Berlin CSD is on Saturday 28 July. | Photo: Wiki
After Cologne and Munich, it’s Berlin’s turn to host Christopher Street Day (CSD) this Saturday 28 July.
And this year will be a special one, as Berlin Pride is turning 40.
The annual march returns to the German capital for a whole day of music, fun, and entertainment, as well as political speeches. The occasion also provides a chance to look back at CSD’s long history.
[embedded content]
This year’s CSD parade
The theme for 2018 CSD is My Body, My Identity, My Life. Marchers will take to the streets to celebrate their true self at 12pm at Kurfürstendamm.
The flamboyant parade will finish at 2pm in Brandenburger Tor. Moreover, Brandenburg Gate has been chosen as the iconic location for the final rally.
Berlin Pride or CSD in 2007. | Photo: Wiki
The stage
The huge Pride Village will be open from 2 pm until midnight on Saturday. However, the actual stage programme starts at 4:30 pm.
A variety of bands, acts and DJs will be performing on the main stage. There will also be speeches, actions and the presentation of the Soul of Stonewall Award ceremony.
Meanwhile, a number of hot DJs will keep revelers going non-stop on the two music stages inside the village.
The parties
Those attending Berlin Pride can continue to party at the official Pride events in the Kreuzberg neighborhood. Together with Schöneberg, Kreuzberg is a very popular LGBTI-friendly area, boasting several clubs and bars.
The famous nightclub GMF in central Berlin will also host one of the unmissable parties in town on Saturday, the Pride Festival MegaTruck.
On the same day, there will also be the chance to attend a CSD festival on a boat. All you need to do is heading over to the CSD auf der Spree for a river tour.
CSD in 2012. | Photo: Wiki
The history of CSD
The Pride parade is known as CSD in both Germany and Switzerland.
It started as the commemoration of the first Pride parade in New York, the so-called Christopher Street Liberation Day which took place in 1970, one year after the Stonewall Riots.
Folsom and Hustlaball await
Folsom Europe Berlin 2016. | Photo: Bernd Banaski
If you think this is the last LGBTI event in Berlin for this year, you need to think twice.
There will be another CSD festival in Lübeck, northern Germany. It will take place on 17-18 August, with the parade happening on Sunday.
Furthermore, the much-anticipated Folsom Europe returns to Berlin this 5-9 September for one of the biggest fetish events in Europe. The highlight of the weekend will be the Street Fair on 8 September at 12pm followed by the PIG party.
Later this year, HustlaBall Berlin will offer attendees the chance to mingle with world-renowned porn stars and see them perform on 19-21 October.
Started in 1998 in New York, this Berlin’s version has become incredibly successful thanks to its hardcore performances by a number of famous sex stars.
Read more about Prides:
Britney brings Vegas to the beach, b*tch: Brighton and Hove Pride is back
All you need to know about Pride Amsterdam’s suggestive Canal Parade
Forget all your bad dances: this inclusive Brighton prom is beautiful and queer AF
