Travel Guide Hamburg

Hello, Hamburg, my beautiful city! For us it was love at first sight with this northern German harbor. We visited this Hanseatic city several times during all these years. Now we’re ready to put it all together and summarize all our tips and advice for Hamburg into a detailed travel guide.

In this travel guide, we will inform you of what to look for on a city trip to Hamburg and what are the places you should not miss. Finally, our best cafe, restaurant tips and things to do. The proposed travel guide concludes with an interactive map that includes all the locations mentioned.

Things to Know when Planning your Trip

To be honest we do not know anyone who does not like Hamburg. If you like Port Cities and maritime pictures, then you will like Hamburg. There is water everywhere around and throughout the city. Whether it’s for a walk by the Elbe, or the lovely Speicherstadt, or the Alster.

• Hamburg is Germany’s second largest city following Berlin. It is home to approximately 1.8 million people.
• Hamburg is a very big city with a relatively low population level. Transportation around the city becomes easier and many of the sights are either within walking distance or can be reached via the U-Bahn and S-Bahn trains.
• Despite the fact that Hamburg is not situated on the shore of the sea (the North Sea is about 100 km away), the Elbe has a marine flavor.
• Hamburg is in fact the city with the most bridges in Europe! 
• The City of Hamburg has 2,500 bridges, more than in Venice or Amsterdam.
• The Hamburg climate is very changeable with lots of rain.

How many days should you spend in Hamburg?

Hamburg is an incredible city for a weekend trip. You can see most of the important attractions in Hamburg in about 2 nights (3 days). Nevertheless, if you happen to have more time available then we definitely urge you to extend the time period of your stay. In our opinion, 3 to 4 nights is the perfect number of days to really get to know the city for a traveler who’s visiting it for the first time. And by doing so, you will still have plenty of time to discover other local destinations which are less known.

When is the best time to come to Hamburg?

We too have visited Hamburg in every season and can reiterate that Hamburg in all seasons is worth visiting. Good to know: the weather in this locality is a function of its location, and it rains a lot. You might want to have an umbrella or a rain jacket with you as a precaution.

Personally, we love summer in Hamburg: the temperature is awesome and the days are long enough. Normally, it’s not too hot, but sometimes you get the odd exception. (Spring and Autumn are also very nice seasons for a Hamburg trip, which we discovered, for instance, during one of our visits).

Hamburg Bucket List: What shouldn’t you miss?

For the ones who prefer it quick and dirty, here is a short version of Hamburg’s best-of list. (Certainly we will be considering those things in more detail somewhere else in this travel guide.)

• Take in the view from the Michel, which is Hamburg’s most famous church.
• Admire the Elbphilharmonie – and if possible, even go to a concert.
• Take a harbor tour and admire the huge container ships.
• Eat a fish sandwich.
• Walk through Speicherstadt or take a boat trip through the canals which is even better.

The Most Beautiful Sights and Places to See in Hamburg

Here are some of the best places to see:

Jungfernstieg & Town Hall: The Old Town of Hamburg

If this is your first time in Hamburg, then Jungfernstieg area is the place that should be in your itinerary. You should get to the Binnenalster – an artificial lake, which receive its water from the river Alster. There are several beautiful buildings located on the shores of Binnenalster.

Just a few minutes’ walk from the Jungfernstieg is one of the most beautiful buildings in Hamburg: the town hall. The Neo Renaissance building is not just unexpectedly large, but also extremely beautiful. You shouldn’t miss the courtyard of the town hall either if you are around.

Main Church of St. Michaelis: The Michel

The most famous church in the Hamburg is nicknamed the Michel. The town hall is 15 minutes away on foot. The inside of the church is well worth seeing, but the Michel is best known for its church tower: up there in the 132-meter-tall tower’s observation deck, you will have a fabulous bird-eye-view of the city.

Whether you would like to climb 453 steps or opt for the lift, the price for both walking up the tower and taking the elevator is the same. The 360-degree view from up high Hamburg is, in fact, just breathtaking even though safety bars are all around, you can still manage to take good photos through them.

Elbphilharmonie

Since November 2016, Hamburg has a new landmark: The Elbphilharmonie, a stylish concert hall located on the northern edge of the Elbe River. In spite of the fact that there are many different opinions about the Elbphilharmonie, we believe that it harmonizes perfectly with its surrounding cityscape.

The ideal would be, of course, seeing a concert in the Great Hall, which is quite famous. One of the most coveted concerts is usually sold out within minutes, so it’s not easy to get to it. On the other hand, the Elbphilharmonie can still be visited during the public tour of a concert hall, where you not only see the Great Hall. It lasts for an hour and is 20 Euros per person.

Speicherstadt & HafenCity

Close to the Elbphilharmonie is the ever-popular and Instagram-worthy Speicherstadt. This very old brick compound is indeed the whole world’s largest historic warehouse complex. Speicherstadt is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and we think it is the most fun place in Hamburg.

Because of the bridges, you can walk around the Speicherstadt at your leisure. Moreover, it is good to view Speicherstadt from the water and you can do it as one of the city tour routes. There are a lot of tour operators with a variety of routes – some of them even conduct night tours. 

Landungsbrücken & Old Elbe Tunnel

If you are interested in exploring the Port of Hamburg, the so-called Landungsbrücken on the Norderelbe will be your starting point. It is from here that the numerous Harbour tours begin. The Landungsbrücken is a quite touristic but still worth visiting location in Hamburg.

One of the most popular attractions at the Landungsbrücke is the Old Elbe Tunnel. This tunnel, opened in 1911, crosses the Norderelbe at a depth of 24 meters, linking the Landungsbrücken with the Elbe island of Steinwerder.

Nikolaifleet & Deichstraße

The Fleet is a term used for canals and there are a lot of them in Hamburg. One of the most famous canals is the Nikolaifleet. Here you will find the oldest preserved building ensemble and it might be the most beautiful one of Hamburg. A nice view of the houses is provided from the top of the bridge. No wonder that there were many more of those typical houses in Hamburg. It is a pity that many of them perished during the great fires in 1842 that demolished two thirds of the downtown area.

Cafes and Restaurant Factors in Hamburg

Here are the best cafes and restaurants in Hamburg:

Herr Max: 

Very well-designed café in Schanzenviertel. Our recommendation: Have a bite of the cheesecake, as it’s unbelievably mouth-watering. This place also offers good breakfast.

Café Elbgold: 

We believe that the best coffee of Hamburg is served at Café Elbgold with its own house-roasted beans. The Café Elbgold is actually not the one and only location, because it has several branches throughout the city of Hamburg, but the biggest café (where their beans are roasted) can be found in the Schanzenviertel area.

Kaffeerösterei Speicherstadt: 

This coffee roasting house is tucked into a historic brick building at Speicherstadt. Yes, it’s not exactly a secret but absolutely worth a coffee break.

Nord Coast: 

Well-known restaurant, where they offer a delicious breakfast. Regretfully, the line in front of the restaurant was too long for us to wait in it and therefore we did not get a chance to see it.

Hamburg Hotel Recommendation

Here is the best hotel recommendation for travelers:

25hours Hotel HafenCity

This hotel which is known as very cool and different is situated in HafenCity. We are in love with the design of the rooms. They have been designed as ship cabins, which are very cozy and well-equipped – as you would expect from all the other 25hours hotels. The breakfast is great despite the high price.

The location of this hotel is very central: you can get to the Elbphilharmonie in 10 minutes on foot and the nearest subway station is a stone’s throw away. 

AMERON Hamburg Hotel Speicherstadt

This design-hotel is situated exactly in the middle of the Speicherstadt. Although the rooms are quite tiny, they are cozy with a very relaxing atmosphere.

Conclusion

If you are planning a trip to Hamburg, make sure you go through our comprehensive travel guide. It will help you have the best trip of your life!