Parisian nights are as varied as its neighbourhoods — feathered cabaret under the red windmill of Pigalle, swing dancing in a medieval jazz cellar in the Latin Quarter, expertly mixed cocktails behind unmarked speakeasy doors, sunset drinks on a Marais rooftop and dawn-chasing techno beneath a Grands Boulevards cinema. Here are the places worth staying up for, with neighbourhoods, opening hours, prices and the local rhythm — remember that Parisians go out late.
CabaretMoulin Rouge
Area
18th · Pigalle
Type
Cabaret
“Book the cabaret show weeks ahead; the cheaper 21:00 show without dinner still delivers the full feathers-and-champagne spectacle.”
Techno ClubRex Club
Area
2nd · Grands Boulevards
Type
Techno Club
“Paris's temple of techno with a famed sound system — check the line-up, arrive after 01:00 and stay till dawn.”
Jazz ClubCaveau de la Huchette
Area
5th · Latin Quarter
Type
Jazz Club
“A swing-jazz cellar where people actually dance — go for the live band and the vaulted medieval crypt setting.”
Cocktail BarExperimental Cocktail Club
Area
2nd · Montorgueil
Type
Cocktail Bar
“A pioneering speakeasy-style bar behind an unmarked façade — go early or midweek to get a seat.”
Rooftop BarLe Perchoir Marais
Area
11th / 4th · Marais
Type
Rooftop Bar
“Come for sunset views over the Paris rooftops; queues build fast in summer, so arrive early or on a weekday.”
SpeakeasyCandelaria
Area
3rd · Le Marais
Type
Speakeasy
“Walk through the taquería and push the unmarked back door to find one of the city's best hidden cocktail bars.”
Private ClubSilencio
Area
2nd · Grands Boulevards
Type
Private Club
“David Lynch-designed members' club that opens to the public after midnight — dress well and go late for DJs and dancing.”
Live MusicNew Morning
Area
10th · Château d'Eau
Type
Live Music
“A legendary stage for jazz, blues, soul and world music — check the gig calendar and book the night that suits you.”
Quirky BarLe Comptoir Général
Area
10th · Canal Saint-Martin
Type
Quirky Bar
“A wonderfully eccentric canal-side hideaway of jungle plants and vintage bric-a-brac — go for the vibe and rum cocktails.”
Paris nightlife in detail
1.Moulin Rouge
The Moulin Rouge, with its iconic red windmill glowing over the boulevard in Pigalle, is the most famous cabaret in the world and the birthplace of the modern can-can. Opened in 1889 and immortalised by Toulouse-Lautrec's posters and later by Baz Luhrmann's film, it still stages its lavish 'Féerie' revue twice nightly: around 60 Doriss Girls in feathers, sequins and rhinestones, alongside acrobats, variety acts and a giant aquarium tank, in a gloriously old-fashioned spectacle of music-hall glamour. It is unashamedly touristy and not cheap — a show with a half-bottle of champagne starts around €100, dinner-and-show packages considerably more — but for many visitors an evening here is a quintessential Paris experience. There's a dress code (smart; no sportswear or shorts), shows sell out well ahead, and the earlier show tends to be marginally cheaper. Combine it with a wander up into Montmartre beforehand or drinks in the surrounding South Pigalle bars afterwards. For classic, sparkling, feathers-and-champagne Parisian cabaret, there is nowhere more storied.
Hours
Shows nightly ~21:00 & 23:00 (dinner from ~19:00)
Price
Show with champagne from ~€100; dinner shows from ~€200
Getting there
Métro L2 to Blanche, at the foot of Montmartre
Insider tip: Book the cabaret show weeks ahead; the cheaper 21:00 show without dinner still delivers the full feathers-and-champagne spectacle.
2.Rex Club
The Rex Club is the beating heart of Paris's electronic music scene, a serious underground club beneath the landmark Grand Rex cinema on the Grands Boulevards. Open since 1988 and long associated with the pioneering French techno DJ Laurent Garnier, it earned its reputation on two things: consistently excellent programming — a roll-call of the world's best techno, house and electronic artists play here — and one of the finest sound systems in Europe, engineered so the music hits with precision on the dark, no-frills dancefloor. This is a club for people who come to dance rather than pose: unpretentious, focused on the music, with a knowledgeable local crowd. Nights run Wednesday to Saturday, getting going well after midnight (Parisians arrive late) and continuing until dawn, with entry usually around €15–20. Check the line-up in advance, as the vibe depends heavily on who's playing, and be prepared for a door policy on big nights. For visitors who want to experience Paris's genuine electronic-music culture rather than a tourist club, the Rex is the essential address. Bring cash and stamina.
Hours
Club nights ~Wed–Sat ~23:30–06:00/07:00
Price
Entry ~€15–20
Getting there
Métro L8/L9 to Bonne Nouvelle
Insider tip: Paris's temple of techno with a famed sound system — check the line-up, arrive after 01:00 and stay till dawn.
3.Caveau de la Huchette
The Caveau de la Huchette is one of the most atmospheric and joyful nights out in Paris, a jazz club set in a medieval vaulted stone cellar in the heart of the Latin Quarter that has been swinging since 1946. Once a revolutionary meeting place and, legend has it, a site of darker history in earlier centuries, it found fame as a temple of jazz and swing — Lionel Hampton, Count Basie and countless greats have played its low-ceilinged crypt — and appeared memorably in the film La La Land. What makes it special is that people come to dance: a live band strikes up on the tiny stage and the small floor fills with couples doing swing, lindy hop and jive, from seasoned regulars to game beginners. The atmosphere is warm, unpretentious and infectiously fun, a world away from a static concert. Entry is a bargain (around €13–16), it's central and easy to reach, and it runs late every night. Come with an open mind, don't be shy about joining the dancing, and soak up one of the last genuine bohemian traditions of the Latin Quarter.
Hours
Nightly ~21:00–02:00 (later at weekends)
Price
Entry ~€13–16
Getting there
Métro L4 to Saint-Michel or RER B/C to Saint-Michel–Notre-Dame
Insider tip: A swing-jazz cellar where people actually dance — go for the live band and the vaulted medieval crypt setting.
4.Experimental Cocktail Club
The Experimental Cocktail Club, tucked behind a discreet façade on a narrow street near the pedestrianised Rue Montorgueil, is the bar widely credited with kick-starting Paris's craft-cocktail renaissance when it opened in 2007. Styled as an intimate, low-lit speakeasy — exposed stone, candlelight, a hushed and grown-up mood — it draws a stylish crowd with expertly made drinks, from reinvented classics to inventive seasonal creations built on quality spirits and fresh ingredients by serious bartenders. Its success spawned an international group of bars, but the original Paris outpost retains its cool, insider feel. It's the sort of place to start or extend an evening with a couple of superb cocktails rather than a rowdy night out, and the surrounding Montorgueil and Sentier area is full of restaurants and bars to combine it with. Drinks run around €14–18, in line with the city's better cocktail bars. Because it's small and popular, it fills up late in the week; arrive early evening or come midweek to secure a seat at the bar. For beautifully crafted cocktails in an atmospheric, quintessentially Parisian setting, it remains a benchmark.
Hours
Nightly ~19:00–02:00 (later at weekends)
Price
Cocktails ~€14–18
Getting there
Métro L3 to Sentier or L4 to Étienne Marcel
Insider tip: A pioneering speakeasy-style bar behind an unmarked façade — go early or midweek to get a seat.
5.Le Perchoir Marais
Le Perchoir helped launch Paris's rooftop-bar trend and remains one of the most popular places in the city for a drink with a view. The original in the 11th arrondissement sits atop a building near Ménilmontant, while the much-loved Marais outpost crowns the BHV department store with a panorama straight across to the Hôtel de Ville and beyond. Either way, the draw is the same: an open-air terrace, a relaxed, design-conscious crowd, well-made cocktails and small plates, and one of the best sunset views over the grey-zinc rooftops of Paris. It's a scene rather than a hidden gem, so in warm weather it gets very busy and queues form at the entrance, especially at weekends — arriving early in the evening or coming on a weekday gives the best chance of getting up without a long wait, and terraces close or move indoors in bad weather. Cocktails run around €12–16. For a stylish, quintessentially modern-Paris evening — golden light, rooftops, a cocktail in hand — it's a lovely way to start a night out before heading down into the Marais bars afterwards.
Hours
~16:00/18:00 until late (seasonal; weather-dependent)
Price
Cocktails ~€12–16
Getting there
Métro L3 to Ménilmontant (11th) or L11 to Rambuteau (Marais BHV rooftop)
Insider tip: Come for sunset views over the Paris rooftops; queues build fast in summer, so arrive early or on a weekday.
6.Candelaria
Candelaria is one of Paris's most enjoyable hidden bars, playing on the speakeasy idea with genuine charm. From the street it looks like a minuscule, no-frills taquería serving excellent authentic tacos and quesadillas — and it is, so you can happily eat there — but push the unmarked door at the back and you step into a warm, low-lit cocktail bar that regularly features on the World's 50 Best Bars list. The specialism is agave spirits, with a superb range of tequila and mezcal cocktails alongside creative seasonal drinks, mixed by skilled bartenders in an intimate, buzzy space of exposed brick and soft light. The combination of great tacos out front and serious cocktails behind makes it perfect for a full evening in the Marais, and the discovery of the hidden room never quite loses its fun. It gets busy, so the small back bar fills late in the week; go earlier or midweek for a spot. Cocktails are around €13–16, tacos just a few euros. For an atmospheric, well-crafted and slightly secret night out in the heart of the Marais, Candelaria is a Paris favourite.
Hours
Nightly ~18:00–02:00 (taquería from lunch)
Price
Cocktails ~€13–16; tacos a few euros
Getting there
Métro L8 to Filles du Calvaire or L3 to Temple
Insider tip: Walk through the taquería and push the unmarked back door to find one of the city's best hidden cocktail bars.
7.Silencio
Silencio is one of the most distinctive nightspots in Paris, a subterranean club conceived and designed down to the last detail by film director David Lynch, named after the mysterious club in his film Mulholland Drive. Descending several floors below the Grands Boulevards, you enter a series of surreal, gold-leafed and mirrored rooms — a forest-panelled lounge, a tiny concert stage, a smoking room, a cinema — that feel like stepping inside one of Lynch's dreamscapes. By day and early evening it operates as a private members' club for the city's creative set, hosting talks, concerts and film events, but from around midnight on the busiest nights it opens to the public for late DJ sets and dancing in a stylish, cinematic setting. It's atmospheric, exclusive and design-obsessed rather than a mainstream club, with a dress-to-impress crowd, a door policy and premium drink prices. Go late, look sharp, and treat it as a singular Paris experience — a chance to drink and dance inside a piece of art-directed cinema. A newer Silencio des Prés on the Left Bank extends the concept.
Hours
Members until ~00:00, then open to public ~00:00–06:00 (Thu–Sat)
Price
Entry varies; drinks premium
Getting there
Métro L8/L9 to Grands Boulevards or L3 to Bourse
Insider tip: David Lynch-designed members' club that opens to the public after midnight — dress well and go late for DJs and dancing.
8.New Morning
New Morning is one of Paris's most respected live-music venues, an intimate club in the 10th arrondissement that has hosted an extraordinary roll-call of legends since 1981 — Chet Baker, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Prince and countless others have played its unassuming stage. Despite its fame, it remains refreshingly no-frills: a plain, black-walled room where the focus is entirely on the music and the closeness to the performers, with standing and limited seating giving a genuine sense of intimacy rarely found at bigger venues. The programming ranges widely across jazz, blues, soul, funk, Latin and world music, so any given night depends on who's booked — check the calendar and choose accordingly. It's a proper music-lover's venue rather than a see-and-be-seen spot, drawing a mixed, knowledgeable and passionate crowd. Tickets typically run €20–40 depending on the artist, and it's worth booking ahead for well-known names. For visitors who want to experience Paris's rich live-jazz and world-music heritage up close, in a historic and unpretentious setting, New Morning is a wonderful, authentic night out. Combine it with the bars and restaurants of the surrounding area.
Hours
Concert nights, doors ~20:00 (varies by gig)
Price
Tickets ~€20–40 depending on artist
Getting there
Métro L4/L8/L9 to Strasbourg–Saint-Denis or L4 to Château d'Eau
Insider tip: A legendary stage for jazz, blues, soul and world music — check the gig calendar and book the night that suits you.
9.Le Comptoir Général
Le Comptoir Général is one of the most unusual and atmospheric bars in Paris, hidden down a passage beside the Canal Saint-Martin and styled as a rambling, plant-filled 'ghetto museum' celebrating Afro-Caribbean and postcolonial culture. Inside, a series of eccentric, dimly lit rooms overflow with tropical foliage, vintage furniture, curios, a fake pharmacy, art and bric-a-brac, creating a wonderfully theatrical, jungle-meets-flea-market setting unlike anywhere else in the city. It draws a young, arty, mixed crowd for rum-based punches and cocktails, ginger beer, African and Caribbean-inspired food, DJ nights and regular cultural events, exhibitions and pop-up markets. The mood is relaxed, bohemian and fun rather than exclusive, and it works equally well for an afternoon drink among the plants or a lively late-night out. Cocktails are reasonable at around €10–14, and the canal-side location puts you among the 10th's best bars and restaurants. Because it's spacious and hidden, it rarely feels as crushed as the tiny cocktail bars. For a genuinely different, creative and Instagram-worthy Paris night with a strong sense of place, Le Comptoir Général is a delight.
Hours
Daily ~afternoon until ~02:00 (later at weekends)
Price
Cocktails ~€10–14
Getting there
Métro L5 to Jacques Bonsergent, near Canal Saint-Martin
Insider tip: A wonderfully eccentric canal-side hideaway of jungle plants and vintage bric-a-brac — go for the vibe and rum cocktails.