St. Pauli

St. Pauli is Hamburg's most notorious and, in its own way, most honest neighborhood: a former dockworkers' quarter that became a world-famous entertainment district without ever quite leaving its origins behind. The Reeperbahn is the spine, a little over half a mile of red-light district, music venues, musical theaters and snack stands, plus around 1,500 people who actually live there. This is where the Beatles played night after night from 1960 to 1962 and turned into a band; Beatles-Platz, a round steel plaza at the head of the Große Freiheit, marks the spot. On Sunday mornings the Fischmarkt takes over the waterfront from about 5am, with market criers outside and live bands inside the old Fischauktionshalle, drawing a crowd that is half early risers and half people who never went to bed. The Millerntor-Stadion is home to FC St. Pauli, the club whose skull-and-crossbones and left-wing fan culture are known far beyond Germany, and its position right in the middle of the neighborhood is part of the appeal. The working harbor is on the doorstep at the Landungsbrücken. Where to stay: St. Pauli is the right base if you want nightlife, live music and the harbor within walking distance and you do not mind noise. It is not the choice for light sleepers or most families. Getting there: S1 or S3 to Reeperbahn, U3 to St. Pauli or Feldstraße, U3 and S1/S3 to Landungsbrücken, plus the HADAG harbor ferries 61, 62, 72, 73 and 75 from the piers.