This Northern UK City Was Just Voted the World’s Wildest

Manchester City, England
Manchester City, England | © trabantos / Shutterstock

Freelance Travel and Music Writer

When you think of the wildest cities in the world, where do you think of? Miami? Paris? Los Angeles? You’d better think again, as a northern UK city has just been voted the wildest in the world.

That’s right, out of 112 cities indexed in a report by international relocations site MoveHub.com, Manchester has come out on top, beating the likes of Washington DC (2nd) and Miami (3rd) to the coveted crown of the world’s wildest city!

The findings come from a study which looked at things like nightlife venues in relation to city population, alongside consumption of alcohol, cannabis and cocaine. Each city was given a score from zero to three, with zero being tame and three being off-the-scale crazy.

Manchester city centre aerial view

Manchester, the birthplace of the world-famous, hedonistic Haçienda, is now home to Parklife Festival and Warehouse Project, amongst other eccentric events. MoveHub.com’s findings report that Manchester comes out on top for wild parties, partly down to having 818 nightlife venues per 100,000 people.

Manchester’s nightlife venue-to-people ratio is considerably higher than pretty much every city – Düsseldorf (698) and Miami (532) also have higher ratios – with most other metropolitan areas offering somewhere between 100–250. Manchester also came out on top for cannabis consumption, with a hefty 2.3 metric tonnes consumed per 100,000 of the population. That’s a lot of green!

Manchester City on a road map

It seems those up north definitely love a party, with MoveHub.com’s findings also placing Leeds in the top 10 wildest cities in the world, coming in at a solid 6th place.

Birmingham, the UK’s second city, comes in at a respectable 14th with a score of 2.32, while the largest city in the UK falters. London may be the UK’s capital, but in terms of hedonism, it’s well down the pecking order, flailing in at number 30 on the list with just 120 nightlife venues per 100,000 residents.

Broad Street, Birmingham city centre

As you may expect, the USA dominates the top 10, with Washington DC, Miami, Seattle, San Francisco, Denver and Boston proving their worth as party hot spots.

Speaking about the findings, Charlie Clissitt, the head researcher of the study, said: “Our study is the first of its kind and is a good indication of the best places to go if you want to let loose this summer.”

Charlie continues: “Everyone knows that all work and no play can make for a rather dreary time, and though there’s no denying that for some, curling up on a picnic blanket with a good summer read is all the looseness needed, for all the party animals out there, feast your eyes on the first definitive list of the world’s wildest cities – you’re welcome!”

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.

Culture Trip Spring Sale

Save up to $1,100 on our unique small-group trips! Limited spots.

X
Edit article