By early evening the courtyards and narrow streets of the old town are still busy with people lingering over dinner, while the bars along Mariahilferstraße and around the university are just opening their doors. Later, the centre fills with students and visitors moving between pubs, and some places keep going until well after midnight.
Graz has a vibrant night life, shaped in part by its large student population. Bars cluster in the old town, along Mariahilferstraße in the Lend district, and around the Karl-Franzens-University west of the old town. The old town and Mariahilferstraße draw a mixed audience, while the bars near the university are mostly attended by students. The city suits anyone who wants a relaxed, walkable night out rather than a single large clubbing district.
Where to go out in Graz
1. The old town
The old town is the densest concentration of bars, and its audience is mixed rather than student-dominated. Wandering the courtyards and narrow streets turns up restaurants, cafés and bars alongside the architecture.
The Theatercafe on Mandellstraße, a café dating back to 1885, is popular for a late-night drink after the opera and is open until the early morning hours; it hosts a karaoke night on Fridays from 23:00 and occasionally clubbing on Saturdays from 23:00, though not during the summer months.
2. Mariahilferstraße, Lend
This street in the Lend district is one of the main bar strips, with a mixed crowd rather than a purely student one. It suits a straightforward evening of pub-hopping.
Brot und Spiele on Mariahilferstraße is a relaxed pub with steaks, burgers and a small variety of Mexican and Asian food, plus at least 20 pool tables and several snooker tables; it has separate smokers and non-smokers areas and is open from 10:00 to 02:00.
3. Around the Karl-Franzens-University
The streets west of the old town, near the university, are where student bars concentrate. Expect a younger crowd and a later, more informal night.
Bierbaron on Heinrichstraße is a student pub. Die Scherbe on Stockergasse is a cosy bar and pub over two floors, with more people usually downstairs where smoking is allowed, and is open until 02:00.
4. Stadtpark
The municipal park is home to a couple of venues that work particularly well in warm weather, when outside seating comes into its own. It suits a relaxed drink in spring and summer rather than a late, loud night.
Parkhouse, in the centre of the park, is popular with students, has a lovely outside seating area and laid-back electronic music, concerts and live DJs in summer; it is open daily from 11:00 to 04:00. Kombuese is a small wooden bar in the Stadtpark near the Künstlerhaus, open Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, busiest after 01:00, with cheap beer, a few sandwiches, different DJs each night and a crowd of all ages and styles.
5. Pubs further out
Away from the centre, towards the station, you will find old-style pubs with a mixed, all-ages crowd. These suit a quieter night built around music rather than a bar crawl.
Babenbergerhof on Babenbergerstraße, just off Keplerstraße, is an old-style Gasthaus with local art and old wooden decor, jazz bands and sessions every Wednesday, and basic cold local dishes and Schilcher wine. The Office Pub on Trauttmansdorffgasse is an English-style pub open every day from 17:00 to 02:00 or later, with English-speaking staff, pub quiz on Tuesdays and live music.
6. Late-night spots
If you want to stay out past the usual closing times, a few places cater to people who keep going until morning. These suit a second wind rather than an early start.
Drei Affen on Elisabethstraße is the kind of bar people head to after 04:00 when they want to stay out until 08:00; it is empty before 01:00, so do not go early.
7. Summer music in the centre
In the summer months, between Jakominiplatz and the Hauptplatz along Herrengasse, you will come across musicians of all sorts, from a small quartet playing Mozart to a barrel-organ. It suits an early-evening stroll before settling somewhere for a drink.
How a night out unfolds
The sources do not set out a detailed timetable for eating and going out in Graz. What they do show is that many bars open in the late afternoon or early evening and run until around 02:00, with some going later, and that certain places only fill up after 01:00 and stay busy until early morning. Plan on eating first and starting your evening at a normal hour if you want the full range of venues, and keep the late spots in reserve for a second stop.
Festivals and events worth timing a trip around
- Elevate – March; an interdisciplinary festival with a strong focus on cultural and socio-political topics, including performances, concerts, installations, DJ sets, workshops, film screenings, lectures and discussions.
- Diagonale – March/April; the festival of Austrian film, running four days.
- Lendwirbel – May; a large, free street festival in the Lend district lasting several days, with live music, workshops, DJing, art installations, performances and political discussions.
- Zinzengrinsen – July; a free one-day street festival on Zinzendorfstrasse with live music and street food.
- Augartenfest – July; a free one-day park festival with sport workshops, several stages of live music, sport performances and dance performances.
- La Strada – August; an international festival for street art, puppet theatre, new circus and community art, running a whole week, with both paid and free programme points.
- Steirischer Herbst – September and October; an interdisciplinary festival for contemporary art running four weeks, with both paid and free programme points.
- Grieskram – October; a free one-day street festival in the Gries district with live bands, DJing, street food and a flea market.
Frequently asked questions
Where are the bars concentrated?
They are concentrated around the old town, along Mariahilferstraße in the Lend district, and around the Karl-Franzens-University to the west of the old town.
What kind of crowd goes where?
The old town and Mariahilferstraße have a mixed audience, while the bars around the university are mostly attended by students.
How late do places stay open?
Several bars close around 02:00, and some stay open later; a few late-night spots only fill up after 01:00 and keep going until early morning.
When is the best time to catch live music outdoors?
In the summer months you will find musicians along Herrengasse between Jakominiplatz and the Hauptplatz, and venues such as Parkhouse host concerts and live DJs in summer.
Decide which part of the city suits the evening you want, check the current opening times before you set out, and build your night around it.