A guide to Bristol's student nightlife

If you're lucky enough to have chosen Bristol as your university town, you've got plenty of choice for going out, whether it's for live music, comedy, magic and of course the city's world-class club scene.

We've rounded up the need-to-know nights and venues around the city. Let us know what you think over on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, and include #VisitBristol in your Bristol adventures. 

Image: Lakota

Clubs

Lakota

One of Bristol's most famous and longstanding clubs, Lakota has welcomed many famous faces over the years including Carl Cox, Eats Everything, Congo Natty, Gentlemen’s Dub Club, Calibre, Stormzy and more. You'll find a range of music across the five rooms as well as the Lakota Gardens courtyard, from disco to dubstep, as well as the UK's largest psytrance night, Tribe of Frog.

Trinity Centre

An established part of Bristol nightlife for over 40 years, Trinity hosts a range of live music and community events as well as regular sound clashes and club nights.

Image: Motion

Basement 45

Cocktails and DJs until the early hours, what more could you want? The subterranean Basement 45 is best known as a drum and bass club, but the decks are regularly handed over to DJs playing anything from garage to techno.

Motion

Rated #20 in the Top 100 Clubs in the World by DJ Mag in 2022, the events at Motion carry a slightly higher price tag than some others here, but with good reason. From world-famous club nights to mega day parties, this is an unmissable venue in the city.

Thekla

One of the most iconic and best-loved venues in the city, it doesn’t get much more Bristol than a club on a boat! Thekla hosts gigs throughout the week before continuing into the early hours with a selection of popular club nights, including long-running indie and alternative night Pressure on Thursdays and the weekly Pop Confessional on Saturdays.  

Image: Thekla

PRYZM

A stylish and popular nightclub on the Harbourside, boasting three themed dance arenas, VIP booths and a pre-club cocktail bar. 

OMG

OMG describes itself as one of the city's 'most euphoric gay venues' and is the largest in Bristol's LGBTQ+ scene. It hosts weekly student nights, pop parties and themed events, including Poundemonium hosted by Tina Sparkle on Tuesdays when students get free entry with £1.50 drinks all night. 

Image: OMG Bristol

Queenshilling

Another of the most loved LGBT+ venues in Bristol, Queenshilling hosts everything from karaoke and drag nights through to DJs and themed parties. Head there on Thursdays for free entry, drink deals and pop hits all night long.

The Fleece

Music venue The Fleece is known for putting on weekly club nights as well as gigs, including every Saturday's Propaganda event with rock, pop punk and indie bangers. 

The Triangle

The Clifton Triangle is home to a collective of cheap and cheerful late night bars and clubs, whether you opt for the daily club nights and drinks specials at Mbargo, cheesy hits at Lizard Lounge, glamorous crowds at Gravity (which plays host to Bristol's longest-running student night, BED, every Monday), or tiki lounge vibes and sharing cocktails at Lola Lo.

There are also several cocktail bars nearby which you can visit beforehand to get in the party spirit, including Hyde and Co, The Florist, The Woods, Be At One and Browns.

Image: Hyde and Co.

Bars

The Old Market Assembly

A relaxed bar and restaurant with an adjoining theatre in the daytime, The Old Market Assembly has become a cornerstone of the alternative LGBTQ+ scene in Bristol, and hosts regular live music gigs, themed parties and cabaret nights. 

Image - The Old Market Assembly, credit Paul Blakemore

The Lanes

More than just a bowling alley, this bar also hosts gigs and regular club nights, from the pop punk parties at Fat Lip to Motown night Motorcity, as well as hip hop and R&B special California Love. 

The Canteen

Stokes Croft institution The Canteen is a chilled bar-restaurant in the day, before turning into a lively gig venue at night, with queues stretching down the street. If you’re looking for something of a warm-up before hitting the nearby clubs, this is the place to be, or nearby you'll also find The Bell with its DJs and buzzing beer garden.

Mr Wolf’s

A late-night Bristol favourite, depending on the night you could find an acoustic open mic night, jam night or DJs playing into the early hours. 

No.51 Stokes Croft

A sister bar to Mr Wolf’s on Stokes Croft, No.51 hosts day parties in their beer garden in summer as well as resident DJs playing into the early hours every week. 

The Love Inn

Run by the team behind dance festival Love Saves The Day, this is one of the busiest venues on Stokes Croft – and with good reason. During the day it’s a chilled bar offering good cocktails and food from the Palestenian-inspired Jafra Kitchen, before going on to host some of the city’s best DJs in the evening, playing everything from dub and electronica through to ska and soul.

Image: The Love Inn

Cosies

This small bar in St Pauls turns into a lively club for lovers of reggae, funk and dub from 10pm, with entry usually around £5.

The Black Swan

A pub in Easton which turns into one of the biggest rave venues in the city at weekends, hosting breakcore, dubstep, electronica and more.

Read more

• Bristol for students
• Top 10 music venues
• Gigs and concerts
• Events Calendar

And here are a few more useful nightlife and event listing websites in Bristol...

• Headfirst Bristol
• The Tab
• Nitelife

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