Nightlife

Once a dismal place to go out on the town, Bonn now has a thriving fine-arts community and a brisk nightlife. If you're in the area around the first Saturday in May, don't miss the spectacular annual fireworks display, visible for a distance of 26km (16 miles) south of the city.

The Performing Arts

Bonn has always struggled with the perception that it can't compete with the larger arts communities in Hamburg and Berlin, and consequently it compensates (or overcompensates) with an impressive roster of cultural events. One of the most visible is "La Scala of the Rhineland," the Oper der Stadt Bonn, Am Boeselagerhof (tel. 0228/778000; www.theater-bonn.de; S-Bahn: Hauptbahnhof), where ballet and opera are performed at regular intervals mid-August to June. Box office hours are Monday to Friday 10am to 3:30pm, Saturday 9:30am to noon, and Sunday 10am to 2pm. Tickets are 9€ to 115€ ($14-$184) each, depending on the event.

The Bonn Symphony Orchestra performs in Beethovenhalle, Wachsbleiche 16 (tel. 0228/7222-0; S-Bahn: Hauptbahnhof), September to June, with occasional free concerts given on Sunday mornings. Otherwise, tickets cost 15€ to 62€ ($24-$99). On a more intimate scale, chamber music is sometimes presented within a small but charming concert hall within the Beethoven House (tel. 0228/981750 for details).

During the Bonner Summer Festival, mid-May to August, an international selection of dance and music groups performs, mostly for free, in open-air locations around the city. Contact tel. 0228/201030 or 0228/2010345 for details. In addition, the Beethoven Festival, a rekindling of both the nostalgia and the music associated with Bonn's greatest musical genius, takes place in late August and September. Contact the visitor information center for information.

Bonn's Theater-Kasse, Windeckstrasse 1 (tel. 0228/775000; S-Bahn: Hauptbahnhof), is a well-known and highly resourceful ticket agency associated with the city's tourist office. It has access to tickets for virtually every sporting, entertainment, and cultural venue in Bonn. Also call for information on performers, schedules, and prices.

Clubs & Bars

Dance Clubs -- A weekend-only club, Sharon, Oxfordstrasse 20-22 (tel. 0228/656760; S-Bahn: Hauptbahnhof), is straight out of the 1970s, with dancing to soul and funk under a spinning mirror ball and strobe lights. It's open Friday and Saturday 10pm to 5am, with an 8€ to 10€ ($13-$16) cover.

Live Music & Cabaret -- The Pantheon Theater, Bundeskanzlerplatz (tel. 0228/212521; bus: 610), stages jazz and pop concerts, comedy shows, and political cabaret. Nearly every weekday there is a performance of some sort. Friday and Saturday, the facility becomes a dance club. The box office is open Monday to Friday noon to 6:30pm.

Bars -- Pawlow, Heerstrasse 64 (tel. 0228/653603; S-Bahn: Tanninbusche Sud), has an alfresco terrace. While here, don't let appearances intimidate you -- a sometimes fierce-looking crowd with tattoos and body piercings is actually a bored intelligentsia at heart. Pawlow is open daily 10am to 1am (hours are later on weekends).

Gay Bars -- The most crowded gay bar is Boba's Bar, Josefstrasse 17 (tel. 0228/650685; S-Bahn: Hauptbahnhof), near the railway station, adjacent to the Rhine. It welcomes a drinking (but not dancing) crowd in their 20s and 30s. It's open Tuesday to Sunday 8pm to 3am and Friday and Saturday 8pm to 5am. There's also Le Copain, Berliner Platz 5 (tel. 0228/639935; S-Bahn: Berliner-von-Suttner-Platz), which attracts a somewhat older clientele and is open 4pm to 1 or 2am.