Große Freiheit, Ecke Reeperbahn
20359 Hamburg
The world’s most notorious amusement street. Neon façades, prostitution, table-dance bars and sex shops define the red-light district in St. Pauli.
Große Freiheit, Ecke Reeperbahn
20359 Hamburg
The world’s most notorious amusement street. Neon façades, prostitution, table-dance bars and sex shops define the red-light district in St. Pauli.


Urban and maritime ambiance between amusement centre and harbour: On the ancient area of the Bavaria-Brewery (ASTRA), at the top of the Landungsbrücken, between Davidstraße (David Street), Hopfenstraße (Hopfen Street), Zirkusweg (Zirkus Alley) and Bernhard-Nocht-Straße (Bernhard-Nocht-Street) a complete new district grew up. Since a few years it is not possible anymore to ignore the social change in the district St.Pauli. The Area of the old Bavaria-Brewery is for many ex-residents and critics the unloved symbol of the gentrification. Within the framework of the proposed urban-planning development the 30.000 square meter large area was fragmented into six building areas, which have all their own style of architecture. A square with supermarket, bakery, drugstore and banks generates the center of the new “district-in-the-district”. At the corner Bernhard-Nocht-Straße 3 / Davidstraße the Empire-Riverside-Hotel was built, including the 20up Bar on the 20st floor and at the Zirkusweg the spectacular Atlantic-Haus raises 90 meters into the sky. Also the view from the highest level of the 60 meter high Astra-Tower with a comfortable Roof-Terrace is amazing.

Every Sunday morning, between 6 and 10am, the famous fish market of St. Pauli takes place, directly on the Elbe embankment, on a broad cobblestone promenade with old lampposts lined by clinker houses. Goods of all sorts are being sold within this incredible maze of stands and stalls, the early morning buzz of the harbour in the background. Noisy vendors offer fruit, plants and eels to passers-by. Barges with fresh fish are towed to a pontoon further away. In 1989, the Minerva fountain, made of sandstone, which had stood in the middle of the fish market from 1742 until the beginning of the Second World War, was put back. The picture of a woman on the fountain was designed by Hans Kock replacing the Minerva that used to be there.

Near the quays where the ferries dock, the "Landungsbrücken", stands the building housing the entrance to the old tunnel which runs underneath the river Elbe. It was opened in 1911. The classicist style of the brown sandstone square building, with its cupola and tall windows, is reminiscent of the Pantheon in Rome. A much simpler version stands at the other end of the tunnel on island of Steinwerder where the docks are. Escalators, stairs and elevators (for vehicles) descend to two parallel-running tunnels which are 410 metres long. Hundreds of light bulbs on both sides are reflected in the tunnels" tiled walls decorated with maritime motifs.