London NightClubs

Allegedly the "dark heart of Soho" where variety is evidently the spice of life, Gossips has been running club nights for over 20 years. A bigger variation from night to night is hard to come by.

Between £2 and £7 depending on night.

This great salsa venue features a different band every night, salsa lessons and themed nights (for example, Brazilian Night). The interior is what you'd expect from a Latino-themed bar - an explosion of oranges, yellows and browns and much body heat. The mixed clientele come here to have fun and dance (cold tapas platters are only available to groups), and its popularity means that there are queues at weekends.

96 Charing Cross Road, London, WC2H 0JG United Kingdom

Despite its name, this long-standing jazz club and restaurant does not exclusively play jazz. As well as an eclectic calendar of gigs, there are also sessions and club nights a few times a month, including the only real jazz dance club session in London. Dark and atmospheric, yet large enough to avoid being claustrophobic, The Jazz Cafe is certainly worth a visit. View the musicians from the balcony restaurants. The cuisine is excellent and not at all 'just there to feed the audience'. You can also nibble on light meals and snacks during the shows. Tickets to gigs/sessions/club nights are usually £8-£15.

5 Parkway, Camden, London, NW1 7PG United Kingdom

Expect a frivolous and merrily drunken atmosphere with students, hen night chicks, tourists, office revellers and other easygoing folk slamming tequilas, singing along to cheesy pop music and dancing. The food follows the general Tex-Mex theme, priced at around ?5 per dish and is served between 5pm and 11pm Monday-Wednesday and 5pm to 2am Thursday-Saturday. Beer comes in at around ?2.50 a pint and a glass of wine is similarly priced. There is live music every night from 8.30pm and at the stroke of midnight DJs take over on Wednesdays through to Saturdays.

£3 after 11pm Wed; £5 after 9.30pm Thu-Sat, although this is refunded against food orders.

5 Goslett Yard, Charing Cross Road, London, WC2H 0EH United Kingdom

For Spanish music and dancing until the early hours, Costa Dorada is one of London's best. Decorated in true Spanish style, the colourful walls are covered with plates, flowers and paintings, although you may be too busy boozing and boogieing to notice the details.

The flamenco show usually starts at 10pm, and diners in the restaurant have the best view, although you'll still get the gist in the tapas bar. Both the restaurant and bar can be booked, and it's worth it if you're going in a large group as it gets very busy. There's live music from 8.30pm, and the best time to arrive is around 9pm, as there's a ?3.50 entry fee from 10pm and the restaurant has a ?1.50 cover charge. The food takes a definite second to drinking and dancing, but if you're looking for something to soak up the alcohol as you enjoy the atmosphere, then you're in the right place.

47-55 Hanway Street, London, W1T 1UX United Kingdom

In the same building as the Bug Bar and Bah Humbug, Mass is probably London's most atmospheric club, full of winding stone steps, and featuring a huge church window over the larger of the two dance floors. It hosts a wild selection of weekend clubs, and occasional live bands and other events. Nights to check out include the famous Funkt (house and breakbeats); Movement (drum and bass, hip hop and R&B); Tsunami (hard house and trance) and the infamous Torture Garden - a full-on fetish night featuring body art, fashion shows and a roulette casino to the accompaniment of exotica, sleazy R&B, nu skool and drum and bass. Pure sacrilege!

St Matthew's Church, Brixton Hill, London, SW2 1JF United Kingdom

Using the address "No.1 West End", Equinox is very much the commercial club. Boasting some seven bars including a VIP area, an excellent sound system to blast out mainstream dance tunes over the never-ending dance floor, and a spectacular laser light-show that never fails to impress, the bulk of the enthusiastic clientele are young overseas visitors and suburbanites in search of hedonistic pursuits. The atmosphere is full-on party and pretty friendly. This huge disco hive of fun shares the nightlife nucleus of Leicester Square with slightly more credible clubbing venues like Sound of funky Carwash fame.

£5-£12

14-16 Leicester Square, London, WC2H 7NA United Kingdom

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