Home › Travel Guides › North America Travel Guide › United States of America › Ohio › Cleveland › Cleveland Nightlife
Image gallery

Downtown Cleveland

© 123rf.com / Kenneth Sponsler

-500
Cleveland Local time

Weather in Cleveland
Sunny
3
°C
United States of America

Cleveland Nightlife

The nightlife in Cleveland is vibrant and varied. The Downtown is compact enough that it is possible to walk from bar to bar, through different neighbourhoods. The Flats Entertainment District is packed with bars, nightclubs and live music venues. The nearby Warehouse District has a slightly more alternative, laid-back feel. Younger crowds tend to head to Ohio City, which is slightly further from the Downtown area.

Alcohol can be legally served in Cleveland until 0200 and the minimum drinking age is 21 years. Dress at most bars and clubs is casual. Some nightclubs require jackets and will not permit jeans. Bars usually charge a cover admission if a live band is playing and it is common to pay a fee on the door at nightclubs.

Entertainment listings can be found in Friday!, the weekly magazine accompanying Cleveland's local newspaper, The Plain Dealer, which is also available online (www.cleveland.com). Good listings magazines for nightlife are the weekly Scene (www.clevescene.com) and Free Times Magazine (www.freetimes.com).

Bars in Cleveland

Rock Bottom Brewery

Rock Bottom Brewery is located in a restored four-storey redbrick powerhouse and offers a pool, a patio and micro-brewed beer.

The Great Lakes Brewing Company

The Great Lakes Brewing Company is another brew-pub, with a long mahogany bar that still has bullet holes from a 1920s gangster-style shoot-out.

2516 Market Avenue

Clubs in Cleveland

Velvet Dog

Velvet Dog is a more upmarket affair; its three floors (plus rooftop terrace) play dance tunes to a post-work crowd.

1280 West Sixth Street
http://velvetdogcleveland.com

Wish

Wish is not the easiest club to find, tucked away in an alley that runs off Sixth Street, but inside there are three different levels, subdued lighting and music ranging from late 1980s nostalgia to cutting-edge techno and beyond.

621 Johnson Court

Live Music in Cleveland

House of Blues

There is also the House of Blues, which attracts plenty of well-known blues, jazz, pop and rock artists.

308 Euclid Avenue

Classical Music in Cleveland

Severance Hall

The Cleveland Orchestra performs at Severance Hall.

11001 Euclid Avenue

Theatre in Cleveland

Cleveland Play House

The Cleveland Play House was founded in 1915 and is the longest running regional theatre in the country, presenting critically acclaimed major theatrical productions alongside works by more obscure writers.

8500 Euclid Avenue
Tel: (216) 795 7000.
www.clevelandplayhouse.com

Karamu House

Karamu House is an African-American cultural institution, which has been putting on performances and working with the community for more than 75 years.

2355 East 89th Street
Tel: (216) 795 7070
www.karamu.com

Playhouse Square Center

The cultural heart of the city is Playhouse Square Center, a cultural complex consisting of five restored landmark theatres - the Ohio, State, Palace, Hanna and the Allen Theatres. Playhouse Square is the second largest performing arts centre in the USA, and now attracts over one million patrons every year. Tickets for Playhouse Square productions can be purchased in person from their box office, online from their website, or from Tickets.com (tel: (216) 241 6000; website: www.tickets.com).

1501 Euclid Avenue
Tel: (216) 771 4444.
www.playhousesquare.org

Culture in Cleveland

Euclid Tavern

As to be expected, Cleveland is home to some very good, very well-known venues for live rock and roll. Perhaps the best known among these is the gritty Euclid Tavern, where posters and clippings hanging on the wall lend a sense of history.

11629 Euclid Avenue

Funky Buddha

Funky Buddha is an extremely trendy club with a swanky feel to it - and long queues to get in.

1360 West Ninth Street

Travel Deals

Recommended Sites:

Protect yourself from malaria
Before you travel, find out if your holiday destination is in a malaria zone.
(An educational initiative organised and funded by GlaxoSmithKline Travel Health. UK/MARK/0173/10 September 2010)
Africa, the way it should be seen
We´re cutting the cost of Africa overland trips by up to a whopping 40%. 25% off many trips departing by 30/6/12.
Thailand Holidays from £349pp
Tailor made beach, city and multi-centre holidays to Thailand.
Travel insurance
For residents of over 150 countries. High levels of medical, evacuation, emergency & most adventure activities covered.