Cebu Pub Crawls

The Cebu Nightlife Scene

Cebu City has two distinct nightlife circuits that cater to different budgets. The IT Park in Lahug, a technology campus that doubles as a restaurant and bar district, runs late on weeknights as well as weekends because the BPO (call centre) industry there operates around the clock; finishing a night shift at 6am and heading for a beer is a genuine local phenomenon. The Mango Avenue strip in the city centre is the older circuit: louder, cheaper, a mix of live music bars and clubs that runs until 2am. Ayala Center Cebu's rooftop and the bars in the Cebu Business Park (adjacent) run a smarter crowd with higher prices.

What You'll Pay

San Miguel at an IT Park bar: PHP 70–120. Cocktails: PHP 180–350. Mango Avenue bars charge PHP 50–90 for local beer. Club entry along Mango Avenue is PHP 200–400. A full IT Park evening with four drinks and food from one of the restaurants: PHP 600–1,200. The peso rates are low; Cebu is among the more affordable Philippines cities for a night out.

Best Nights

IT Park runs consistently through the week because of the call centre shift-work cycle; Wednesday and Thursday nights are often better than weekends when the student crowd from the universities arrives and the bars fill faster. Mango Avenue peaks Friday and Saturday from 10pm. Sunday is quiet in Mango Avenue; IT Park carries on regardless of the day.

Practical

Cebu City traffic makes Grab the practical option for getting between IT Park and Mango Avenue, which are 3km apart. A Grab between the two areas is PHP 60–120. The IT Park itself is walkable; Mango Avenue is a strip walkable end-to-end. Cash is widely used; the better IT Park restaurants accept cards. No dress codes except at the upscale hotel bars.