party tourists from around the world.
Asia
- Bangkok, Thailand
- Beirut, Lebanon
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates; together with Abu Dhabi the most liberal and cosmopolitan of the seven Emirates, and arguably in the Arab world.
- Hong Kong
- Seoul, South Korea
- Tel Aviv is often considered the party capital of Israel
- Tokyo, Japan
Europe
- Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Baltic Sea ferries
- Barcelona, Spain
- Batumi, Georgia
- Belgrade, Serbia
- Berlin, Germany, is a major centre for European electronic music
- Bodrum, Turkey
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Cyprus; geographically in the Middle East, Europeans come for the climate, and Middle Eastern citizens for the relatively liberal drinking and marriage laws. Ayia Napa in particular is known as the party capital of the island.
- Dublin, Ireland
- Hamburg, Germany
- Ibiza, Spain
- London, United Kingdom
- Paris, France
- Reykjavik, Iceland
- Riga, Latvia
- Rome, Italy
- St Petersburg, Russia
North America
- Chicago, United States
- Las Vegas, United States
- Los Angeles, United States
- Memphis, United States
- Miami, United States
- Montreal, Canada
- Nashville, United States
- New Orleans, United States
- New York City, United States
- St Louis, United States
- Vancouver, Canada
South America
- Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Australia & Oceania
Stay safe
Nightlife is a high-risk activity. Except drunk brawls, this is where a traveller might encounter organized crime.
- Clip joints are venues that pray on ignorant travellers.