City

Nightlife and entertainment

Explore the city after dark: live music, comedy, theatre or just a night out with friends.

See and do overview - nightlife

Edinburgh offers an exciting and varied social scene, with hundreds of bars, clubs, cinemas, theatres and music venues throughout the city.

Bars and pubs

Edinburgh’s liberal licensing policy means it’s easy to fill in your time until the wee hours with loads of bars, pubs and clubs open way past midnight.

There's something for everyone here, from old time, traditional pubs full of character and history, to upscale cocktail bars with drinks menus that are pages long.

The List - Eating and drinking

Nightclubs and live music

The nightclub scene is vibrant, with venues hosting a combination of regular clubs and one-nighters by international DJs.

Edinburgh is also a regular stopping point on tours for both major and upcoming artists and has a lively local music scene.

You can catch gigs at tiny, old school venues dotted throughout the city, enjoy a symphony at one of the city's larger concert halls, or experience big name artists at concerts held in Princes Street Gardens and Edinburgh Castle at certain times of the year.

The easiest way to find out what's on is to pick up a copy of The List, a fortnightly listings magazine covering both Edinburgh and Glasgow (only 50 minutes away by train).

Comedy, theatre and cinema

There’s a huge range of entertainment available with something happening pretty much every day of the year.

From comedy open mic nights to the best in contemporary theatre, you’re bound to find something to suit your taste.

If it's films you're into, you can head to one of Edinburgh's big multiplexes for popular new releases, or one of the smaller filmhouses for the latest independent and arthouse cinema.

At the University

Edinburgh University Students' Association runs the city’s biggest student nightclub, Potterrow.

Teviot, the largest union building, has five bars over seven floors. It offers stand-up comedy, pub quizzes, ceilidhs, and indie music.

The Pleasance is a prime venue for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and hosts regular comedy nights for students the rest of the year.

King’s Building campus also has its own union.