Deeply conservative Bavaria is not the best part of Germany in which to be gay. Nonetheless, Munich has one of Germany's most active and visible gay scenes, centred on the bars in and around Gärtnerplatz. The widely available Columbia Fun Map shows the main gay meeting-places; there's also a glossy monthly magazine for gays entitled Our Munich (despite its name, it's in German only). There's a shop of the same name at Müllerstr. 36-38, while the main information point, the Schwules Kommunikations- und Kulturzentrum, is at Müllerstr. 43 (tel 0 89/60 30 56).

 

The Women's Centre, Frauenzentrum, Güllstr. 3 (tel 0 89/7 25 42 71), runs a series of workshops and a café for all women, not just lesbians. On Tuesday between 1pm and 8pm, women from 13 to 20 years meet in the café, with Friday evenings specifically for lesbians. Cafés that cater predominantly for lesbians are Inge's Karotte , Baaderstr. 13, Frauencafé im Kofra , Baldestr. 8, and Mädchenpower-Café , Baldestr. 16. The only nightclub is Mylord , Ickstättstr. 2a (daily 6-9pm, 6pm-3am weekends).

Among the many gay men's bars, the following are the best known: Colibri , Utzschneiderstr. 8; Juice , Buthelmelcherstr. 2a; Klimperkasten , Maistr. 28; Nil , Hans-Sachs-Str. 2; and Teddybar , Hans-Sachs-Str. 1. New York , Sonnenstr. 25 (10pm-4am), is a gay disco offering chart and dance sounds, while Ochsengarten , Müllerstr. 47, is a leather bar. Blue Moon , Oberanger 38, caters for both gays and lesbians, as does the disco Fortuna , Maximiliansplatz 5. Morizz , Klenzestr. 47, is a recommendable gay-run restaurant that attracts plenty of straight customers.