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When even the mayor is openly gay, it should come as no surprise that Berlin's nightlife is jumping every night of the week. Bars are clustered round Schoneberg's Nollendorf Plaza, Kreuzberg, Tiergarten, and Prenzlauer Berg. Loosen your tie and leave your briefcase at the hotel; whatever your fetish or fancy, you can be sure to find it in Berlin.
Pint After Work
Celebrate a successful day at campy Roses (Oranienstrasse 187; +49-30-615-6570). The fake fur-lined walls and ceiling and the kitsch interior of this Kreuzberg institution attract a mixed male/female crowd of chatty, friendly folks most nights of the week. After hours in a conservative office, this Minnelli-inspired Weimar cabaret is a feast for the eyes. The bar drips with accessories like pink shag walls, vinyl couches, and oversized disco balls.
Cafe Melita Sundstrom (Mehringdamm 61; +49-30-692-4414) is a warm cafe bar popular with lesbians and local gay men in front of the gay museum. Good coffees and tantalizing cakes tempt passers-by in off the busy street.
Video Report: Berlin
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Lounge Chairs
Axel Hotel's open-air Sky Bar (Lietzenburgerstrasse 13-15; +49-30-2100-2893; AxelHotels.com) offers an incredible space with a solarium, hammocks, spectacular views, and exquisite cocktails all on the top floor of the city's chicest gay hotel. It's the perfect place to lounge after a long day.
The 30-foot-long bar at the contemporary Bebel Bar at Hotel de Rome (Behrenstrasse 37; +49-30-460-6090; HotelDeRome.com) offers unparalleled views across historic Bebelplatz. A high stucco ceiling, muted brown hues, and an extensive cocktail menu that uses artisan liquors star in the main room.
Cute Suits
In gay district Schoneberg, scamper in Marlene Dietrich's footsteps for an evening stroll down Motzstrasse, the area's rainbow flag!-adorned drag, to lovely Viktoria-Luise-Platz. Bars are scattered along Motzstrasse and nearby Fuggerstrasse. Swing by stylish lounge Heile Welt (Motzstrasse 5; +49-30-2191-7507). The two-room lounge is always packed.
Nearby, Hafen (Motzstrasse 19; +49-30-211-4118; Hafen-Berlin.de) attracts a good mix of men and women, including a noticeable contingent of visitors to the city, perhaps drawn by flyers that proclaim, "Drop dead gorgeous tourists welcome."
Late Night Meetings
In Kreuzberg, Schwuz (Mehringdamm 61; +49-30-629-0880; Schwuz.de) is one of the city's most enjoyable club venues. Depending on the night, join an upbeat, easy-going crowd for everything from electronic sounds to garage noise.
Just a few doors down from Rose's, SO36 (Oranienstrasse 190; +49-30-6140-1308; SO36.de) is a lively, funky, super-fun dance club that is popular on the weekends, and is famous for its gay Turkish dance nights, where straights, gays, and drag queens alike belly dance the night away to Arab rhythms.
There's somewhere to dance every night of the week in Berlin. Check the listings in Siegessaule , a comprehensive Berlin gay magazine that also has a good website, albeit in German (Siegessaeule.de), for the most up-to-date club information. Their annual Out in Berlin guide is as comprehensive as it is indispensable. In Schoneberg, the gay information center Mann-O-Meter (Bulowstrasse 106: +49-30-216-8008; Mann-O-Meter.de) dispenses vital scene secrets.
