As a city with a reputation for boozy nightlife and rowdy scenes on match day, the Welsh capital has come on leaps and bounds over the last few years to shed its rep.

An increasing range of unique events are popping up across the city and they're more accessible than ever before. Basically, there’s never been a more exciting time to conquer freshers fortnight in Cardiff…

Choosing an event

Nightlife in Cardiff is more varied than it's ever been. Rock and indie nights have always been found available in abundance - live music even more so - and as dance music has swept the UK, the electronic scene had flourished, meaning that no matter what flavour of music you're looking for, you'll likely find it. Check out our events guide for everything going on in the capital and beyond.

Pre Drinks

Pre-drinks are the perfect time to bond properly with your new pals before sambuca intervenes and you all get a little too honest. A handy Spotify feature is their collaborative playlist option which will stop your flatmate who-thinks-he’s-a-DJ-but-is-definitely-not from blasting DnB for three hours straight. Get adding and use the different music tastes to spark a conversation if you’re struggling. Ring of Fire is the go-to drinking game, but when you inevitably get sick of it, give this article a peep to spice things up a bit…

Where to Go

Come freshers week, three things will have happened: Your timeline/DMs/freshers page will have been assaulted by reps hoping to make a few quid, every advert you see on social media will be an overpriced freshers wristband and, if you’ve already attended your freshers fair, you'll almost certainly have been enough leaflets to wallpaper your entire halls.

Ignore these. As someone with two freshers fortnights under their belt after dropping out during first year and starting at another university the following year (sorry mum) I’m ashamed to admit I’ve fallen for it twice, spent around £100 and didn’t go to a single event I’d paid for. Hold off buying tickets until you've made plans with your mates (once you've figured out who your mates are). For a quick overview of clubbing in Cardiff, see below:

Monday: Bump and Grind at Buffalo.

Kick off your week with a hip-hop and r&b fix.

Tuesday: Skank Ground at Undertone or Live Lounge.

£1 Bassline v DnB rave at Undertone, what’s not to like? If that’s not your thing, Live Lounge is literally the only other place open on a Tuesday, and it’s free…

Wednesday: Cheapskates at Metros or Blue Honey Karaoke.

Dance the night away at Cardiff’s best alternative club, they don’t call it Sweatros for nothing! The famous Aquadan cocktail in a bucket, student discount and free toast at the end of the night. Mwah. Looking for a more laid back night? Blue Honey Night Cafe is a great place for food, a drink, and a boogie.

Thursday: Propaganda at Clwb Ifor Bach.

The top floor of Welsh Club is bought to you by Propaganda, spinning the likes of Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes, Vampire Weekend, The Libertines, The Vaccines, and Joy Division amongst other indie anthems. The second floor is usually brought to you by Rock-It Cardiff - think Blink 182, Fall Out Boy, Paramore, A Day To Remember and Panic! at The Disco…take your pick.

Friday: Bingo Lingo at Depot or Disco Motel at Clwb Ifor Bach.

Bingo Lingo has taken your nan’s favourite pastime, shaken all the dust-out and turned it into one mad, confetti-filled, party-bingo night! Tickets sell out sharpish so be sure to get them well in advance. If ‘there’s no such thing as too much glitter’ is your creed, check into the Disco Motel. Expect Disco, Mo-Town, Funk, Soul, and Boogie, free glitter makeovers, and sparkly decor under a giant disco ball.

Saturday: Dirty Pop at Clwb Ifor Bach.

A huge variety of genres over three floors. Electronic pop and disco dancing is on the ground floor and the second floor is the disco haven brought to you by the famous Mr. Potter’s Proper Good Disco. The treck up to the third floor is worth it, I promise! GRL TLK own this floor, playing an eclectic mix of party tunes.

Sunday: Live Lounge.

Cardiff’s bread and butter. Always a bizarre mix of people, music, and drinks, but always a good time. Be sure to hit the club before your main choice of club night for power hour from Sunday to Thursday 9-11pm for £1 drinks. Don’t tell your new found friends about this deal and impress them all by buying a (secretly cheap) round, sneaky…

Getting Around

Once you delve into the world of Uber there’s no going back, so stick to walking for as long as you can resist. Most halls are pretty central and so are the clubs, plus the time it takes you to walk is plenty of time to finish another can. That’s once less drink to buy in the club, right?

3 a.m. Food Stop

Glory, glory Chippy Lane. Drunken students gravitate towards the bright lights of Caroline Street like moths to a flame. Boasting too many fast food shops to list, there’s something for everyone. Round off your night by sitting in the window of the Five Guys overlooking the street and watching people in stilettos slipping around on a street flowing with curry sauce. Pure. Comedy. Gold.

Getting Home

Although crime rates are relatively low in Cardiff, they do tend to shoot up on sports match days with so many (drunken) people in the city, so keep this in mind! You can even use these weekends as an opportunity to throw a flat party. Silver linings and that.

Cardiff is a pretty safe area, all told, but with everything so close together, you might find walking home at 4 a.m. is a fairly common occurrence - just make sure you have a buddy (or two, or three) with you when you make the trek!