Best Cruising Areas in Groningen

The Martinitoren rings out over the Grote Markt, and a river of bicycles pours past the cafés, rattling over the cobbles towards the student houses. Groningen is young, loud and late: a university city where the bars on the Poelestraat and Peperstraat are still full when the bells strike two, and where the wind off the flat northern fields finds you on every bridge. For gay cruising, though, the honest summary is short. The city's men's sauna closed in 2016 and its old darkroom bars are long gone, and we found no sauna, cruise club or darkroom operating here in 2025 or 2026. What Groningen does have is a warm, small bar scene, a lively queer club calendar, a June Pride and plenty of men on the apps.

Legal in one line: the Netherlands was the first country to open civil marriage to same-sex couples, in 2001, and Groningen is a relaxed, LGBTQ+-friendly city. Sex in public is a different matter: under Article 239 of the Dutch Criminal Code (schennis van de eerbaarheid, offending public decency), indecent acts in a place open to the public can bring up to three months in prison or a fine.

What's left indoors: nothing dedicated, for now

For decades Groningen served the whole of the northern Netherlands. Gay men from across the north knew 't Pakhuisje, the men's sauna on the Schuitemakersstraat, and the city's darkroom bars. All of them have gone. When 't Pakhuisje closed in 2016, the then chair of COC Groningen-Drenthe told local broadcaster OOG that the number of gay venues in the city had fallen sharply.

We checked Dutch- and English-language sources for any sauna, cruise club, darkroom or video-cabin venue open in 2025 or 2026 and found none we could confirm. A few international directories still carry old sauna listings for the Groningen area without hours, reviews or a working website; treat those as unverified and don't travel on the strength of them. If you want a proper sauna or darkroom night, plan it for a bigger Dutch city.

The Amsterdam option

Amsterdam is roughly two hours away by NS Intercity, depending on the connection; some trains from the north run to Amsterdam Zuid rather than Centraal, so check the NS journey planner before you set off. misterb&b, whose Amsterdam venue data was verified in April 2026, lists Sauna Nieuwezijds (Nieuwezijds Armsteeg 95), the city's dedicated gay sauna, and the cruise club Church (Kerkstraat 52). Check each venue's own site for hours and theme nights, and see the gay Amsterdam guide for more.

Closed: 't Pakhuisje (Schuitemakersstraat 17), the men's sauna, closed in June 2016 after 36 years. The old darkroom bars, The Mac and De Golden Arm, closed long before that.

Where men meet now: the bars

None of these is a cruise venue: there are no darkrooms or play areas. They are where the gay night out starts, and in a city this size, where you'll see the same faces you saw on the apps.

Café De Prins

Café De Prins (Zwanestraat 3) is a gay café open since 2017 and, according to the city's own Rainbow Walk brochure, open to everyone. Expect a long cocktail list and music running from 80s hits to current tracks. The university's student blog mentioned pub quizzes, a drag show on the second Friday of the month and Dutch music on Sundays; check the bar's socials for this month's programme. The bar sponsors Pride Groningen and sits on its board.

Dorothy's Drag Bar

Dorothy's (Pottebakkersrijge 2) calls itself the "Cocktail & Entertainment Bar of the North" and a proud LGBTQIA+ safe space where "everyone is welcome." It opened on these premises after the old gay bar De Rits closed in 2020. The programme is drag shows, drag karaoke, bingo and quizzes. Its website lists opening hours as Thursday 18:00–23:45, Friday 18:00–01:00, Saturday from 18:00 "until the party stops" and Sunday 18:00–midnight.

Ons Moeke

Ons Moeke (Paterswoldseweg 42, Zeeheldenbuurt) is a snack bar and gay café, run by its owner Jantina for more than 16 years, according to Visit Groningen. It's cheap food and conversation rather than nightlife, and a good place to ask locals what's on.

Queer club nights

BUTTS is a queer night focused on music, self-expression and body positivity, which the city's brochure says runs four times a year, and MISFIT is an inclusive underground rave with club nights and a festival. Dates move around, so follow both on social media.

Outdoors: what the law says, and why we don't go there

Some older listings, online and in print, name parks and lakesides around Groningen as cruising areas. We don't give directions. Article 239 of the Dutch Criminal Code makes indecent acts punishable when they happen in a place meant for public traffic, in another public place open to under-16s, or anywhere someone else is present against their will; the maximum is three months in prison or a fine. On top of that, every Dutch municipality has its own local bylaw, the Algemene Plaatselijke Verordening (APV), and police can fine you or send you away under it. Parks and lakes are also used by families, dog walkers and the city's thousands of students, and at night you are an easy target for robbery or worse. Meet on the apps, then go somewhere private.

Local colour

Groningers greet each other with a short moi, at any hour. Before a night out, try an eierbal, the local snack-bar classic of a hard-boiled egg coated in ragout, breaded and deep-fried, or a bowl of Groninger mustard soup in a brown café. A slice of spiced Groninger koek is the thing to take home. The night runs late: the student bars around the Poelestraat, Peperstraat and Grote Markt don't really fill up until after midnight, and many stay open well into the small hours. Afterwards, half the city seems to cycle home along the canals of the Diepenring, the old water ring around the centre, with the Martinitoren standing over the rooftops.

Practical tips

• Get a bike. Groningen is built for cycling, and most locals get everywhere on two wheels; hire one for your stay. Lock it to something solid, use lights after dark, and remember that cycling drunk is an offence in the Netherlands too.
• Getting home: the centre is compact and walkable. Buses thin out late in the evening, so check the times in your journey-planner app before you go out, or book a taxi.
• Cards: the Netherlands is close to cashless; debit and credit cards are accepted almost everywhere, and some places don't take cash at all.
• Apps: Grindr and Romeo are both widely used. With thousands of students in town the apps are busiest in term time and quieter in summer. Meet new contacts in a bar first, and tell a friend where you are going.
• Health: the regional health service (GGD) runs a free sexual health clinic; book online. If you think you've been exposed to HIV, PEP should be started as soon as possible and within 72 hours: go to the GGD or a hospital emergency department.
• Community: COC Groningen-Drenthe (cocgd.nl) organises meetings, information and support for LGBTQ+ people across the north, and Visit Groningen lists rainbow cafés in Haren, Delfzijl, Winschoten, Zuidhorn and elsewhere in the province.
• History walk: the municipality publishes the Regenboogstadswandeling (Rainbow City Walk) online, a self-guided route of about 90 minutes and 21 stops through the centre, starting at the Groninger Museum. Stops include the rainbow benches on the Praediniussingel, whose QR codes link to stories of local LGBTI+ people, and the former bar De Rits, now Dorothy's.

Pride Groningen

Pride Groningen takes place in June. The 2026 edition ran from 19 to 21 June, with a city-wide programme and a Pride agenda open to local organisations and businesses. The organisers have announced the 2027 edition for 25 to 27 June 2027; the programme will follow on pridegroningen.nl.

A few words of Dutch (and Gronings)

• Moi – hello (and goodbye), the Groningen way.
• Homo – gay man. Homobar or homocafé – gay bar.
• Toestemming – consent. Nee – no. Stop – stop.
• Kluisje – locker. Handdoek – towel.
• Fiets – bike. Fietsenstalling – bike park.
• Pinnen – to pay by card. Alleen pinnen – card only.
• Proost! – cheers. Dank je wel – thank you.
• Schennis van de eerbaarheid – the legal term for offending public decency.

At a glance

Frequently asked questions

Is there a gay sauna in Groningen?

Not any more. The city's men's sauna, 't Pakhuisje on the Schuitemakersstraat, closed on 12 June 2016 after 36 years, citing falling visitor numbers. We found no gay sauna operating in Groningen in 2025 or 2026.

Are there darkrooms or cruise bars in Groningen?

None that we could find in 2026; the last darkroom bars closed years ago. Café De Prins and Dorothy's are social bars with drag and music, not cruise venues. For a sauna or cruise club, Amsterdam is the nearest big option.

Is outdoor cruising legal in the Netherlands?

Being gay is fully legal, but sex in public is not. Article 239 of the Dutch Criminal Code makes indecent acts in a place open to the public punishable with up to three months in prison or a fine, and local bylaws (APV) add their own rules. We don't give directions to outdoor spots.

When is Pride Groningen?

Every June. The 2026 edition was held from 19 to 21 June, and the 2027 dates are 25 to 27 June. The programme appears on pridegroningen.nl.

Where do gay men meet in Groningen?

In the bars and on the apps. Café De Prins on the Zwanestraat and Dorothy's Drag Bar on the Pottebakkersrijge are the main LGBTQ+ bars, and queer club nights such as BUTTS and MISFIT run through the year. Grindr and Romeo are widely used.

Part of the GayOut cruising series. See the full gay Groningen guide for bars, hotels and events.