HAMBURG
ESSENTIALS
HAMBURG GERMANY
Hamburg Airport 2 miles
Als t er L a ke
SCHANZENVIERTEL ST GEORG HAMBUR G
Reeperbahn Street
ST PAULI
Old Elbe Tunnel
Hauptkirche St Michaelis
PORTUGAL LITTLE
Mahnmal St-Nikolai
Elbphilharmonie 500 yards
Getting there & around
AFTER HOURS ALLES ELBE: Summing up the few-
blocks-back St Pauli vibe, this simple neighbourhood craſt beer joint has a ‘No beer for Nazis’ sign on the door, helpful staff and a whole host of brews that go beyond the standard German favourites. And if that means an 8.5%, papaya-infused monster, so be it.
alleselbe.de ADEGA: Set in the Little Portugal area by the river, this bar-cum-shop sells wallets and purses made of cork, plus colourful ceramic plates and canned fish. But it’s the wine you come for, and the list dives around the Portuguese wine regions, with drops from the Douro, Alentejo and Algarve. Handcraſted German gins are also available if you prefer to stay local.
adega.hamburg GRUENSPAN: One of several live music venues just off the Reeperbahn, this spot is still as worth visiting as it was when the Beatles were earning their pre-stardom crust. Gruenspan’s strength is variety: one night it’s Scandinavian metal, the next, a local singer- songwriter, the next Midge Ure or Billy Corgan.
gruenspan.de
130
nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel ZZZ
SLEEP SUPERBUDE HAMBURG ST PAULI:
Tremendous fun, this hostel-hotel hybrid has nets for bedheads, plungers turned into clothing rails and desk lamps strung together on the ceiling; it feels like the pet project of someone who’s really good at DIY. Rope-pattern carpets nod to the shipping heritage, and the lobby full of eclectic seating doubles up as a bar.
superbude.com RUBY LOTTI: This centrally located design
hotel goes for a ‘lean luxury’ concept — which means smallish rooms and a trimming back of facilities, but quality bedding, an eagerness for gadgetry, and rough edges that are celebrated as quirks. Vintage furniture and oak floors are part of the look.
ruby-hotels.com TORTUE: Built around an impressive
art installation and a boules court in the courtyard, this upscale city-centre option knows it looks good. Free mini-bars, touch- button mood lighting and heated bathroom floors are among the facilities binge. Furnishings and furniture feel hand-picked for impact, rather than snaffled up in a job lot.
tortue.de
British Airways flies direct to Hamburg from Heathrow, while EasyJet goes from Gatwick, Manchester and Edinburgh. Ryanair offers flights from Manchester, Stansted and Edinburgh.
ba.com
easyjet.com
ryanair.com Average flight time: 1h30m Travelling by train is feasible, although expect the quickest journey to take at least eight-and-a- half hours with two changes.
raileurope.com Much of Hamburg is slightly too large to be considered a truly walkable city. An extensive combination of U-Bahn and S-Bahn, plus buses, covers the city. There’s a zone-based system in use, although pretty much everywhere of interest — including the airport — is in zone one. Single tickets for zones one and two cost €3.30 (£3), with day tickets costing from €6.50 (£5.80).
hvv.de Taxis are relatively pricy (expect to pay around €30 (£27) from airport to hotel). Uber has recently launched in the city after much resistance.
When to go
Hamburg is at its best in the summer (June to September, when temperatures average around 23C) not least because the longer evenings make for perfect outdoor drinking weather. Winter can be tough going, and not necessarily cheaper, given a lot of the hotels fill up with business clientele.
More info
Hamburg Tourism.
hamburg-tourism.de English-language news and lifestyle:
thelocal.de
How to do it
EASYJET HOLIDAYS offers three nights at the Barceló Hamburg, with return flights from Manchester, from £662 per couple.
easyjet.com
R
i
v
e
r
E
l
b e
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN PLUMER
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148
