Neighbourhoods

Most of Hamburgs neighborhoods are characterized by water: Rivers Elbe, Alster and Bille as well as many narrow canals called Fleet traverse the city. In the center, you have also the Inner and Outer Alster Lakes. So it is not surprising that Hamburg has 2302 bridges, more than Amsterdam or even Venice.

First of all, you should visit the harbour. Take a stroll along Landungsbrücken, take the tour, the Große Hafenrundfahrt. It takes about an hour and you can see the big container ships, the Speicherstadt, the docks and much more from the water side.
Or you might want to take a ferry to Finkenwerder, on the other side of the Elbe. Here you get into the Altes Land (i.e. Old Land), with its apple and cherry plantations.
If you come to Hamburg in spring, there are two events that you shouldn’t miss: the cherry blossom in the Altes Land and the harbour birthday celebration with millions of visitors and impressive ships.

The city center between Alster and Elbe is also the center of commercial, political and social activity. Its boulevards are lined with shops, and you will find Hamburg’s main atttractions here.

East of the city there is St.Georg, formerly an upmarket neighborhood; today it has become a little run-down. Close to the Central Station there is drug dealing and prostitution. But only a few streets away, you will find lovely streets with cafes, little shops and interesting people. St Georg is also the heart of Hamburg’s gay community.

To the west of the city is St Pauli, well-known for the Reeperbahn and its red-light district. But if you explore the side streets, you can discover good music clubs, bars etc.

North of St Pauli are the Karolinenviertel and the Schanzenviertel. Alternative vibes are still alive here in the streets, bars and shops, although commerce is slowly taking over.

A little further to the west you come to Altona, which used to belong to Denmark. Altona is very lively, heavily populated and – like Schanzenviertel and Karolinenviertel - very multicultural. It is also very close to the Elbe beaches, which makes it a good place to be in summer and winter alike.

Every Hamburg tourist should visit Blankenese, travelling further west over the 10 km long Elbchaussee, which is lined with old trees and impressing villas. Blankenese seems like a seaside resort with its parks, gardens, its narrow paths and stairways and, of course, the views of the Elbe.