What's on...

You’ve had a few cheap doubles, you hear a tune and what do you want to do? Dance. You’d be a poor excuse for a student if you didn’t go out and throw a few shapes around once in a while and luckily, Bristol has plenty of choice when it comes to clubbing, or whatever you want to call it.

Whether you’re into House, Pop, Indie, Drum and Bass, Jazz or good old R&B, there’s a dancefloor for everyone. We’ve put together a mini guide to the best places around the city and what you can expect from each of them.

Go on, fetch your dancing shoes.

BUNKER

One of the city’s newest clubs, which is fast becoming the most popular. Entry is under a fiver, drinks are cheap, there’s an outside smoking area complete with a bar and a music policy to suit everyone. There’s something on more or less every night of the week, with Monday’s anything-goes music policy being the students favourite.
On Fridays, it’s The Bomb, where you can expect the best in underground music and even top name DJ’s spinning your favourite bass-filled tunes. Saturday nights are also big, even for students so expect a long queue unless you get down there early.

WELSH BACK

This area sits along the river bed and is home to some of Bristols most loved drinking haunts. From the cider lovers favourite, The Apple to The Old Duke pub and The Thekla’s floating dancefloor.

THE COOLER

Sitting slap bang in the middle of Park Street, The Cooler has been going strong for a fair few years now and still plays host to some great gigs and some popular club nights. It’s cool and stylish with a relaxed atmosphere so leave your tiny dresses and 4 inch stilettos behind, girls. Saturday night is Club Kute, playing the best Indie tunes from DJ George and with cheap entry with your NUS. Apart from this club night and the occasional couple of others they like to put on every now and again, this is mostly a live music venue and has an impressive line up for October including Egyptian Hip Hop and Kassidy.

FLAMINGOS

Bristol’s biggest gay nightclub hosts a range of themed nights and is incredibly popular. Friendly staff, good drinks deals and cheap entry mean the students love it in particular, especially on Wednesdays when you get free entry and ten drinks for £10 with a ‘Crunch card’. Friday and Saturday nights are even bigger and have incredible drinks deals that’ll leave you throwing all kinds of shapes. It’s a lot of fun.

MBARGO

Open 7 nights a week, this is the place you’ll soon rely on for when there’s nothing on anywhere else. Don’t get us wrong, it’s not second best but its great drink deals and long opening hours make it the place you will always have a good time in no matter what. Monday to Thursday, you can get a Vodka mixer for £1.50 and there’s always some sort of Jägerbomb promotion. It’s not pretentious and it’s not particularly glamorous but it’s a favourite amongst both you students and er, normal people. Their live music night on Sunday is a winner, as is, well, pretty much any day of the week as there’s always something on.

THEKLA

This fine old ship has long provided you students with great nights out. There’s two levels, an outside deck and a lot of nooks and crannies which can make for a very confusing time after a few. As well as hosting live acts and the annual Dot to Dot festival, it has regular nights. Monday is Zoology, the official UWESU and Hub radio student night with bargain booze. Tuesday has a brand spanking new night, Wobble which loves those heavy basslines whilst Thursday hosts the best Indie night in town, Pressure. Don’t miss Pop Confessional on Saturdays for those guilty pleasures.

TIMBUK2

For when you want something more hardcore or you’re not ready to go home come kicking out time, head to Timbuk2. Open until 5am Friday - Saturday, if you want a real taste of Bristol and it’s culture, here it is. It’s far from glamorous and certainly not the place for a girly night out but it’s pretty fuss-free, a lot of fun and has its regular crowd. Favouring the underground music scene, it hosts a variety of nights including Where’s Nana and Sink Ships. Drinks aren’t too expensive and door tax is around a fiver.