There’s no shortage of great bars & clubs for a good night out in Manchester. Here we’ve compiled a list of some of the city’s best bars & clubs and what makes them special.
1) Warehouse Project at Mayfield Depot
The Warehouse Project has become synonymous with the nightlife of Manchester. Having previously hosted seasons at Store Street and Victoria Warehouse the Warehouse Project have since moved to their new home of Mayfield Depot, an huge abandoned warehouse a stones throw away from Manchester Piccadilly train station.
Warehouse Project, Mayfield Train Station, The Depot, Manchester M1 2QF
2) Ark
Ark Deansgate Locks is a student hotspot and as well as hosting Manchester’s biggest student Friday boasts a number of impressive freshers week events including The Big Freshers Lockdown. The multi room venue sits under Manchester’s railway arches on Deansgate Locks and in addition to its main room & canal bar also includes a club room equipped with epic lighting & sound systems. It also features an outdoor smoking terrace.
Ark, 3A, 4 Whitworth St W, Manchester M1 5WY
3) Revolution Deansgate Locks
Another stellar club on Deansgate Locks, this multi room venue with unique exposed brick & archways is home to Manchester’s infamous HotMess, the biggest weekly student night Manchester has to offer!
Revolution, Arch 7 Whitworth St W, Whitworth St, Manchester M1 5LH
4) Freight Island
A new addition to Manchester’s nightlife & hospitality circuit, Freight Island launched during the Lockdown of 2020 as an entirely novel concept to anything that had existed in Manchester prior. A collection of different eateries, restaurants and bars centered around a massive indoor warehouse & outside spaces. Think Manchester’s industrial heritage meets trendy beer halls with a wide selection of cuisine from Manchester’s finest eateries. A perfect meeting spot!
Freight Island, 11 Baring street, Manchester, M1 2PZ
5) Mackie Mayor
Whilst not so much of a nightlife hotspot per se, the former market, Mackie Mayor, was recently transformed into a brick walled food & drinks hall laying host to a wide array of food vendors, coffee shops and bars serving beer / wine etc.
Mackie Mayor, 1 Eagle Street, Manchester, M4 5BU
6) Joshua Brookes
One of the smaller, more intimate venues in Manchester, situated on Princess Street, Joshua Brookes hosts predominantly weekend events with varying styles of house / techno / electronic music. The venue is complete with a well equipped club room and a tidy upstairs bar which is open to the public most afternoons / evenings.
Joshua Brookes, 106 Princess Street, Manchester, m1 6NG
7) Ramona & Firehouse
Ramona / Firehouse has to be on your Manchester hit list! Set in the building & courtyard of a former garage on Swan Street, Ramona serves the finest ‘Detroit style’ pizza that Manchester has to offer. Although not the most accommodating of a student budget this is certainly a hotspot you need to visit whilst at Manchester and a well recommended date spot. Predominately a bar & restaurant venue with a stellar cocktail menu, the venue also offers late night music & entertainment on a weekend.
Ramona & Firehouse, 40 Swan Street, Manchester, M4 5JG
8) G-A-Y
Manchester’s gay village provides a safe inclusive space for the LGBT+ of MCR. Set around Canal Street, the village hosts a strip of bars and clubs which are open late on Weekends. The biggest club in Manchester’s infamous gay village is G-A-Y. The gay village really comes alive over Pride Weekend, as does the entire city!
G-A-Y, 63 Richmond Street, Manchester, M1 3WB