Malaga is Europe’s most nocturnal city

Malaga has been named Europe’s ‘most 24-hour city,’ and fourth globally, a new study shows.

“It is not unusual to see the families strolling down Calle Larios in the city until 1.30am in Summer,” sayd Malaga resident Marcos Poyastro, 32. “Ice cream parlours, restaurants and bars are brimming with activity until the early hours of the morning,” he said.

Six of the world’s 10 most nocturnal cities are Spanish. These are Zaragoza, Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Sevilla and Malaga. The study places Malaga ahead of Paris, London or Rome.

New York famed as “the city that never sleeps” but Malaga makes the Big Apple seem like the Big Sleep, as do over 30 other cities across the world. While Cairo tops the global list, Madrid is Europe’s most nocturnal capital city (6th globally) and London its sixth.

In between come Brussels (11th globally), Istanbul (12th), Belgrade (14th) and Lisbon (15th).

This was revealed in the first global ranking of the world’s ‘most 24-hour’ cities, analysing 120 million online chats and flirts made over two months on social network Badoo, with 122 million users across 180 countries.

Cities were given ranked using a ‘nocturnal index’, based on peak time for chating and comparing activity between night and day.

By John Jackson