People nowadays are reluctant to stay out late. Is it killing nightlife?
LISTEN | Is the early-to-bed generation killing nightlife? :Cost of Living29:09Is the early to bed generation killing nightlife?There was a time when Canada came alive at night, from the lively supper clubs of the 1940s and '50s to the glittering discos of the '70s to the neon-lit, bass-pounding raves of the '90s.But now, nightlife is waning across the country.Vas Cranis, who runs a small underground music venue in downtown Toronto called BSMT 254, says his business has taken a huge hit. BSMT 254 started hosting events in 2019, but in recent weeks, Cranis says earnings have been “getting worse and worse.”“There’s so much uncertainty,” Cranis told CBC Radio's Cost of Living. “Compared to when we opened, I’d say [the money we’re making is] close to half the revenue on busy weekend nights.”Cranis isn’t the only one noticing a decreasing interest in nightlife. The payment processing platform Square analyzed millions of in-person transactions in some of Canada's largest cities between July 25 and July 27, 2025, to track where and when late-night spending still thrives. Calgary and Edmonton came out on top — but even in those cities, just 32 per cent of spending at bars, cafés and restaurants happened between 7 p.m. and 4 a.m, the study said. Toronto, once neck-and-neck with Calgary, slipped to only 21 per cent, while Vancouver came last with a mere 17 per cent of after-dark spending. “The slowdown we’re seeing in Canada’s nighttime economy is really a sign of changing times,” said Ming-Tai Huh, head of food and beverage at Square, in a statement. What’s causing the decline? There are “lots of ideas out there" about the causes, says Will Straw, an emeritus professor of urban media studies at McGill University in Montreal, who examines how cities’ nighttime culture is governed and represented.One of the most convincing, he says, is affordability. The rising costs of living and inflation have made nightlife — paying cover charges, buying drinks, eating out — significantly more expensive. The changing way we work also impacts how we decompress. Evenings that once stretched freely now feel shorter, says Straw, as work seeps in — emails ping late into the night and tasks linger, leaving little room for spontaneous outings.People are also less social. A Statistics Canada study from 1986 to 2022 revealed that in recent years, while time spent with friends declined for all age groups, working-age Canadians between the ages of 25 to 64 had the “sharpest drop” over the past 30 years. Will Straw, left, studies how cities’ nighttime culture is governed and represented. Vas Cranis is the co-owner of music venue BSMT 254. (Submitted by Will Straw, Submitted by Vas Cranis)The new generation is also mingling in a different way, Straw adds. Many young people now favour daytime or early-evening gatherings centered on wellness, community and music, rather than the alcohol-heavy nightlife of previous decades. “They’re searching for a more authentic kind of sociability," Straw said.Alana Willerton, who’s in her early 30s and lives in Calgary, is one of them. She still enjoys going out a few times a week, but says her “ideal scenario at the end of those nights is being home by 10 p.m.” “I love being back in time to decompress after the day and get a full eight hours of sleep before I tackle ... the next day,” she said. In fact, according to a study by the online restaurant reservation service OpenTable, the early dinner hours in Canada are growing fastest: reservations between 5 p.m. and 5:59 p.m. rose 28 per cent year-over-year in 2025. The company looked at data from Jan. 1 to Nov. 12, 2025, and compared it to the corresponding timeframes of Jan. 3-Nov. 14, 2024, and Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2019. What’s the next social scene? Mathieu Grondin, who was appointed Ottawa’s night mayor in 2024, acknowledges that challenges remain. He says lifestyle changes, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, have led to more remote work that keeps people at home, and a "whole generation that did not get to experiment [with] nightlife when they were 18 or 19.” Mathieu Grondin was hired as Ottawa’s nightlife commissioner in 2024, thus becoming Canada's first night mayor. (Submitted by City of Ottawa)“Technology also transformed the way we consume nightlife activities," Grondin said. "[It's changed] how we socialize, how we date, how we communicate with each other." Still, he believes that a thriving nightlife isn’t just about entertainment — it strengthens the city itself by boosting workforce retention, improving residents’ quality of life and provides an important social space. “You meet a stranger at the bar, you start having a discussion about topic X, Y, Z, and you might not have the same perspective on it, but you share those perspectives and you debate them, and that’s how you build your sense of community,” he said. To reinvigorate the scene, Grondin says the key is redeveloping the early evening economy time slot from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., and to fill them with diverse and unique activities.“We need to look at ways to reduce costs and to get people out,” said Grondin. He’s already seen promising results. An unused lot in Ottawa has been transformed into Metcalfe Plaza, an open-air social hub that offers alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and free activities that include DJ sets and pilates classes. Getting people out to enjoy the fun and ambience has naturally led them to stay out later, says Grondin.At Metcalfe Plaza, he says people's evenings often unfold organically when they're given the opportunity. He's seen clocked-off people have a few drinks that led to a late dinner at nearby restaurants, and by the time the night moved on to dancing, the clock could easily hit the wee hours.“We need to give the taste of nightlife to people, give it back to them,” Grondin said.
