Atlantis is one of the largest German brothels, located in an industrial area of Altenstadt, some 30 km north of Frankfurt am Main. It was opened in the fall of 2000 and was closed by authorities in March 2004 because of (as yet unproven) charges of large-scale tax evasion, pimping and trafficking in women. It was reopened in October 2004, but closed again a few days later.

The brothel itself resembles a spa, with indoor and outdoor pools, jacuzzi, three saunas, professional massage parlors, and a free bar (serving only non-alcoholic beverages). Pornographic movies are shown on several TV screens. Men walk around wrapped in towels, women are nude.

On the average, women make about 4,000 euros per month. Legally, the women have to pay taxes over this, but few do since it is a cash-only business. Atlantis has an attached hostel where women can stay for 15 euros per night, sharing a room with three others. Some women have pimps who pick them up after the shift ends at 04:00.

About 30-60 women sell sexual services. The majority of the women working in Atlantis are foreigners, mainly from Eastern Europe, the Caribbean, South America, Thailand, and Africa. Some of them lack legal work permits, and this is why the police occasionally carried out raids in Atlantis. Prostitution itself is legal in Germany, so the legally resident prostitutes and the customers face no consequences during these raids (except embarrassment), unless they carry illegal drugs.

Mandatory health checks for registered prostitutes have been abandoned by the German government since January 1, 2001, but Atlantis requires regular STD and HIV tests from the working women.

In March 2004, police raided Atlantis and closed the club. Some 17 women were arrested for immigration violations. Two operators of the club were arrested under charges of tax evasion, pimping and trafficking in women; a third operator who was not present at the club during the raid fled to Spain and was arrested there soon after. A policeman was also arrested: he is accused of having informed the Atlantis management of police raids ahead of time. In October 2004, the club was reopened.

As of mid 2004, there are two other clubs in Germany that operate like Atlantis and have a similar size: FKK Oase and FKK World, both in the area north of Frankfurt. Several dozen comparable but smaller clubs exist all over Germany; they are typically advertised as "Sauna clubs" or "FKK clubs" ("FKK" abbreviates the German Freikörperkultur which means nudism). Most German brothels operate quite differently, however; see prostitution in Germany.

External links

• Atlantis home page
• List of German sauna clubs