The chief hot spot in town is Alfa-Omega, Markedsgata 16 (tel. 78-44-54-00), attracting a crowd whose average age is from 30 to 40. There is no cover, and the place is definitely inspired by Cuba, with recorded salsa music, pictures of Havana, and Cuban cigars de rigueur. There are seats for 40, but often 70 to 80 patrons crowd in here. One section is a very laid-back bar; the other's a contemporary cafe. It's open Monday to Thursday from 11am to midnight, and Friday and Saturday from 11am to 2am. Its only drawback, according to some of the young and restless clients we met here, involves its lack of facilities for dancing.
If you want to go dancing, the town's only disco is Panella, which is situated on the lobby level of Alta's Rica Hotel, Løkkeveien 61 (tel. 78-48-27-00). Sporting a color scheme of black, red, and blue, and describing itself as a grown-up place for adults (most of the clientele is over 30), it allows guests of the Rica Hotel to enter free but charges nonresidents between 40NOK and 150NOK ($6.15-$23/£3.30-£6.15) each, depending on the musical venue (live or recorded) on the night of your arrival. It's open nightly from 8pm to between midnight (Sun-Thurs) and 2am (Fri-Sat).
