Nightlife
While nightlife in Rome takes place most commonly around the dinner table, the bar scene is pretty varied and offers something for everyone. Many of the city’s pubs are quiet havens for a mid-afternoon pint, yet transform into virtual nightclubs after dinner, often attracting a crowd nostalgic for home-style drunkenness.
The bars on Campo de’ Fiori are filled with Italians sipping coffee by day and invaded by raucous exchange students by night. The Drunken Ship, Sloppy Sam’s and a cluster of other bars attract quite a fun-loving crowd.
The pretty lanes of Trastevere are packed with tiny bars and thirsty youngsters, many of them students as well. There are also a handful of wine bars and restaurants for more subdued entertainment. When bars begins to close, Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere and especially Piazza Trilussa swell with people eager to keep the night alive, often with guitar and beer in hand.
The area surrounding the Pantheon and Piazza Navona sees a classier, slightly older crowd and considerably higher prices, whereas the university neighbourhood, San Lorenzo, on the other side of Termini station, is grungy and decidedly cheap, whereas the areas around the Vatican (Prati) are fancier and borderline vippish. Past San Lorenzo and a good trek from the city centre, Pigneto is the latest jewel of gentrification. The area hasn’t lost its identity yet, only polished it up a bit with independent run bars and cafés, and a serious hipster factor.
Near Piramide (Metro B), the Testaccio district is the bastion of club life. The streets surrounding Monte Testaccio buzz well into the early morning from Thursday night on. Here you’ll find everything from classic rock venues to Latin music, house, and hip-hop, and a crowd spanning all ages. The nearby Ostiense area is home to several of the city’s most progressive electronic music clubs.
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