Geelong Nightlife Guide: Little Malop Street, the Waterfront and Geelong's Best Bars After Dark

Geelong's nightlife has been transformed by the city's urban renewal, with the Little Malop Street restaurant and bar precinct, the Geelong Waterfront, and the growing small bar density of the Pakington Street (Geelong West) and the Moorabool Street CBD strips creating a nightlife environment that is genuine and vibrant rather than merely functional. The city's growing population of young professionals (attracted by the Melbourne commuter premium and Deakin University's student population) has driven significant improvement in the hospitality quality, and several Geelong bars now compare very well with equivalent Melbourne inner-city venues.

Little Malop Street and the CBD — the Little Malop Street bar and restaurant strip is the centre of Geelong's finest nightlife: the GPO Bar and Bistro (the finest heritage pub in Geelong, in the 1890s Post Office building), the Pistol Pete's bar, the Geelong Wine Bar, and the small bar density of the adjacent Moorabool and Malop streets create a CBD after-dark environment that has improved dramatically since 2015. The Geelong Art Gallery's evening events program and the GPAC performance schedule add cultural programming to the CBD after-dark options.

Geelong Waterfront — the Eastern Beach waterfront precinct provides Geelong's finest outdoor after-dark drinking and dining: the Bavarian Beer Café on the Cunningham Pier, the waterfront restaurant strip, and the outdoor bars of the foreshore provide outstanding views across Corio Bay at sunset and after dark. The Carousel heritage venue (adjacent to the Eastern Beach) provides a remarkably atmospheric event space for evening functions.

Pakington Street (Geelong West) — the Pakington Street precinct in Geelong West provides the city's most alternative and community-oriented bar and café culture: the Pako Festa (annual Greek festival on Pakington Street) reflects the cultural diversity of the precinct, and the bars and café-bars of Pakington Street provide an excellent evening out that is distinctly different from the CBD strip. The Geelong West Hotel and the Pakington Street restaurant density provide good options across multiple cuisines and price points.

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