About To live music venues & clubs
Hamburg's live music scene grew up around St. Pauli, where the Große Freiheit and the Reeperbahn have hosted bands for decades. Today the club map stretches from the bunker on Feldstraße to Ottensen and the riverside, with Sporthalle Hamburg and the Stadtpark stage covering bigger shows in the north.
The venues at a glance
- Große Freiheit 36 – Große Freiheit, St. Pauli. Side street off the Reeperbahn, crowded with pedestrians at night.
- Docks – Spielbudenplatz, St. Pauli. Large club on the square, cars stop on the Reeperbahn side.
- Uebel & Gefährlich – inside the old flak bunker on Feldstraße. Stage on an upper floor, reached by lift and stairs.
- Knust – Neuer Kamp in the Karolinenviertel, by the old slaughterhouse grounds. Open-air shows on the Lattenplatz in summer.
- Hafenklang – Große Elbstraße, on the riverside between Fischmarkt and Altona.
- Fabrik – Barnerstraße in Ottensen, a former machine factory with galleries around the stage.
- Markthalle – Klosterwall, between the main station and the Deichtorhallen.
- Sporthalle Hamburg – Krochmannstraße in Alsterdorf, the closest arena to the airport.
- Stadtpark Open Air – the open-air stage in the Stadtpark, Winterhude, with a season that usually runs from late spring to September.
Große Freiheit and Docks: the Reeperbahn after dark
Große Freiheit fills with people from early evening, and drivers avoid pulling in. Expect to be dropped on the Reeperbahn at the corner by Nobistor, a minute's walk to the door. Docks is on the Spielbudenplatz, where your driver can stop in the side lane if it is not blocked by delivery vans. From HAM plan 25 to 40 minutes. In September, during the Reeperbahn Festival, the whole district runs on festival time and the last kilometre takes longest.
Bunker and Karoviertel: Uebel & Gefährlich and Knust
The bunker on Feldstraße is easy to find and hard to stop at: Feldstraße is a main road with a bus stop and a cycle lane. Drivers use the slip road on the Heiligengeistfeld side. Knust is a few hundred metres away in Neuer Kamp, a quieter street where a short stop is easier. On FC St. Pauli match days and during the Dom fair, both areas get gridlocked. Check the sports calendar before you fly in on a weekend.
By the river: Hafenklang and Fabrik
Hafenklang sits in an old port building on Große Elbstraße. The road is narrow and lined with fish wholesalers, and on Sunday mornings the Fischmarkt closes part of it. Fabrik lies inland in Ottensen's grid of one-way streets; Barnerstraße is reached from Bahrenfelder Straße or Max-Brauer-Allee. Both take 30 to 45 minutes from HAM via Ring 2 and Stresemannstraße. Staying nearby? See Altona.
Markthalle: the central option
The Markthalle is a short walk from the main station, which makes it handy if you are travelling on by train. From HAM it takes 20 to 35 minutes, the last part over Steintorwall or the Deichtorplatz, a bottleneck between 4 and 7 pm. Your driver stops on Klosterwall in front of the building, where there is a short service lane.
North of the Alster: Sporthalle Hamburg and Stadtpark Open Air
Sporthalle Hamburg is only 10 to 15 minutes from the terminals, often the quickest concert transfer in the city. It hosts concerts, comedy and handball, and on big nights Krochmannstraße is closed to through traffic, so the driver may stop on Alsterdorfer Straße.
The Stadtpark Open Air stage lies inside the park, so cars cannot reach the gate. Your driver drops you at the park entrance nearest the stage and you walk the last few minutes on park paths. Shows start early in the evening and the park fills fast in good weather.
Before you book
- Enter the club name and street, not just "St. Pauli".
- Add your flight number; the driver follows the arrival time and waits at the meeting point.
- Clubs have no cloakroom for cases, so plan a hotel stop or travel light.
