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Why We Love Cruising in Paris: Europe’s Strongest Sauna Scene – 9 Venues
Paris is not only the ‘city of love’ but the ‘city of great sex.’ There are plenty of sex on premises venues (SOPVs), from the most saunas of any city in Europe to dedicated cruise clubs to bars with dark rooms.
While Paris is a very gay-forward city, public activity is still governed by the country’s laws. Due to increased police presence outdoors, your best experiences will be found at the city’s famous licensed SOPVs, where you can play safely and legally.
Dedicated Cruise Venues
Paris has seven SOPVs where everyone there has one thing on their mind: hooking up. Most open mid-evening and close early morning, on Sundays, you’ll find some of them open in the afternoons. They’re all located in the 1st to 4th Arrondissements, in Central Paris, including some right in the center of Le Marais gayborhood.
Best for Newbies – Le SecteurX
Best for Saturday Night – Entre Deux Eaux-
Best Hardcore – Le Keller
Best for Group Activities – Krash
Le SecteurX
Le SecteurX is in Le Marais gayborhood and has been a dedicated cruise bar for years. The crowd is predominantly leather and bears, and everyone is there for the same reason: not to sit at the bar and chat. The staff are extremely welcoming and friendly, and speak some English. It opens at 3 pm daily and closes between 4 am and 6 am as the week progresses.
Le Mensch
Le Mensch, also in Le Marais gayborhood, is a popular, dedicated cruise bar with a medieval-themed labyrinth. There’s no strict dress code, but regulars enjoy decking themselves out in their finest cruising gear. The bar staff speak English and are very welcoming. Le Mensch opens nightly from 9 pm and closes at 3 am, 5 am, or 6 am as the week goes on. Entry is free, but they do ask that you at least have one drink before getting into the action.
Le Keller
For over 50 years, Le Keller has been the BDSM and FF club to have fun at. It has a strict dress code, including no perfumes, cosmetics, or flip-flop-style shoes. Jeans and tank tops can only be worn on certain nights, so check the website before heading out. The club offers pure hedonism at its finest, and visitors rarely leave disappointed. A range of play equipment, including slings, sling-boards, a St. Andrew’s Cross, espaliers, a gynaecological chair, a bathtub cage, glory holes, a pillory, urinals, and showers. Le Keller opens at 10 pm every night, and closes at 4 am weekdays, 5 am weekends, and on Sunday has different hours from 5 pm to midnight. Entry is €20, which includes one drink.
L’Impact
Who’s ready to get naked and leave your inhibitions at the door? If this sounds like you, L’Impact might be just the place to let it all hang out (literally). Located in the 2nd Arrondissement, L’Impact covers two levels. There’s a bar on the first level where you can drink and dance, but it’s the activity in the lower level that gets the people in the door. There are themed rooms with cabins, slings, and glory holes. L’Impact is open Monday to Saturday from 7 pm until 4 or 6 am and Sundays from 5 pm.
Krash
Sleazy, filthy, uninhibited fetish is what’s on offer at Krash in the Le Marais gayborhood. On the first floor is a bar, on the lower floor is the dirty, dark, tunnel-like basement where you can live out your kinkiest desires. If all-on group activity is what you crave, head there on a Saturday night. Deck yourself out in your best rubber, leather, skins, sportswear, nakedness, or suit and have the night of your life. Krash is open 3 pm to 5 am weeknights and 2 pm to 7 am weekends. Best of all, entry is free.
Entre Deux Eaux
Slightly to the north of Le Marais gayborhood is Paris’ other totally naked club, Entre Deux Eaux. There’s a bar on the first level, but head down to the basement, which is decked out like a laundromat, and you’ll find guys looking for some group activity. It’s a smaller venue than some of the others, and it can get very packed, especially on weekends. Entre Deux Eaux is open weekdays from 5 pm to 1 am and weekends until 5 am; on Sundays, it opens at 3 pm.
Full Metal
Also located in Le Marais gayborhood is fetish bar Full Metal. Shed your inhibitions at the door as you step inside. It’s got one level with a bar at the front and two backrooms where you’ll find playrooms. As it’s a fetish bar, dress code is recommended to include leather, rubber, skin, sport, uniforms, jeans, underwear, or just be totally naked. Condoms, lube, and gloves are provided at the bar. Full Metal is open 9 pm to 4 am weekdays, closes at 6 am Fridays and Saturdays, and opens 5 pm Sundays. Entry is €12.
Saunas
The sauna scene in Paris is one of the best in Europe. There are nine venues spread across the city, with a few in and around Le Marais gayborhood. There’s something for everyone, some are for bears and their admirers, there’s one for daddies and their companions, and there’s even one dedicated to the younger crowd. Two of them welcome everyone, and swinging is the order of the day there. Paris saunas range in price from €12 up to €55; if you’re under 26, you’ll get a discount at almost all of them.
Best for a Younger crowd – Sun City
The Most Facilities – IDM Sauna
Where to Find Mature Guys – Euro Men’s Club
Busiest on a Saturday Night – Les Bains d’Odessa
IDM Sauna
Safe, welcoming, friendly, and hygienic are the terms visitors to IDM Sauna in Montmartre use freely. Some call it the best sauna in Europe. There are 40 themed rooms, glory hole booths, a sauna, a workout room, and a lounge. Keep wandering around, and you’ll find a labyrinth, slings, darkrooms, sex beds, and X-rated video lounges. There are showers available, and condoms and lube are almost always in easy reach. IDM Sauna is open from midday until 1 am on weekdays and until 2 am on weekends. Entry fees start from €8 if you’re under 25, €12 if you’re under 35, and €16 for everyone else.
Key West Sauna
Key West Sauna is located near Gare du Nord, is one of the largest in Paris, with over 400 lockers. The facilities are spread over four floors, where you’ll find a hammam, spa and pool facilities, a state-of-the-art fitness room, dark rooms, and private cabins streaming gay adult videos, there’s also dedicated smoking areas. While this sauna caters to a very international crowd, if you’re into guys of color, you’ll especially enjoy this venue. Key West Sauna is open daily from midday and closes at 10 pm weekdays and midnight on Saturdays.
Euro Men’s Club
Euro Men’s Club in the 2nd Arrondissement is for mature men and their admirers. It’s in a discreet location, entered via a secret hallway, and you can feel confident that all members’ identities are kept secret at all times. This sauna is in the old bath-house style with a pool surrounded by Roman statues as its centerpiece. The venue also has a jacuzzi, a sauna, a hammam, private cabins, a steam room, a gay adult cinema, and a lounge area where you can chill out and socialize. Euro Men’s Club is open daily from 11 am to 8 pm, entry is €24 or €16 if you’re under 30.
Les Bains d’Odessa
One of Paris’ longest-standing public bath houses, Les Bains d’Odessa, was converted into a gay sauna and remains in its original location in Montparnasse. This massive venue covers 5 floors, where you’ll find a dry sauna, a giant steam room, a swimming pool, a maze, private cabins, a bar, and a dedicated smoking area. Visitors rave about how excellent the on-site massage service is. The crowd skews to an older demographic, with weekend evenings getting the more mixed visitors. Les Bains d’Odessa is open daily from midday to 10 pm, entry is €25 or €19 if you’re under 26.
Sun City
Sun City sauna on the outskirts of Le Marais gayborhood is well known as the party sauna where the young guys hang out. The swimming pool is where you’ll find the most fun, as skinny-dipping is the standard. You’ll also find a gym, steam bath, showers, sauna, maze, private cabins, dark rooms, and bar and lounge area. It’s known to get very busy most nights and even more so on weekends. Sun City is open from midday to 2 pm on Sundays to Thursdays and until 6 am on Fridays and Saturdays. The entry fee starts at €22 or €16 if you’re under 26; it’s slightly higher on weekends, and it includes two drinks.
Les Bains Thai
For an Asian-themed low-key sauna, head to Les Bains Thai near Montparnasse. Originally a Thai massage service, the sauna area is now a cruising place. You can still get exceptionally good Thai massages, but then have a play with the other customers before you leave. Les Bains Thai is open daily from midday until 10 pm. Sauna access is €20 or €12 if you’re under 26.
Le Riad
The Middle East comes to Paris with Le Riad sauna in the 20th Arrondissement. Some visitors claim it’s as equally as good as the ones in Istanbul. The large swimming pool next to the steam room is the primary play area, but there are plenty of other facilities. There’s a two-room hammam, a dry sauna, and private cabins. It gets a broad range of local and international men of all types. Le Riad is open daily from midday to 10 p,m and entry is €20 or half price at €10 if you’re under 26.
Atlantide Sauna
Atlantide Sauna near the Gare du Lyon is a bathhouse for everyone, so no matter how you identify, you’re welcome here; labels don’t exist, and everyone is free to be whatever they want to be. It’s a mixed gender venue at all times, so if this is outside your comfort level, this may not be the best place for you. However, if variety is the spice of your life, Atlantide is ideal. The entry fees range based on gender and age, so check the website before you go to determine where you fit on that spectrum tonight. Atlantide Sauna has straightforward operating hours, from midday to 10 pm daily.
Star City
Star City, south of Montmartre, is advertised as an adult entertainment center. In reality, it’s a bathhouse for everyone. However, unlike some all-gender saunas, Star City does have a men-only area containing a bar, a spacious lounge with a TV screen, a backroom, and some small cabins. The venue has three levels to explore before hitting the men-only area. During the week, the visitors are primarily men anyway, so the entire venue becomes a giant gay play area. Straight men are asked by the venue to have an open mind and “to behave in a gay-friendly manner” (whatever that might suggest). Star City is open from midday to 2 pm on Sundays to Thursdays and until 5 am on Fridays and Saturdays. It is the highest-priced venue in Paris; entry for men is €50 or €55 to use all the sauna facilities.
Bars With Back Rooms
For some people full-on cruise club can be too much. That problem is solved by these three gay bars that just happen to have back rooms, too. While the emphasis here is to drink and be social, playtime is an added extra.
Bear’s Den
Bear’s Den in Le Marais gayborhood is the prominent bear’s hangout in Paris. It’s a very fun social vibe, and the karaoke machine sure gets a workout. For those looking for some playtime, there’s a small dark room out back. The vibe here is very friendly, so cruising here is more relaxed and with genuines feels. Bear’s Den has nice, convenient hours from 4 pm until 2 pm daily.
One Way
One Way is an old-school style gay bar in the north of Le Marais gayborhood. It’s got a relaxed vibe in the bar, but downstairs, the video room and dark corners get their fair share of action. Predominantly a bar geared to the leather, denim, and bear crowd, everyone is welcome, and the playroom gets a broad range of visitors from very experienced to newbies. One Way is open daily from 6 pm until 2 am.
Quetzal
In the heart of Le Marais gayborhood, you’ll find Quetzal. It’s got something for everyone: hot guys, friendly, welcoming bar staff, dance music, pinball machines, and drag shows. For some quick action, head upstairs to the cozy dark room. Happy hour runs from 5 pm to 10 pm weeknights, and the bar gets very busy on weekends. Quetzal is open every day from 5 pm to 2 am.
Club Parties With Playrooms
Gay Dance parties are places where you can let yourself go and party surrounded by sexy shirtless guys. The challenge with this is that it sometimes gets your hormones racing, and you need some relief. Thankfully, there is one dance party that provides dark rooms purely for that kind of activity.
Morning Deviance
For many years, Morning Deviance operated at Le Next nightclub. After it closed down, it relocated to Workshow, which is on Rue Saint-Martin, which is becoming a new gayborhood in Paris. The party is held over two different floors, plays a combination of house and disco music by Guest DJs, and there is a playroom available during the parties. The event is held every couple of months, and tickets are typically €15-20 in advance, or €20-25 at the door.
Parks and Streets
For decades, there have been two outdoor areas where men hook up, one in West Paris and one in the East. You need to be aware that police presence has increased at both these parks at night, so cruising activities need to be very discreet.
Bois de Boulogne
Bois de Boulogne is a giant park on the western outskirts of the city. As the park is open 24 house most of the cruising activity happens in the evening, near the equestrian center or in the south in the densely wooded areas. Money boys frequent the park, so be sure to have that conversation before agreeing to hook up.
Bois de Vincennes
Bois de Vincennes is another giant park just to the east of the city. It contains a botanical garden and a zoo. Crusing happens in the evening mostly in Allée Royale, the wooded paths around Lac Daumesnil, and behind Château de Vincennes.
Street Cruising
Just walking around in Le Marais gayborhood is a cruising activity. Rue Sainte-Croix-de-la-Bretonnerie, Rue des Archives, and Rue Vieille du Temple are the main gay thoroughfares. If you see a guy you like, go up and say, maybe pop into one of the many gay bars there, and if things heat up, pop into a cruise club or sauna.
Is Cruising Legal in Paris?
France decriminalized homosexuality in 1791 and has strong LGBTQ+ protections. Paris is very gay-friendly, and cruising culture thrives in dedicated SOPVs without any legal issues. Outdoor cruising exists but carries the risk of police intervention. The safest and most accepted option is using the city’s many legal venues.
