For all you night owls out there, we know how frustrating it can be to waste valuable time wandering the streets looking for a nightspot that suits you, when you only have a short time to explore a new place.

So, we’ve compiled this page of recommendations to help you get right where you want to be as quickly as possible.

Special Note Concerning Tuesday Night After The Closing Dinner

• As mentioned on the Schedule page, the Closing Dinner takes place Tuesday, June 29th, 6pm to 9pm.
• The shuttle back to campus will leave every 25 minutes, starting at 8:00pm, with the last shuttle leaving the Closing Dinner venue at 10:30pm.
• Folks who would like to spend a little time up the street in Fairhaven, but who also need to catch the last shuttle back to campus, pay special attention to the Fairhaven locations below. It will take about 10-15 minutes to walk from the Closing Dinner venue up to the Fairhaven nightspots and 10-15 minutes to walk back.
• If you’d like to stay out later, there are buses that will go to campus from Fairhaven and Downtown (specifics will be in a printed bus guide you’ll receive when you first arrive on campus). Additionally, you can call a taxi. (Walking back to on-campus lodging from Fairhaven is quite a long distance, and from Downtown it’s just about prohibitive.)

Fairhaven

Archer Ale House
This British-style basement pub offers a subdued, pleasant atmosphere and a decent selection of micro and imported brews. They have the best selection of Belgian beers in town.

Daphne’s
A cozy but lively hole-in-the-wall of a bar, with big, comfortable booths serving beer, wine, cocktails, and, as they say, a little food.

Fairhaven Pub & Martini Bar
Offering live music several nights a week, it’s the only place to dance in Fairhaven. Our Canadian ResNetters might be happy to know that their own Blue Rodeo will be playing here Sunday, June 27th.

Skylark’s Hidden Café & Wine Parlour
Don’t let their name fool you. They serve beer as well. A less youthful establishment, they have live music several nights a week as well, typically of the Jazz variety.

Le Chat Noir (The Black Cat)
A small, dimly lit bar and French restaurant with a killer view over Fairhaven and Bellingham Bay. A little difficult to find, as it’s on the third floor of the Sycamore Building, but if you get to the southeast corner of 12th & Harris and look up, you’ll see the black cat on the sign and will know you are in the right place.

Downtown Bellingham

While there are enough nightspots in Downtown Bellingham for anyone to simply get to the downtown core, walk around, and choose a place fairly quickly, here are a few recommendations, by no means an exhaustive list.

Boundary Bay Brewey & Bistro
A Bellingham institution, this award-winning craft brewery offers a great selection of beers and ales and a quintessential Bellingham crowd. The outdoor beer garden is heavenly in the summer, with live music regularly.

(Note: The June 14th ResNet 2010 News, mentioned the Outdoor Cinema in Fairhaven, but there are also occasional movies in the Boundary Bay beer garden. For those of you who will be in town Friday night, June 25th, you could head to Boundary Bay and catch the Coen Brothers cult classic The Big Lebowski at 9:30pm.)

Green Frog Cafe Acoustic Tavern
Sporting the most confusing name on the Bellingham bar scene — is it a café, a tavern, do they serve frogs? — most people call it simply the Green Frog or The Acoustic. The Green Frog isn’t for everyone, but the beer selection (not listed on the website, unfortunately) is great. It’s a tiny sliver of a place with peanut shells all over the floor (the only food they serve), the occasional dog, as they are allowed on the premises, and there are acoustic guitars, mandolins, and banjos hanging on the wall for anyone who wants to play them. Live music most nights of the week.

Uisce Irish Pub
Pronounced ish-kah, this is a classic Irish watering hole. Not much else to say. Erin Go Bragh!

Rumors Cabaret
Bellingham’s LGBT hangout, Rumors offers DJs and occasional live music and cabaret shows and some of the best dancing in town.

Chuckanut Brewery & Kitchen
Bellingham’s other, newer award-winning craft brewery, they offer the best German beers in town.

The Copper Hog
Calling themselves a gastropub, the Hog offers great food and an equally great selection of microbrews.

The Temple Bar
A sophisticated, artsy wine bar that is far from stuffy and overly highbrow.