23 Best Things to Do in Hamburg

Hamburg is called the «Venice of the North», but this beautiful description is not entirely accurate. There are 6 times more bridges here than in Venice or any other city in the world.

What to do in Hamburg

Here you can stroll through the shopping arcades, admire the city hall, order coffee and cakes in a small cafe or go on a canal boat tour to see sailing boats and luxury villas along the shores of the Alster lake. Hamburg’s close proximity to rivers and the sea always guarantees a supply of fresh fish and seafood.

Altes Land gardens south of the city is the largest fruit region in Central Europe. Coffee, tea and spices come to Hamburg directly from the ship at the local port. Restaurants and cafes always have fresh, high-quality dishes, which is why Hamburg can be called the center of gastro-tourism in Germany.

The Reeperbahn is the longest street in Europe with countless bars, clubs and discos coming to life after midnight. This place attracts young people. And the rides and amusement parks will appeal to families with children.

Architecture

hamburg town hall

The town hall is considered the main historical landmark of Hamburg. It is located on the main street of the old city. This building with elements of the Gothic style can be seen from afar thanks to the legendary clock tower.

The unusual blue color of the roof attracts the attention of tourists and guests of the city. Therefore, in this place there is always a large concentration of connoisseurs of art and architecture.

Church of St. Nicholas

At one time, the Church of St. Nicholas was the highest not only in Hamburg, but throughout Europe. Today, the temple, which was once decorated with luxurious Gothic cornices, lancet windows and stained-glass windows, is in a dilapidated state.

Residents of the city did not ask to restore the cathedral after the bombing of World War II. Now it is a silent reminder of the horrors of fascism. Nevertheless, a museum dedicated to the history of its creation has been opened within the walls of the church.

Bergedorf Castle

The ancient castle has been well preserved to this day, despite the fact that it was completed and reconstructed several times. It is located on the outskirts of the city. Previously, there was a water fortification near this place, as evidenced by the preserved double moat of impressive size. Once upon a time, a drawbridge was thrown over it.

On the territory of the castle there were several living quarters, fountains and a stable with horses. Today, newlyweds come here to be photographed. Sometimes wedding ceremonies and concerts are held within the walls.

Hamburg Opera House

The Hamburg theater was founded at the end of the 17th century. Since then, it has been destroyed more than once. Today it is a modern theater with a rich repertoire and boasts that Placido Domingo himself once performed on its stage.

And today, opera arias performed by world celebrities are heard within the walls of the theater. The Hamburg theater works all year round — its troupe does not go on vacation, so in the summer you can also attend concerts.

chilehouse

One of the most outstanding buildings in Germany stands out for its unique architecture. Today Chilehouse is included in the list of the best expressionist monuments. Outwardly, it looks like a flagship — its hull is elongated, compressed on the sides and ends with a point.

It is known that the banal lack of free space inspired the creation of this structure by the architect Fritz Heger. The customer was entrepreneur Henry Sloman, who made a fortune selling saltpeter shipped from Chile. Today, the 10-story building houses a business center, restaurants with shops and cafes.

Church of St. Michael

The official name of the cathedral is the main church of St. Michael. This is the city’s Evangelical shrine, located in the heart of Hamburg in the Neustadt district. At the beginning of the 17th century, in its place stood «Small Mikhel» — a chapel, which was chosen not only by local residents, but also by guests of the city. At some point, it became too cramped, so the city authorities decided to build a large cathedral.

The Church of St. Michael died several times in fires and was reborn from the ashes just as many times. The new building is built of red brick in the Baroque style. Above the entrance is a sculptural composition — St. Michael strikes the devil with a spear.

Elbe Philharmonic

Today, Elfi, as the locals call the Philharmonic, is a futuristic building whose undulating glass panels reflect the waters of the Elbe. Previously, it housed a brick port warehouse. According to the creators, this cultural institution was supposed to breathe life into the industrial region of Hamburg.

The large concert hall, which the Philharmonic is proud of, is planned according to the principle of “a vineyard on a mountainside”. The stage is in the middle, and around it are the audience chairs. The building of the Philharmonic has an observation deck, the entrance to which is free.

Museums

Hamburg Kunsthalle

The art museum in Hamburg, the most frequently visited by tourists. In German, its name means «exhibition hall». Among the most valuable exhibits of the Kunsthalle are the 14th-century altar by Bertram and the altar of St. Thomas. Most of the works of art were made in the Baroque era by French painters. The rest of the exhibits mostly date back to the 19th century.

International Maritime Museum

The museum building was previously a port warehouse. Its opening took place in 2008 in the presence of the President of the country. Everything in the museum is quite realistic: several areas are divided into improvised decks, each of which demonstrates the historical stages of the development of port shipbuilding, there are models of ships, navigation maps.

Guides will tell visitors about the secrets of marine life, the ranks of ships, military ranks in the navy and much more.

Zoo museum

The Hamburg Museum is one of the most important nature reserves in Germany. It was built on the site of a naturalistic museum that was destroyed during the Second World War and founded a hundred years earlier. The collection of the repository is 10 million objects of the animal world.

There are models of modern individuals, as well as skeletons of dinosaurs and lower invertebrates. The exhibits that are on public display are located on the ground floor. In addition to mammals and prehistoric animals, endangered bird species can also be seen here.

Scientists from all over the world come to the Zoological Museum Hamburg to collect material for their scientific articles.

Museum of the History of Hamburg

The building is located in a park on the site of the former Henrikus bastion. The museum was founded by Fritz Schumacher. The opening took place 8 years after the start of construction in 1914. The most valuable exhibit is the skull of the famous pirate Klaus Stertebeker — his remains were found at the end of the 19th century.

According to the preserved historical information, an interesting story was connected with the pirate’s skull. On the eve of the execution, he turned to the burgomaster of the city, asking him to pardon his team if he could pass them without a head. Klaus managed to do this, but the burgomaster did not fulfill his promise.

Museum of Arts and Crafts

This museum has an impressive collection of exhibits of European, German and Asian art. There are many art nouveau works here. The collection consists of 500,000 items of antiquities, which demonstrate the ingenuity of man.

The exposition is divided into several halls, where works in the style of expressionism, Bauhaus, art deco are demonstrated. Curious exhibits are fashion items made from textiles, some of which were recovered from Egyptian tombs.

Externally, the museum building looks like a palace: it is three-story, made in light colors with contrasting frescoes and window arches. Carved frames give the structure lightness and solemnity.

Sailboat «Rickmer Rickmers»

The sailboat consists of three matches and is one of the largest in commercial shipping. It was built at the end of the 19th century to import rice from Hong Kong and saltpeter from Chile. Until the 80s of the last century, she was a training ship in Portugal, then returned home to Germany.

Now there is a museum and a restaurant on board the ship. The creators claim that the decoration of the sailboat may not correspond to historical reality, but all items look quite realistic. Visitors can view the cabins of sailors, engine rooms.

Panopticon Wax Museum

Panopticon was opened at the end of the 19th century. At that time, visitors were shown not their contemporaries, but characters of a historical scale, who became scandalously famous. For example, thieving burgomasters, recidivists and dangerous criminals became exhibits. The audience was delighted with the exhibition.

Currently, the museum holds more than 120 figures. Mostly celebrities among them: Stalin, Hitler, Princess Diana, Schiller and others. There is also an anatomical hall, where alcoholized human organs are presented.

Chocolate Museum Chocoversum

The Chocolate Museum in Hamburg was opened on the initiative of the Haches company, which specialized in the production of appropriate products. Tour guides will tell visitors about how cocoa beans look and are processed. Everyone, without exception, will be able to try some of the «exhibits».

Children are given the opportunity to make their own chocolate. And next to the museum there is a shop where tourists buy souvenirs, beer, liquor and even tea made from chocolate.

«Cap San Diego»

An unusual maritime museum is located right on the cargo ship. The ship is the last of the surviving vessels that were once intended for the transport of large cargoes of the Hamburg Sed company. It was put into service in the 60s, and for almost 20 years it regularly cruised to South America.

For its beautiful shape and snow-white color, the ship is called the «white swan of the Atlantic». The on-deck museum started operating in 1988 when the Cap San Diego moored permanently to the shore. In 2003, a hotel was also opened here.

Entertainment

miniature wonderland

This is the largest model railway in the world. The entertainment complex will be interesting for everyone: both adults and children. In the «Wonderland» there is a large number of equipment, among which are trains, cars, planes. In addition, there are many architectural structures, residential complexes and hangars. The creators — the designers of the Brown brothers — tried to depict everything as realistic as possible.

Planetarium

The oldest planetarium in the world is located in the water tower of one of the most picturesque districts of the city of Hamburg. The building has a museum, theater stage and even a lecture hall. Spectators will see unusual performances that unfold on multimedia equipment — sometimes it is difficult to distinguish reality from special effects. Especially popular is the «reconstruction» of the destruction of the planet Earth.

Amusement park «Heide Park»

A few kilometers from Hamburg is an amusement park, which was opened in 1978. The creators did everything to make the children feel like heroes of a fairy-tale land. There are lakes, the Statue of Liberty, pirate treasures, high-speed trains and exciting adventures. There are several thematic zones on the territory of the park: Wild West, Transylvania, Forgotten Land and others.

hamburg dungeon

The Hamburg Dungeon hosts shows with a dark twist today. The building is located in the Hanseatic warehouse of the famous district of the city of Speicherstadt.

The tour begins in the main room, from which doors lead to dozens of others. In each unfolding certain actions. Visitors can ride the «elevator of death», see scenes of people dying from the plague, torture chambers. Viewers will get acquainted with the history of the famous pirate Klaus Storterbeker.

A boat runs from the Hamburg dungeon. The journey will recreate the infamous flood that occurred on Christmas night in 1717.

Interesting places

Alster lake

This natural oasis, located in the city center, is considered by Hamburgers and tourists to be a real outlet. People come here after a hard day at work. Alster is surrounded by parks and trees on all sides, and a “health path” has been built around it, where the townspeople go in for sports.

Despite its urban nature, the Alster remains an untouched nature reserve. In the center of the lake, not so long ago, a sculpture of a bathing girl was installed, which reaches a height of 4 meters. You can swim closer to it on a catamaran or boat.

Plantin un Blomen

The name of the park is translated from Old German as «Plants and Flowers». It is located right in the center of Hamburg and was opened in 1897 as a Garden Exhibition. Later, the city authorities repeatedly arranged various kinds of landscape expositions here, for which they prepared rock gardens, the Apothecary Garden, a pavilion of tropical flowers and roses, Japanese gardens with tea houses, ponds and playgrounds for children.

Port

It was the port of Hamburg that played a significant role in the formation of the German state. Today, this strategically important facility is called Germany’s gateway to the world. Every year, hundreds of thousands of merchant ships call at the port, which ply all over the world.

The port is divided into several quarters, each of which has its own river gates, combining more than 300 berths. All of them occupy a tenth of the city.