Munich gay
Munich Gay Travel Guide 2025
Upcoming Events in Munich
| 20 September – 5 October 2025
Oktoberfest 2025: the largest annual fair in the earth, with more than five million visitors and massive amounts of beer and hearty fare.
Usually, the gay day is on the first Sunday in the Bräurosl tent (and less crowded on the second Monday in the Fischer-Vroni tent).
@ Theresienwiese
-› oktoberfest.de
About Munich and its gay life
Munich is the capital of the Free Express of Bavaria and after Berlin and Hamburg the third largest city in Germany. Located in the foothills of the Alps, it offers many opportunities for recreation and sporting activities in a breathtaking scenery. Munich is a very wealthy city and a popular location for media and IT companies.
The special flair and Bavarian way of life have always attracted great minds, such as the composers Gustav Mahler, Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner, the writers Thomas Mann, Rainer Maria Rilke, Frank Wedekind, Lion Feuchtwanger and Bertolt Brecht, and the group of artists called ›Der Blaue Reiter‹ who made Munich a center of modern art at the beginning of the 20th century.
Gay Munich – the optimal gay hotels, bars, clubs & more
Beer may be what the world knows Munich for—largely thanks to the world-renowned festival Oktoberfest—but the German city also has a rich historical legacy left by the—rather camp-looking—Bavarian royalty who once called it home. Munich has stunning architecture and huge parks, a nightlife to rival cities twice its size, and it holds its own as a queer mecca, with an active and unabashedly visible—not to mention openly kinky—gay community.
Situated in the heart of the Bavaria region of Germany, Munich is part of Germany’s “gay five”—the others existence Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, and Cologne. The gay scene is deeply integrated into the fabric of the city’s social and cultural life, creating an atmosphere of inclusivity that resonates throughout.
Munich is an uncover book, where you’ll always find something stimulating to do just by strolling around its charming streets. From the bustling Marienplatz Square to the grandiose Munich Residenz palace to the lush Englischer Garten with its artificial surfing river, Munich is Germany at its best. And yes, there’s also beer… a lot of beer!
Table of Contents
1. General
Just what are the strongholds of the gay scene in Germany? The funky city of Cologne: of course; dark, glistening Berlin: sure thing. But Munich? When it comes to Munich, people think of “Weißwurst“ (traditional white sausage), BMW cars and the Bayern Munich football team – along with more conservative life-styles. The truth that Germany's largest “men's sauna“ is located right in Munich city centre is a source of astonishment for many. This is no secret: after all, Munich has always been a tolerant and joyful city.
The “Deutsche Eiche“ near Gärtnerplatz square is not a bad place. Even here, in contrast to Berlin's “Berghain“ club, everyone is allowed in. 10,000 visitors a month make their way to the saunas at the “Deutsche Eiche“. Sure, some come for the versatile spa landscape, quite possibly the most beautiful in Munich. But most visitors come to enjoy rapid and uncomplicated sex here.
But above all, in the "Eiche" – as it is soon to be called – members of Munich's gays community arrive here to meet. If you want to understand more about it, you have to ask Dietmar Holzapfel. The 61-year-old
Gay Bars in Munich
Sub
Monday-Thursday 19:00 – 23:00;Friday 19:00 – 24:00;Saturday 20:00 – 01:00;Sunday 15:00/19:00 – 23:00
Open cafe and bar of the Sub e.V. (non-profit gay counselling, communication and cultural centre).
Quite popular at weekend nights.subonline.org
@ Müllerstraße 14
Munich 80469U: Sendlinger Tor, Fraunhoferstraße; Tram, Night bus: Müllerstraße
+49 89 856 346 400
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Café Nil
Daily 15:00 – 03:00
One of the longest running homosexual bars and cafes in Munich, popular especially with regular guests.
In summer with street terrace.cafenil.com
@ Hans-Sachs-Straße 2
Munich 80469Tram: Müllerstraße; U: Fraunhoferstraße, Sendlinger Tor
+49 89 23 88 95 95
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Edelheiss
Daily 15:00 – 01:00;Friday, Saturday till 03:00
Traditional beer lock with mainly middle-aged and mature men.
Many beards and bears.@ Pestalozzistraße 6
Munich 80469U, Tram, Bus: Sendlinger Tor
+49 89 265 453
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Kr@ftwerk
Daily from 10:00
LGBT+-friendly café, restaurant and cocktail bar.
In good weather with street.