Relaxation in Cologne is less about retreat than about not having to force the city. Because the center is compact and the main nightlife grid is readable, slower travel works well here: a later breakfast, a walk through the old center, a return to the hotel before going out, and an evening that never becomes a major logistical project.

For some men, the sauna layer also belongs here, not only sexually but as a private part of the city’s broader gay infrastructure.