It’s no secret that clubbing is a massive part of student life. A lot of my best nights have been in clubs in Cambridge and other cities. One city I have been clubbing in is Canterbury, Kent. Canterbury has two main clubs: Club Chemistry and Tokyo Tea Rooms.
I think the nightlife in Cambridge and Canterbury is completely different, and here is why:
Cambridge Nightlife is interesting to say the least, You have a lot of students from different universities and colleges attending different venues, and there are a lot of people of different demographics/ages.
Canterbury is very similar.
Club Chemistry
I grew up in and around Canterbury, and the most popular club is Club Chemistry, (also known to most as Chem). When planning a night out in Canterbury, Chemistry is always the first place you think of.
Venue
When people used to tell me about Chem, I used to dread going. The club did not have the best reputation. When I was finally able to go, I thought I would check out the club for myself. I personally have had a great few nights out in Chemistry.
A big factor of Chem’s reputation going up was when they rebranded and refurbished the club, It has 3 floors with different music every night.
The first floor is typically chart music, the second floor is typically rap, and the third floor (the best floor) is drum and bass. The best nights at chem are the nights spent dancing around the dance floor with the brightest strobe lights I think I have ever seen.
The club also has a few sofas and seats scattered around if you need to sit down because your shoes are hurting your feet too much (or if you just need a breather, but every time I walk past one of the sofas, someone has their shoes in their hand)
Crowd Dynamics
The club is always busy, but it is usually at its busiest around 12 AM. Don’t worry about feeling like you must get there late, there will always be a bit of a crowd from opening.
Drinks
Like any other club, Chemistry has pretty much every spirit and bottle you can think of. Drink prices depend on the night and what deals they have on. I think the best day to go for drink deals is a Wednesday, but if you are just there for the vibes, there are always cheap bottles of VK waiting for you.
Overall, Chem can be a good night out, but I would recommend checking the event that is on the day you want to go. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but due to their rebrand and refurbishment, it has a better vibe, attitude and a better reputation. The staff are all lovely in there too, if you need help, please do not be afraid to grab a member of staff.
Tokyo Tea Rooms
Tokyo Tea Rooms (commonly known as ‘Tokyo’), is more of a chill vibe compared to Chemistry. I personally prefer this club. You have space to move and breathe.
Venue
The club itself is not massive. It has one dance floor, but it has two floors. As you walk into the club, you are greeted by tables, the toilets and a bar. It is nice to be able to walk into a club and the bar not be absolutely packed. In the middle of the first floor is the stairs to go down to the dance floor. The dance floor is quite big and there is another bar, so you can grab a drink and rush back to the dance floor. It also has a HUGE smoking area. I have never seen that smoking garden rammed. There is always space to move, find your friends, etc. It is definitely the best meeting spot if you lose your friends in the club.
Drinks
The drink prices can get a little expensive, but they are not much different to Chemistry’s prices. If you want a comparison to Cambridge prices, I would say it is slightly cheaper than MASH prices, if not the same.
Crowd Dynamics
The dance floor does get busy (and very warm). Everyone you meet in the club will 9 times out of 10 be lovely. You’ll find the girlies in the toilets screaming that you look gorgeous, the ones in the smoking area that will have a deep chat with you and give you advice. In my opinion, it is a place to go if you want a chill night out with nice people around you all the time.
Tokyo Tea Rooms is an amazing club, and I will always recommend this club to anyone who wants to go out in Canterbury. I personally have never heard a bad thing about this venue, and I don’t think I can say a bad thing about it myself.
