92 Best Nightlife in Italy

This multilevel cocktail bar between the Vucciria market and the marina is serious about mixology and has created a dedicated oasis in the city's trendiest area. Linger over complex cocktails while lounging on vintage chairs under sparkling chandeliers, all while rubbing elbows with Palermo's cool crowd as records spin on the retro turntable in the corner. A short menu of pasta, meat, and seafood dishes is also available.

No visit to Padua is complete without taking time to sit in this historic café and iconic Padovano venue, patronized by luminaries like the French novelist Stendhal in 1831. Nearly 200 years later, it remains central to the city's social life. The café was built in the Egyptian Revival style, and it's now famed for its innovative aperitivi and signature mint coffee. The accomplished, innovative restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The grand salons and terrace provide a backdrop for the occasional jazz, swing, and cover bands.

Come here for creative panini, such as sgrombri e carciofini sott'olio (mackerel and marinated baby artichokes), and an ever-changing list of significant wines by the glass. They also have a well-stocked collection of bottles to go.

Between 8 and 9 in the evening, it seems as though the whole upscale Chiaia neighborhood has descended into this tiny space for an aperitivo. The small tables and low stools are notably uncomfortable, but the cozy atmosphere and the pleasure of being surrounded by glass-front cabinets full of wine bottles with beautiful labels more than makes up for it. Excellent local wines are available by the glass at great prices.

This hipster hangout is great for a sunset aperitivo or for late-night socializing. Though the vibe is artsy and laid-back, the bartenders take their cocktails seriously—and have the awards to prove it. In warmer weather, the crowd overflows into the large terrazzo overlooking the Tiber and the side streets of Trastevere.

A hop, skip, and a jump from Orsanmichele in the centro storico is I Fratellini, in existence since 1875. It sells wines by the glass and has a lengthy list of panini, including pecorino with sun-dried tomatoes and spicy wild-boar salami with goat cheese.

This swanky, American-style bar is attached to the Hotel l'Orologio. It's a good spot for a well-executed cocktail with tasty snacks; when it's warm, you can sit outside and gaze at the beautiful facade of Santa Maria Novella.

Though it has only four tables and four small stools at an equally small bar, Il Santino is blessed with a big wine list and superior cheeses, cured meats, and other delicacies to match.

Le Volpi e l'Uva, which translates as "the foxes and the grape" and is based on one of Aesop's fables, off Piazza Santa Felicita, is an oenophile's dream: they pour wines by the glass and serve equally impressive cheeses and bite-size sandwiches to accompany.

Although "osteria" in an establishment's name suggests that food will be served, such is not the case here. This place is all about drinking wine; the entrance door has warnings such as "He who doesn't drink will please stay outside." It's been around since 1465, and locals pack in, bearing food from outside to accompany the wine.

By day, this place provides the least expensive view in town, with an outdoor terrace overlooking the Spiaggia Grande. It's an ideal stop for a coffee, a sandwich, or an ice cream. By night, MTV music pumps from the stereo and the clamor of sporting events blares from the four large-screen TVs, as movers, groovers, and soccer fans from around the globe sip cocktails after a hard day on the beach.

This foodie paradise near the Duomo has an enormous deli featuring Italian specialty foods, as well as a refined bar, restaurant, and café that serves up traditional—and excellent—pastas, pizza slices, olives, toasted nuts, and a good selection of wines by the glass.

A coffee stand by day and cocktail bar by night, this outdoor establishment began life as a city tram car back in 1903. Now the historic carriage has been converted to a kiosk permanently stationed on a park corner with retro tables and garden seating. A trendy crowd descends at sunset, and seats are at a premium until the wee hours of the morning. But since it is entirely outside, Tram Depot is mainly open in the warmer months of the year (April through November).

This highly rated enoteca serves wine by the glass and, in addition to the plates of sausage and cheese nibbles, has light food and not-so-light desserts. It's a great place for people-watching on Via San Marco, while indoors offers a more dimly lit, romantic setting. Check out the impressive vaulted basement, where bottled wine and spirits are sold.

The bar entitled simply 66 describes itself as a "fusion bar." Some prefer it as a chic place to have an aperitivo (help yourself to the snacks beautifully laid out on the bar). Other patrons, who look like they've just popped out of one of the area's designer-clothing shops, come here to dine or gather in one of the upstairs rooms.

This backstreet birroteca ("beer bar") has been dispensing distinguished brews for the last 40 years, and is a favorite haunt of students and beer aficionados of all ages. Local Sardinian craft beers and lagers and ales from around the world feature on its extensive and changing menu, many of them hand-pulled. The list of panini is almost equally long, and nachos are also served.

This fourth-generation wine shop began a weekly evening aperitivo in 2016, with local and international bands performing for the gathered masses. This is the place to be on Thursday.

Piazza di Spagna's staple wine bar literally corners the market on prime people-watching. Cozy up to the counter to sip a drink under the charming frescoes, or snag a coveted outdoor table. In addition to a vast selection of wine, Antica Enoteca has delectable antipasti, perfect for a snack or a light lunch, as well as a full menu of pastas and pizzas.

Few cafés in Italy can rival Antico Caffè San Marco for its historic and cultured atmosphere. Founded in 1914, it was largely destroyed in World War I and rebuilt in the 1920s, then restored several more times, but some of the original Art Nouveau interior remains. It became a meeting place for local intellectuals and was the haunt of the Triestino writers Italo Svevo and Umberto Saba. It remains open until midnight on Friday and Saturday, and light meals are available.

With high ceilings, louvered windows, and expansive views of the city's rooftops, this modern architectural marvel is a great spot to enjoy a relaxing cup of tea or a predinner aperitivo.

Friendly, family-run Irish pub opened since 1980 overseen by two labradors and serving an ample selection of beers, spirits (excellent gin choice) and cocktails (mojito by the jug). They also do decent food (classic pasta and pizza are mainstays) and show live tv sports.

A year-round indoor-outdoor operation (with heat lamps), this bar is extremely popular with thirtysomethings, sometimes pushing baby carriages. Its large menu includes raw oysters. There's also a dining room upstairs.

This architecturally stimulating but dimly lit place has such artistic features as recycled fiberglass panels and vintage 1970s furnishings. The music is an eclectic mix of chill-out tunes during the daytime, with more upbeat and vibrant tracks pepping it up at night. Located on a quiet side street near the Duomo, STRAF, inside the hotel of the same name, draws a young and lively, if tourist-heavy, crowd.

Truly one of the most infamous places to have a drink in all of Italy, this humorous bar has cozy nooks and crannies on three levels—all decked out with phallic images of every size, shape, and color imaginable, from bathroom wall murals inspired by the brothels of ancient Greece to giant wooden carvings honoring Dionysus. If you can get past the design choices, the roof terrace has extraordinary views of Taormina and the coast, while a limited selection of hearty pasta dishes are served inside.

Situated in the leafy courtyard of 16th-century Palazzo Fondi, this all-day, late-night bar is a favorite with young upcoming Neapolitans.

Open since 1984, Big Mama is Trastevere's homegrown institution for live music, including jazz, blues, rhythm and blues, international, and rock. Tables can be booked online for their nightly shows.

Once a boathouse for fishermen, this is the trendiest bar on the island. Sip a predinner cocktail at the pretty Marina Corricella accompanied by lounge music, or later in the evening, techno.