Raleigh-Durham Nightlife Is Two Cities

Raleigh and Durham have different nightlife. Raleigh's Glenwood South and Downtown Glenwood have the bar-crawl density — Foundation for serious cocktails, Tasty Beverage for the beer room, Lincoln Theatre for live music. Morgan Street Food Hall has evolved into a post-dinner social space.

Durham's American Tobacco District and Brightleaf Square run the more polished scene. Motorco Music Hall and Pinhook book touring indie; Fullsteam Brewery and Ponysaurus carry the taproom tradition. Chapel Hill's Franklin Street runs the college-bar density.

North Carolina 2 AM last call. The drive between Raleigh and Durham is 25 minutes but doing both in one night is ambitious. Pick a city.