34 Best Nightlife in Manchester, Liverpool, and the Peak District, England

This vast cultural venue in the historic former Mayfield railway station showcases the city's industrial past alongside a lively roster of arts, music, industry, culture, and community events. Its atmospheric spaces include the old concourse and the roof-top, open-air platform, and the place is dotted with street food vendors.

Off Deansgate, this venue plays retro, indie, singalong anthems, and classic rock, with Manchester's proud musical heritage at the fore.

This multipurpose, fairly intimate and stripped-back space hosts club nights from northern soul to electro, live music, poetry, and more. There's also a pizza menu.

A church transformed into a luxurious bar, Alma de Cuba has a huge mirrored altar and hundreds of dripping candles. They also serve a popular Sunday brunch with a live gospel choir and samba afternoon teas.

Music, art, and science events are all in the mix at this long-standing venue reinvented as a creative space and bar.

This famous venue has a reputation for hosting both established and pioneering acts.

This huge venue in a former Edwardian foundry and blade-making factory retains a suitably industrial vibe for its club nights, live music, food festivals, exhibitions, and art installations.

While not the original venue—that was demolished years ago—this is still a popular music spot, drawing in rock-and-roll fans with its live acts including Beatles tribute bands.

This dressy Champagne and cocktail bar in the city's second-tallest building has stunning 360-degree views. Some of its inventive concoctions make a playful nod to local culture. You can also get afternoon tea or snacks such as tacos and antipasti.

Once a stable block for horses working the canals, this is a great spot for a pub lunch or drink, especially in the summer, thanks to its waterside terrace, balcony, and outdoor kitchen.

Bars and restaurants come and go on trendy, ever-evolving Burton Road, but this bar and café has stood the test of time thanks to its heated terrace (complete with palm trees), chic interiors, and good food.

A roster of local indie bands and talented DJs makes this two-story club with a courtyard a top option for the young alternative crowd.

This former mill building near the infamous Strangeways prison hosts house, disco, and techno nights.

This quirky entertainment complex in a former warehouse just north of the city center bills itself as a cultural theme park of the future. Expect live music and makers' workshops, as well as on-site artists' studios and a garden. There's now a Rollerdome with skating sessions and classes.

Owned by the Invisible Wind Factory, this eccentric outdoor venue (with heaters) hosts live music accompanied by food from its barbecue. It also has a vintage boutique shop and an art gallery.

Europe's largest indoor arena by capacity hosts shows by major rock and pop stars, as well as large-scale sporting events.

Once host to the likes of Tina Turner, Jimi Hendrix, and the Rolling Stones, this iconic 1960s venue has reopened but retains many of its original features, including vintage wooden paneling and a sprung dance floor, which contrast with newer additions such as a disco ceiling lighting installation. In addition to live music and a full bar, it hosts a street food hall and a creative college in music, games, and computing.

Housed in an art deco venue, the 3,500-seat venue (known by locals as just "the Apollo") showcases live rock and comedy acts before a mixed-age crowd.

This photogenic throwback Victorian pub with a green-tile exterior draws a crush of locals to its tiny rooms.

Providing a Manchester spin on the cabaret clubs of New York and Berlin, this welcoming venue offers up nightly live entertainment from singers, pianists, and cabaret artists from across the U.K. and beyond, showcasing everything from pop standards and Broadway ballads to jazz classics and quirky cabaret.

You can sample more than 230 whiskies and bourbons at this gorgeous pub with stained-glass windows, cozy back rooms, a spacious beer garden, and a mural of the Peterloo Massacre.

This self-described "tiki dive bar" serves up generously sized cocktails in its kitschy Polynesian beach–style bar. Order a Zombie if you like your drinks set on fire. They also serve a hundred types of rum and run cocktail-making masterclasses.