Hamburg hangouts

Andrew Eames wanders through Germany’s second-largest city, discovering a wealth of watery attractions along the way Let’s face it, some German city centres can be a little soulless, largely as a result of “redevelopment” during the Second World War. Hamburg is no exception, but rather than taking one look down the hauptstrasse, harrumphing and getting on the plane home, business travellers with a modicum of curiosity and a small amount of time can get a lot more out of their trip. Try some of these suggestions the next time you visit, and see for yourself.

IN TWO HOURS

Elbstrand When your work is done, head for some relaxation on the urban beach on the Elbchaussee. A beach in Hamburg barely seems credible, but you’ll find one along the riverbank just beyond the Museumshafen, downriver of the port. The sand is not native to these shores but it is certainly appreciated by families at weekends and by a trendy, overdressed crowd who come in the evenings mainly between May and September, but on other fine days too. The outlook must be one of the most unusual beach views in the world, with huge dockside cranes silhouetted against the sky on the far bank, and the evening sun blocked by the occasional slow-moving wall of steel as giant container ships slip by. Despite its proximity to the city and port, you’ll find a villagey, rural atmosphere here, with three or four well-loved fish restaurants – try Hoppe (fischrestaurant-hoppe.de), a traditional, family-run terraced eatery with river views. Fish is a speciality, particularly local smoked eel and krabben (small prawns), as well as the typical sailor’s meal, labskaus (mashed potato, corned beef, eggs and gherkins with pickled herring). Ovelgonne, the narrow lane that runs down the back of the beach, is lined with cottages and cabbage patches.

• Practicalities: The best time to visit is 4pm onwards. Bus 112 takes 34 minutes from the Hauptbahnhof, or take the S-bahn to Konigstrasse and walk.

Hafencity If you haven’t seen this huge piece of dockland revitalisation, you should. Hafencity begins at the Speicherstadt, a huge block of old spice warehouses about 1km south of the city centre that now house a variety of museums and temporary exhibitions, including Miniatur Wunderland (miniatur-wunderland.com), one of the world’s finest miniature railways – a breathtakingly ambitious and witty piece of modelling. Beyond, the old wharves of Sandtorhafen and Grasbrookhafen are now surrounded by a mix of new offices, living accommodation, restaurants and waterside bars. Prestigious companies such as Unilever and Spiegel have moved here, so standards are high, and there are open-air concerts and theatre performances in the summer. The landmark building of Hafencity, the Elbphilharmonie, an audacious concert hall-cum-hotel designed by Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron in the shape of a giant iceberg of glass, is still under construction.

• Practicalities: The best time to go is 6pm onwards. The nearest U-bahn is Baumwall. Event and cultural attraction information is available at hafencity.com

Hamburg Fischmarkt If you are in town on a Sunday morning, hit the rock ‘n’ roll fish market just downriver of Landungsbrucken. This is much more than just a market – from 5am traders start to sell everything and anything, from smoked eel and tropical plants to budgerigars, in a village of stalls erected around the elegant old fish auction hall here. Some of the traders can be very entertaining, and their banter draws big crowds – Eely Dieter, in particular, has carved out a TV career from his market profile. Meanwhile, inside the auction hall, all-night revellers from the Reeperbahn (Hamburg’s “sinful mile”) are getting their second wind, drinking beer at long tables as rock bands take it in turns to do their stuff. For those who come seeking fish, not beer, extensive seafood brunches are offered up along the galleries on either side of the building. The whole thing is done and dusted by 9.30am, so you can go back to bed wondering if it was all a dream.

• Practicalities: Every Sunday through the year from 5am, entry is free. The nearest U-bahn is Landungsbrucken (eight minutes from the Hauptbahnhof) and then follow the crowds. Visit hamburg-tourism.de

Hamburg canals Many cities claim the title of “Venice of the north”, and Hamburg, with its 2,600 water-crossing bridges, must be a good contender. Most tour-boat attention is focused on the port, but the inland waterways provide a real insight into the city’s wealth. The canal tour starts at the Jungfernstieg (near the town hall), crosses the inner and then the outer Alster lakes – the latter busy with scudding sailboats and rowing crews – and then plunges into the leafy canal network around the residential districts of Barmbek and Winterhude. Expect to see elegant villas, some of them with waterside gazebos for afternoon tea (this is, in some respects, a very British city), and laid-back cafés.

• Practicalities: Departures from Jungfernstieg are 9.45am, 11.45am, 12.45pm, 2.45pm, 3.45pm and 5.45pm (only 9.45am, 12.45pm and 3.45pm in early spring/late autumn, no winter service). The trip lasts two hours and costs €14.50. Make sure you get the canal tour, as many cruises just do the Alster lakes.

Hamburger DOM This fair is the northern equivalent of Munich’s Oktoberfest, but the month-long Dom is not so crowded and takes place three times a year, in spring, summer and winter. The name is confusing, for dom means cathedral – first recorded in 1329, this was a market that surrounded the cathedral at festival times, with traders and performers intent on waylaying the populace en route to church. Much to the disgust of the bishop, they used to take shelter in the building during bad weather, hence the name used today. Today, the only spiritual connection is the Heiligengeistfeld (Holy Ghost field), where the Dom’s roller coasters and big dippers swing into action amid brass bands and beer tents – you will still find local produce on sale, though. Seasonal highlights include a medieval fort and a witches’ village during the spring Dom (on this month), cowboy action in a Wild West town during the summer and, in winter, a kitsch Christmas market with stall holders dressed in medieval costumes.

• Practicalities: Best after 6pm (gates open 3pm), nearest U-bahn St Pauli (11 minutes from the centre), entry is free. This year’s dates are March 25-April 25, July 29-August 28, November 4-December 4. Visit hamburg.de/dom

IN HALF A DAY Cycling in Altes Land It may be hard to believe when you are sat in the bar of your downtown hotel, but the largest orchards in northern Europe are actually just under an hour from the Hauptbahnhof on the S-bahn – and cycling through them is a pure pleasure. Altes Land is mainly reclaimed marshland on the western side of the Elbe, and in late April and early May the blossom (mainly apple, pear, cherry, plum and damson) is stupendous. Despite the closeness to Hamburg, the landscape is carefully preserved and traditionally farmed, coming complete with some of the finest north German half-timbered farmhouses with their distinctively intricate brickwork. The best starting point is the ancient port town of Stade, rich with merchants’ houses, and an example of what downtown Hamburg might have been like if it hadn’t been so badly bombed during the Second World War. From here, cycle routes snake out over the flats, particularly towards the river and down to Jork, the spiritual centre of Altes Land. Farm shops along the way allow you to slake your thirst with fresh juice.

• Practicalities: S-bahn line three ends in Stade (stade-tourismus.de – go to the section on bike travel). Cycle hire from €7 a day is available from Fahrrad Brandt (fahrrad-brandt.de) in Freiburgerstrasse, an easy walk from the station.

Luneberg Heath Much of the vicinity of Hamburg is low-lying and fertile, but a large region to the south-west is quite the opposite – dry, sandy-soiled, wild and covered with heather and pine forest. The Luneberg heath has remained pretty much unchanged since Neolithic times (apart from the large NATO military base that occupies the southern area), and the best preserved section, west of Luneberg itself, is now a national park laced with walking trails, its air resinous and fragrant on a summer’s evening. If you’re in need of refreshment, there are lots of hofcafés – cafés attached to farmhouses. Try the Hof Bockelmann (hof-bockelmann.de) in Oberhaverbeck, which serves homemade wurst and cakes in a farmhouse with a garden.

• Practicalities: If you have hired a car, it is a half-hour journey down the E7 to Bispingen. Otherwise, there are trains every 20 minutes for the 25-minute journey to Buchholz, which is served in summer by the Heide-Shuttle bus. Visit bahn.com

Marzipan tasting in Lubeck Marzipan is thought to have originated in Turkey but trade routes at the time brought it into Hamburg’s Hanseatic partner port, Lubeck, a handsome place whose old town contains fine merchants’ houses and is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Here, specialist confectioner Niederegger (niederegger.de) keeps the marzipan flag flying in a prime location directly opposite the town hall. The Café Niederegger (Breite Strasse 89) is part boutique, part museum (see the 12 lifesize figures made of marzipan), and you can watch staff model marzipan figurines before you settle down for a slice of nut cake and a cup of marzipan tea. The beautifully wrapped products in the shop are a good reason for coming here in themselves, especially if you’re looking for a special gift.

• Practicalities: Trains for Lubeck leave Hamburg Hauptbahnhof every half-hour and take 45 minutes, costing €23.20 return. Visit bahn.com

IN ONE DAY…

Bremerhaven’s new museums Two remarkable new museums have colonised unused wharf space in this port city, located a couple of hours by train from Hamburg. The first is the Klimahaus (klimahaus-bremerhaven.de), which presents a journey through the world’s climate zones, as well as taking a long, hard look at global warming. The second, the German Emigration Centre (dah-bremerhaven.de), focuses on the experiences of the more-than seven million emigrants that have passed through the port en route for the US. For a while, Germany was a serious contender for America’s national language – big-number emigration started from 1830 and lasted for most of the 19th century, with peaks again during the Weimar Republic (1919-1933) and after the Second World War – and many of the museum’s visitors are Americans retracing their roots. The centre investigates the reasons for emigration, recreates the journey undertaken along with arrival at Ellis Island, and allows visitors to research their ancestry. There’s a fine restaurant downstairs.

• Practicalities: The train journey from Hamburg Hauptbahnhof takes between two to two-and-a-half hours, with a change in Bremen (the square around its cathedral has been elegantly restored if you want to stop off briefly), and costs from €42 return. Klimahaus open 9am-7pm (10am-7pm Saturday-Sunday), 10am-6pm November-February, €13.50; German Emigration Centre open 10am-6pm (10am-5pm November-February), €11.20.

Boat trip to Helgoland Once a British territory called Heligoland, these two islands out in the Wadden Sea were swapped for land rights in East Africa in 1890 (the region registers on the British shipping forecast as “German Bight”). These days, the main island is a tourism destination and health retreat, and people come here to walk along the top of the red cliffs and breathe in the dust-free air. If you are at all interested in the sea, the journey itself is worthwhile. The high-speed catamaran zooms up the Elbe, overtaking giant ships. The onboard commentary picks out key landmarks, such as the Willkomm Hoft at Schulauer, which welcomes every incoming vessel with a dip of the flag and by playing the national anthem of the ship’s origin through giant loudspeakers. The catamaran’s timings won’t allow you to do much more than stroll, shop and have a seafood lunch in one of the small and informal restaurants, such as the Mocca-Stuben (mocca-stuben.de). Seek out Helgolander knieper (crab claws), which are served with various dips. If you have more time, there’s the option of overnighting at the island’s upmarket spa hotel, the Atoll (atoll.de), where the occasional celebrity comes to chill out.

• Practicalities: The Halunder Jet leaves Hamburg’s Landungsbrucken daily at 9am, arriving at Helgoland at 12.45pm. It returns at 4.30pm, arriving back in Hamburg at 8.15pm. It costs €62.70 return. Visit helgoline.de, helgoland.de

Go to germany-tourism.co.uk