Hamburg's Oldest Brothel to Close

Internet pornography, foreign prostitutes and a growing number of cheap dance clubs have been blamed for the closure of the oldest brothel in one of the world's most famous red-light districts.

Hotel Luxor, a family-run establishment set up in 1948 in the port-side district of St Pauli, will shut next month, its owner, Waltraud Mehrer, told the German press yesterday. It will be sold to an investor.

"It's no longer possible to make much money from real sex here in St Pauli," said Mehrer, who has run the business for 21 years. "The table-dance clubs are still in operation, but otherwise there's not much business to be done here any more. I blame it on the rise of internet porn, the popularity of call-girl services and the noisy discos and dance clubs," she told the Hamburger Morgenpost.

Customers were no longer willing to pay high prices for sex, and an influx of eastern European prostitutes had also caused prices to fall, she said.

Because it is near Hamburg's port, St Pauli has a long tradition as a red-light district. It is also regarded as the home of German punk. The Beatles came to Hamburg by boat from Liverpool in the 1960s and honed their act in the bars and clubs of St Pauli before returning home.

But the area has become increasingly violent over recent years, with police reporting a rise in drunken brawls and knife attacks. CCTV cameras have been installed and police patrols increased, which brothel owners also blame for putting off customers.

In the 1970s demand was so high that Hotel Luxor stayed open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and employed 12 prostitutes. Now it has four prostitutes and is open four nights a week.

Nicole, who has worked at Hotel Luxor for a year, said she used to earn an average of €2,000 (£1,540) a night. "Now I'm lucky if I get €200 a shift," she said.