Berlin’s Queer & Trans History – in Augmented Reality!

Discover where it all began: The world’s modern LGBTQIA+ emancipation movement started in Berlin more than 100 years ago! Explore it all in this one-of-a-kind guided city tour with Augmented Reality elements!

What will I get from the tour?

This is a one-of-a-kind guided city tour that you will not find anywhere else!

Go Back to Where It All Began

The origins of the world’s modern LGBTQIA+ identity movement lie in Berlin. Traceback our history to better understand where we are coming from.

Reconnect With Your History

Beaten to Death. Silenced to Death. Queer and trans history are often ignored and deliberately forgotten for a reason: People who don’t know their history are easier to discriminate against. Break the cycle of ignorance and learn about our movement’s history!

Discover “the World’s First Gay Man”

Explore the life of Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, how he developed the world’s first queer and trans identities, and how he fought against the criminalization of homosexuality. Understand how this laid the cornerstone for our global movement.

Explore the World’s First Trans Identities & Gender Affirmation Surgeries

Learn who coined the terms “transvestite” and “transexualism”. Discover so-called “transvestite certificates” and the story of Lili Elbe, Dora Richter, and Karl M. Baer, the world’s first trans people to undergo gender affirmation surgeries.

Learn About the Science Behind Intersex & Non-Binary

Get to know sexual scientist Magnus Hirschfeld’s theory of “sexual intermediaries” and why the world today would think completely differently about gender and non-binary identities if the Nazis had not destroyed this young movement.

Understand the Impact of 1920s Berlin’s Lesbian Life on the World

Discover the vibrant lesbian life in the Roaring Twenties and how Marlene Dietrich popularized their fashion style internationally. Get to know Germany’s most famous lesbian singer Claire Waldoff and the story of bisexual Black dancer Josephine Baker.

Find Out What Happened in Nazi Germany

Understand Hitler’s contradictory relationship to homosexuality, why there were openly gay Nazis, and what happened to LGBTQIA+ people in the Nazi concentration camps.

Grasp the Trauma of the AIDS Crisis

Better understand why an entire generation of gay and bisexual men was traumatized by the AIDS crisis, how the West-Berlin nightclub SchwuZ became the center of activism, and why the Berlin Wall was referred to as the condom of the GDR.

Discover How Berlin’s LGBTQIA+ Community Shaped the City’s World-Renowned Nightlife

From the trans community’s “Chez Romy Haag” and its nightlife revolution to the Metropol’s gay community; from SO36’s Gayhane to the emergence of Berghain as the world’s most famous club: Gain an appreciation for the influence of the queer and trans communities to Berlin’s internationally acclaimed nightlife – and learn about where to best go out in Berlin today.

Join a Queer Activist, Certified Social Scientist, and Sex Educator Tour Guide

My name is Jeff, I studied sociology and gender studies and focused a lot on sexuality and queer theory. I am also a certified sex educator and freelance journalist about queer life in Berlin, as well as a longtime LGBTQIA+ activist. During my tour, I’ll share with you my knowledge accumulated from more than a decade’s worth of research.

Enjoy a Fun Day with Augmented Reality

This guided tour is enhanced with selected Augmented Reality elements. Over your tour guide’s iPad’s camera, you’ll see the world in front of you with Augmented Reality elements over it. For instance, you can demonstrate alongside queer activists of times gone by. Or you can see the building in front of you how it looked like 100 years ago. You can also take pictures of yourself with the Augmented Reality elements as a souvenir from the tour. (Powered by ZAUBAR)
Three people standing around Claire Waldoff in Augmented Reality

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Book now

Select tour Select date and price Fill out the booking form and place order

What do I need to bring?

  1. A valid public transport ticket as we will travel by underground or bus.
  2. An umbrella or sun protector and water depending on weather conditions. (Please be aware that the tour will be cancelled in extreme weather conditions, like heavy rain or storm, and you will be fully refunded.)
  3. A curious mind and no reluctance to be entertained or shocked.

When and where does the tour happen, and how long does it take?

Berlin’s Queer & Trans* History in Augmented Reality starts in front of Bellevue Palace (Schloss Bellevue, Spreeweg 1, 10557 Berlin). We meet under the trees on the right side when facing the palace, right by the street. For times, please check the schedule calendar when booking your tickets.

The guided Berlin tour lasts about 3.5 hours and ends at Wittenbergplatz. From there you get excellent public transport connections to anywhere in the city.

Eine Person steht neben 4 weiteren Personen in Augmented Reality und zeigt lachend auf sie.

What does it cost, and what else do I need to know?

Pricing

The guided Berlin tour costs 49.00€ per person.

There is a 50% discount for students. Please bring a valid student ID to the tour to confirm you are a student.

 

There is also a 50% discount for people working or volunteering in LGBTIQ activism. IMPORTANT: This booking only becomes valid when you email [email protected] AFTER the booking process with a link to your work that proves you’re eligible for this price.

Finally, there are discounts for group bookings:

  • 3-4 people get a 20% discount.
  • 5 or more people get a 30% discount.

Language

The guided Berlin tour is in English. However, German tours can be offered as private tours on request for 250€ (up to 9 participants), 300€ (10-14 participants), 350€ (15-19 participants), or 400€ (20+ participants). For German tours, please send me an email to [email protected] 

Other info

  • This entire guided Berlin tour is accessible by wheelchair.
  • This is a unique guided tour in Berlin that also makes an excellent gift for loved ones!
  • You can also book a private tour. To request, please send an email to [email protected]! Prices are:
    • up to 9 participants: 250€
    • 10-14 participants: 300€
    • 15-19 participants: 350€
    • 20+ participants: 400€
  • This guided Berlin tour is only suitable for people who are at least 18 years of age.
  • Please be aware of the trigger/content warnings, which include: animal cruelty, antisemitism, BDSM/kinks/fetishes, HIV/AIDS, homophobia, human trafficking, (mass) murder, Nazi Germany, poverty, racism, sex, sexism, sexual abuse, (sexualized) violence against and abuse of children, sex work/prostitution, transphobia, and violence (physical, psychological, sexualized).

What are the exact stops of this guided Berlin tour?
  1. Meeting at Palace Bellevue
    1. Introduction
  2. Magnus-Hirschfeld-Ufer
    1. Karl Heinrich Ulrichs as “the world’s first gay man” and the world’s first queer identities
    2. Magnus Hirschfeld and the world’s first organization for LGBTQIA+ rights
    3. Feminism, Johanna Elberskirchen and Helene Stöcker
    4. The fight against §175: Berlin’s third gender, petitions and the film “Different from the Others”
    5. Hirschfeld’s theory of sexual intermediaries
      1. Intersexuality
      2. Early trans identities & so-called “transvestite certificates”
      3. Dora Richter, Lili Elbe, Karl M. Baer and the world’s first gender affirmation surgeries
    6. Attacks on Hirschfeld
    7. Hirschfeld’s partners
    8. The Institute for Sexual Science
    9. The destruction of the Institute by the Nazis
    10. Hirschfeld’s death, his legacy and post-colonial critique
  3. Memorial to the Persecuted Queers under National Socialism
    1. Adolf Brand and right-wing gays
    2. Ernst Röhm, gay Nazis and Hitler’s attitude to homosexuality
    3. The Night of the Long Knives
    4. Queer and trans people in the concentration camps
  4. Schwerinstraße
    1. Lesbian life in Berlin in the 1920s
    2. The lesbian club Toppkeller
    3. The Lavender Song
    4. Claire Waldoff
    5. Josephine Baker, bisexuality and racism
  5. Nollendorfstraße
    1. The homosexual department of the Berlin police force
    2. Male gay life in Berlin in the 1920s
    3. Christopher Isherwood
    4. From Isherwood’s novels to the cabaret musical
    5. Isherwood’s escape with Heinz Neddermeyer
  6. Speisekammer im Eldorado
    1. The Eldorado, drag and the so-called “Transvestites”
    2. Nazi Ernst Röhm at the Eldorado
  7. Eisenherz Bookstore
    1. The Homosexual Aktion West-Berlin and the SchwuZ club
    2. Trans woman Charlotte von Mahlsdorf and queer movements in East Berlin
  8. International Stele Always Remember
    1. The SchwuZ club and the AIDS crisis
    2. The media and Rita Süssmuth versus Peter Gauweiler
    3. AIDS in the GDR
    4. HIV & AIDS today
  9. Connection Club
    1. Chez Romy Haag: The trans community & the nightclub revolution
    2. Metropol: The gay community & the techno precursor
  10. Wittenbergplatz
    1. Folsom Europe: Europe’s biggest fetish festival
    2. SchwuZ club today
    3. SO36 club: Black Gay Night, Gayhane, “Trümmertunten” and Kiezbingo
    4. Kreuzberg Pride & Dyke* March
    5. Berghain
      1. Bunker & early Snax parties
      2. Ostgut
      3. Elon Musk
      4. The no-photo policy of Berlin clubs
      5. Sexism and Heteronormativity
      6. Sexuality at Berghain
      7. Judith Butler, Gender Performance and Gender Fucking
      8. Queer Critique
      9. The Lab.Oratory, Snax Parties today and Lady Gaga
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