Mexico City's nightlife is as lively and varied as everything else the city has to offer. All tastes are catered for from gentle supper clubs with floorshows and loud, brash nightclubs to ritzy piano bars, rustic antros (or disco-bars) and bars specialising in traditional Mexican music. La Zona Rosa remains a popular nightspot district but has lost ground to Polanco and Condesa in recent years. San Angel is another hot hangout. Prices of drinks and admission vary enormously depending on the area. Nightlife starts late and rages to the wee small hours. No licensing hours apply though many bars and nightclubs close on Sundays. Mexico's minimum age for drinking is 18 years old.

To check on what's happening across the city, pick up a copy of weekly listings magazine Tiempo Libre (www.tiempolibre.com.mx), published every Thursday from the newsstands (Spanish only). English-language newspaper, The News, also has a brief what's-on guide at the weekend.
 
Bar-hopping at high altitude can have a dramatic effect on the body, from spells of dizziness and heightened intoxication to bouts of serious nausea. One drink in Mexico City can be the equivalent to two elsewhere in the world - so it pays to proceed with caution. Crime in the capital is another consideration after dark. Pickpockets are rife in crowded nightlife areas where wallets and bags should be well guarded.

Bars: Ultra-trendy Rioma, Insurgentes Sur 377, Condesa, still ranks amongst the city's hippest bars though at times the doormen guard this place like a no-go-zone. A riotous mix of electronic lounge music descends into pumping techno later on. Also popular, the minimalist rooftop bar of the Hotel Habita, Avenida Presidente, Msasaryk 201, attracts a high celebrity count in Polanco. Big bucks cocktails can put a strain on the budget, but it is worth it for the stunning city views. Expect cushion-clad couches overlooking the skyline with music videos projected onto the adjacent building.

Across the way, Cosmo offers top DJs and an impressive array of exotic (if pricey) cocktails. Mezzanotte, on Plaza Zentro, Avenida Presidente Masaryk 407, is a lively restaurant and bar, with disco music Thursday to Saturday. Ex-pat hangout Shelty, Avenida Campos Eliseos 204 (facing Chapultepec Park) is a wood-panelled English pub in the Nikko Hotel. Expect high resolution sports TVs, pub quizzes, piano music and British ales. In Coyoacán, the popular Hijo del Cuervo, Jardín del Centenario 17, attracts a youthful mix of Mexican students and foreign intellectuals to its cave-like depths. Another major draw with a hip university crowd, Barracuda, Nuevo Leon 4, serves food, cocktails and jazz from a sleek narrow bar. Rexo, Saltillo 1, broke the mould by adding extra zing to Condesa's nightlife scene and continues to pull crowds of cool, young professionals to its stylish bar / restaurant. In Zona Rosa, Bar Milan, Milan 18, remains ever popular with funky urbanites keen to let off steam, especially to hip hop DJ beats on Thursdays and Fridays. Though low on glitz, the Centenario cantina, Michoacan 42 is authentically Mexican with a packed bar, live musicians, dirt-cheap beer and a clientele hell bent on a good night out.

Clubs: The Colmillo, Versailles 49, in a colonial house in the Juárez district, was founded by two English expats and remains one of the hottest clubs in Mexico City, attracting young, cool international travellers and locals alike. DJs spin acid jazz and techno in both upstairs and downstairs rooms. In the bohemian Roma district, Avant-Garde, Puebla 310, pumps hardcore techno to a devoted crowd, while the Living Room, Orizaba 146, in a delightful high-ceilinged colonial mansion, is one of the most popular gay clubs in town. Also in Roma is the fun Mama Rumba, Queretaro 230, an institution with salsa lovers, who groove the night away to live bands.

Mauna Loa, Avenida San Jeronimo 240, is a popular Polynesian nightclub with live music for dancing and an exotic Polynesian floorshow. Restaurant Chez'ar in Hotel Aristos, Paseo de la Reforma 276, is a great place for dancing the night away with a band that plays everything from the rumba to the fox trot. Antillano, Francisco Pimentel 78, is the place to go for salsa dancing in Mexico City with its large dance floor and enthusiastic sultry, sassy street-wise crowd.

Live Music: Innumerable big-name international rock and pop acts play Mexico City, primarily at the main venues of the Auditorio Nacional, Paseo de la Reforma 50, Teatro Metropólitan, Indepencia 90, and the Palacio de los Deportes, corner of Avenida Río Churubusco and Añil. Hard Rock Live, Campos Eliseos, 290 Polanco hosts well known international as well as Spanish-language bands in an intimate state-of-the-art venue. New Orleans Jazz, Avenida Revolucion 1655, San Angel, is classic jazz bar. For something a bit different Adonis, Homero 424, Polanco, has a club upstairs from the restaurant with belly dancing and a Middle Eastern band.

For over quarter of a century, Bar Jorongo, in the Sheraton Maria Isabel Hotel, Paseo de la Reforma 325, has been one of the city's most acclaimed nightspots. Dubbed the ‘House of Mariachi', this atmospheric music hub attracts the biggest names in Mexican music. Alternatively, visit Plaza Garibaldi, on Eje Central between Republica de Honduras and Republica de Peru where umpteen mariachi bands fill the tree-lined square until dawn. Arrive 2000-2400 to watch the mariachi bands gather dressed in black silver-studded suits and large-brimmed hats. Café Tenampa is a long-standing institution on the square, where clients are serenaded by mariachis.