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28
TRAVELLER
DISCOVERIES
As the city’s Reeperbahn smartens up for its annual festivities, we plot our
seven-point plan for a super stay
ESSENTIALS
OLD FAITHFUL
– 01
As watery cities go,
Hamburg is impressive.
Not only home to a
busy working port, and
canals spanned bymore
bridges than Venice, its
inner-city lake, the Alster,
provides a delightful inland
waterfront. Make themost
of it with a drink on the
terraces of the Binnenalster
(the inner lake) or amore
ambitious 7kmexcursion
around the towpath of the
(outer) Außenalster.
NEWTASTES
– 02
The city’s harbour
development, HafenCity,
continues apace, with
new hangouts opening
weekly. The latest
high-end hostelry here
is a second outlet for
the Coast and Sansibar
Wine collaboration
(
coast-hamburg.de
),
offering bar, seafood grill
and sushi restaurant with
views and terraces right
on the River Elbe.
DONOW
– 03
Better known for its
red lights and tacky
peep shows, the city’s
Reeperbahn also has
a rich musical history –
The Beatles famously
rocked here in ’63.
Come along on 20–22
September for the annual
Reeperbahn Festival
(
reeperbahnfestival.com)
,
with its art, culture and
music programme, as well
as the usual outré cabaret.
SWEET STAY
– 04
Budget accommodation in
big cities can oftenmean a
sterile cell or grubby group
living, but Superbude’s
hostels (from
¤59 per
night per double room;
hotels.easyJet.com
) break
themould. The spacious
rooms have quirky design
touches (mousetraps as
picture hooks gently play
on the flea-pit stereotype),
while communal perks
include pick-and-mix jars,
an in-house cinema, bike
hire and gourmet coffee
stations. With two central
locations – St Georg or
St Pauli – to choose from,
there’s no better place for
this price.
DISHOF THE DAY
– 05
Hamburg’s seaside
location is key to its
cuisine. Traditional dishes,
including pickled herring
and
aalsuppe
(eel soup),
can easily be traced back
to their nautical roots. For
a seriously authentic taste,
try
labskaus
, a salt- or
corned-beef hash made
with onion, beetroot,
potatoes and herring,
devised by galley chefs in
the 18th century.
PHOTOOP
– 06
The best place to capture
the post-industrial
landscape of Hamburg is
from the 132m-tall tower
of St Michaelis Church
(
st-michaelis.de)
, known
locally as the Michel
(pronounced “Mikkle”).
It’s a serious climb to the
top, but worth it for hazy
horizon shots, especially in
the run-up to sunset, when
the harbour cranes gain a
golden glow.
BUY THIS
– 07
Regardless of what team
they support, Germans
love FC St Pauli (
fcstpauli.
com
), Hamburg’s
downtown team. Its iconic,
monochrome merch is
keenly sought after. Find
it around the stadium,
near the Reeperbahn,
where shops sell branded
hoodies, T-shirts, lighters
and even toasters.
06
03
HAMBURG
02
WORDS SARAH WARWICK. IMAGE ALAMY