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Reeperbahn
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HAMBURG
500 yards
North Sea
NETHER -LANDS
THE BERLIN GERMANY Bunker St Pauli St Pauli DENMARK Hamburg
Out er A ls t er Lak e
Kunsthalle HAMBURG Neustadt
Altstadt Chilehaus
Speicherstadt Miniatur Wunderland
Elbphilharmonie
Anleger 1870, one of the
bars near the Mundsburger Canal on the Alster
AFTER HOURS GASTSTÄTTE DREYER: A sometime setting for a German TV detective show called Großstadtrevier, this smoky and eccentric neighbourhood pub in the Neustadt district offers a delicious slice of Old Hamburg — its interiors adorned with more than 300 antique clocks. Head to the hefty wooden bar to order a Holsten Pils — Hamburg’s traditional beer. Martin-Luther-Strasse 4 GROSSE FREIHEIT 36: With its iconic neon sign shaped like a guitar, this club just off the Reeperbahn bills itself as both the largest and the oldest in Hamburg. Some people come here for gigs and club nights, while others come to catch echoes of the past; it was in the adjoining basement, named the Kaiserkeller, that the Beatles honed their craft in the early 1960s, playing seven hours a night, seven nights a week.
docksfreiheit36.de LE LION: This cocktail bar is the apex predator among the city’s drinking establishments and is decorated with sculptures of prowling cats. The signature is the gin basil smash: a refreshing, lemony concoction.
lelion.net
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NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.COM/TRAVEL
LIKE A LOCAL OUTER ALSTER LAKE: At weekends, locals beeline to the willow-draped shores of this watery expanse at the heart of the city. Some idle in deckchairs, others cast off in canoes but first-timers should get their bearings using StadtRAD — Hamburg’s bike hire scheme — which allows 30 minutes’ free cycling on almost all of its tariffs.
stadtrad.hamburg.de FC ST PAULI MATCH DAYS: Football is the pulse of Hamburg life, and dockers and city- centre residents generally support FC St Pauli. Tickets for matches are in high demand. If you can’t get one, get a flavour of the atmosphere at the Jolly Roger — a supporter-owned bar, opposite the Millerntor stadium.
fcstpauli.com PORTUGUESE HAMBURG: The city is a simmering stew of identities: the Portugiesenviertel, beside the docks, has been an enclave of Portuguese and Spanish immigrants since the 1970s — but you can get good Portuguese food right across the city. Head to Pastelaria Transmontana to taste some of the best pastéis de nata north of Portugal.
pastelaria-transmontana.de
GETTING THERE & AROUND British Airways, EasyJet, Eurowings and Ryanair fly daily from UK airports such as Edinburgh, Gatwick, Heathrow, Manchester and Stansted. It’s a half-hour train ride from the airport into the centre.
ba.com
easyjet.com
eurowings.com
ryanair.com Average flight time: 1h30m. It’s also possible to travel from London St Pancras International to Hamburg by rail, leaving London after breakfast and arriving at your destination in time for dinner. You’ll need to change at Brussels Midi/Zuid and then at Cologne Hauptbahnhof, which is also a good spot for lunch.
eurostar.com Hamburg’s city centre is fairly compact and easily navigated on foot — if you’re going further, the good-value Hamburg CARD entitles you to unlimited journeys on buses, U-bahn (underground), S-bahn (tram) services and ferries on the Elbe for €11.90 (£10.20) a day.
hamburg.com Hamburg has a comprehensive network of cycle lanes — to use the StadtRAD cycle scheme, download the app. Bike hire charges are capped at €9 (£7.75) per day.
stadtrad.hamburg.de
WHEN TO GO The city has a reputation for year- round rain and wind, although the daytime highs of around 23C in August mean that, during summer, little ‘beach clubs’ optimistically set up shop on the banks of the Elbe at St Pauli Piers. In winter, a Christmas market opens next to the town hall; December sees average temperatures drop to 4C.
MORE INFO
hamburg.com The Rough Guide to Germany, £16.99.
HOW TO DO IT British Airways Holidays offers a three- night city break package, staying at the NH Hamburg Altona, room only, from £379 per person, including flights from Heathrow.
ba.com/holidays
POLAND
ILLUSTRATION: JOHN PLUMER
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