Night clubs in Dublin

Here is a list of the top clubs, nightclubs, call them what you will, in the city of Dublin. There is a brief summary with each one telling you where it is located, what it offers and how popular and pricey it is.

Many of these clubs host special events with names like "Sassy Sue's", "First Taste", "515", "Stereotonic" and "Backlash". They generally have a resident or well known traveling DJ (or both) and live music (i.e. bands) in to boot. Some of these venues are nightclubs in the "Disco" sense whilst other are live band or performer venues (and sometimes both). The desriptions will usually tell you more.

Boomerangs

Open 7 nights a week and always full to overflowing, Boomerangs is without question one of (and possibly the) top nightclub (disco) in Dublin. It is in the ever popular Temple Bar district and the dance floor is in a large underground basement. A mix of music is played.

Club M

Open 7 nights a week and found in the city’s most popular nighttime haunt of Temple Bar, this nightclub is spread over multiple floors and, along with Boomerangs, is very popular indeed. The music played is all dance, much of it from the charts.

Ri-Ra

Ri-Ra offers different music on different nights and is situated on Dame court. This club has a real mix of themes and musical genres and has been around for a while. It is known for specific events on certain nights of the week.

Lillies Bordello

With a name that is indicative of a good time (although in a rather different way), Lillies Bordello is in Dublin’s second nighttime heartland of the Grafton Street district. This club is popular and also pricey, but is the place where you are most likely to spot a celebrity.

The Dandelion Club

This one is not a nightclub in the Disco sense, but does have music and stays open until 2.00pm on Fridays and Saturdays. It has a city centre location and is popular.

Heaven

I don’t really know anything about this club, but from what I can tell from a superficial look at its website (and by reading a few comments by visitors), I think that it might be worth checking out if you are planning a stag night, boys night out or anything along those lines.

The Playhouse

This club covers a real mix of music and is situated in the South Side of Dublin. Inside it has a number of bars and is popular at weekends. It has slightly less ostentatious prices for its drinks that some of the more centrally located clubs.

Tripod

This is really a collection of three nightclubs in the form of Tripod, the Pod and Crawdaddy and combined they make one of Dublin’s hottest nightspots. The music is varied and, with its central location in the middle of the city the drinks are not cheap.

Spirit

Spirit is another large city centre dance club offering a mix of music and two very large dance floors. It is always busy and the prices of the drinks reflect its location and popularity. Spirit also host the “Club Bash” event every Thursday night which is popular with students.

The George

This city centre pub come nightclub is Dublin’s most popular and well known gay nightspot and has been running for over two decades.

Rogue

Situated in the centre of Dublin on Dame Street, this one is more of a pub than a real nightclub, but it has a large basement, hosts DJ’s and is open late seven night a week. It has a good vibe in Dublin.

The Sugar Club

The Sugar club on Lower Leeson Street is a serious venue for all kinds of entertainment with bars, a proper stage and auditorium and all with good seating. It hosts numerous bands and performers with variable admission prices and its acts and events are probably unrivalled in Dublin.

The Vaults

The Vaults describes itself as a multi purpose venue and that is exactly what it is. Located in central Dublin under Connolly Station, the club is made up of a number of interconnected underground vaults that create an amazing atmosphere and ambience. The club has four bars, a restaurant and a nightclub.

Club 189 (Hanlon’s)

Club 189 is actually part of Hanlon’s which is probably more of a super-pub than a real nightclub - but once inside who can tell the difference. Other facilities in Hanlon’s include a restaurant and bars and live bands are also in the mix. The pub (club) also looks great from the outside.

Crawdaddy

I guess this one would classify as a nightclub (or super pub). It has a lot of live music (a heck of a lot), an intimate and laid back atmosphere and some event nights. It has become very popular recently and always delivers a good night of entertainment.