Hamburg: Everything You Need To Know

For a long time, Berlin has been the go-to weekend destination in das Fatherland, but increasingly sights are turning a little further north to the low-cost flight destination of Hamburg (Check out our blog to see more comparisons between the two). It’s where The Beatles did their gig work and transformed into the world’s most successful band. It’s where Kevin Keegan went to cement himself as one of the world’s best by winning the Ballon d’Or twice on the bounce. And it’s where our customers on the continent are going for some of the best stag dos around.

With Stag Weekends in Hamburg becoming so popular, we’ve decided to create an infographic that details everything you need to know about this stag do haven. For even more info, you’re best of checking out our guide to Hamburg.

10 Things To Do In Hamburg

1) Planten Un Blomen  This giant park stretches over 47 hectares of land. Nestled in the heart of the city it offers a change of pace from the madness of Hamburg, and highlights everything that’s beautiful about this city. One of the real show-stealers is the botanical garden, which golds the largest Japanese garden in Europe. You can even have an authentic tea ceremony there!

 2) Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg's own version of Legoland, the Miniatur Wunderland is a huge railway exhibition, the largest of its kind in the whole world.  As much for adults as it is for children, this is still a relatively new attraction, having only just been built in the year 2000. It is constantly expanding, with current work set to complete in 2020, while there are some plans on adding a 'Mini England' design. The Wunderland is located in the historic Speicerstadt district.

 3) Emigration Museum Known in Germany as BallinStadt, the Emigration museum is a beautiful highlight to both the past, present and future of Hamburg, highlighting the 5,000,000 emigrants that used Hamburg as their final port of call before heading on to America. Located on the edge of the waterways BallinStadt is one of the more fascinating locations in Hamburg, and regularly one of the ‘must do’ tourist destinations.

4) Ohlsdorf cemetery This may seem an odd one, but the Ohlsdorf is the largest rural cemetery in the world and each year over 2 million visitors travel to see it. Not only home to many notable German celebrities and war heroes, the Ohlsdorf is actually most notable for its stunning architecture. It’s wide range of sculptures and statues are famous across the world and it’s beauty is why it’s made its way onto our top 10.

5) Hamburg Harbour It has already been highlighted how influential Hamburg's port is to the cities success and trade links to the outside world, with around 10,000 ships stopping here each year. It is also recognised as a 'must-see' for anyone visiting the city, while if you are there on a Sunday then it is worth checking out the fish market.

 6) Old Elbe Tunnel Standing for over 100 years, the tunnel is also known as St. Pauli Elbe Tunnel and was the first river tunnel in Europe. It is completely free to go through, while you won't be alone taking snaps as you walk through.

7) International Maritime Museum Another young item on the list, this museum took over from a former warehouse, being launched to the public in 2008. It now hosts a huge amount of architectural marvels and model ships. Perhaps most substantial is the 1 million photographs the building contains.

8) St Michaeli Church The 132 metre spire makes for a noticeable landmark that you will notice when walking around town. One of the five Lutheran main churches you will find in the city, this is the most visited and treasured in Hamburg. In fact, it is one of the most stunning in Germany, with a trumpet solo played every day in the morning and evening (except Sundays where it is played once).

9) Kunsthalle Hamburg This art museum explores seven different centuries of art, highlighting the best Hamburg has to offer. Quite beautifully, the building was financed by Hamburg citizen’s donations, something which would be almost incomprehensible nowadays.

10) Schanzenviertel Forget the bars in Reeperbahn, this is the best place to go for a drink. With its history based on a working class district, the area has constantly evolved over time, now playing a huge role in the hip Hamburg scene. The alternative stores also make for some great shopping, especially if you need to get a present for someone back home.

Best Hamburg Stag Do Activities

We love working in Hamburg, the city has everything. As well as a cultural hub it’s a legendary city of sin, one of the wildest party towns in Hamburg. Its cup runneth over with tons of activities for stag dos to take part in. Below are a few of our favourites:-

Beer Bike

As you’ve probably picked up, there’s plenty to do in Hamburg and plenty to see. And what better way to take it in that from the comfort of one of Hamburg’s beer bikes? A beer bike is equipped with a wooden table to rest your beer on, a roof to protect you from the rain and a sound system. Basically it’s a pub on wheels!

As one of the most popular activities we recommend that you get this booked up early. There’s few better ways to experience everything Hamburg has to offer than from the comfort of the beer bike, you get to wave at the pretty frauleins, take in the view and enjoy a pint while you do it! Heaven in Hamburg!

River Cruise with Stripper

Continuing on our theme of enjoying the view, the waterways of Hamburg provide a different look at this city. As one of the biggest ports in Europe, and branding itself as the ‘Gateway to the World’ a tour to the rivers of Hamburg is must do, and you’ll see some truly staggering sights on one of our river cruises.

Of course, this is a stag do. So even more popular than our river cruises are our river cruises where you’re joined by a stripper right out one of the Reepherbahn’s best stripclubs. Our stags often tell us that these steamy river cruises into the heart of the city are some of their most memorable stag dos.

Rifle Shooting

Stag dos are often all about measuring your skills against your mates. On the one hand, forfeits and losers paying for pints are some of the most fun parts of a stag do. And on the other hand, appealing to a man’s innate sense of competitiveness is a route to the success of any activity. A Hamburg rifle shooting experience is a fantastic addition to a stag do and many of our stags pull the trigger and add it to their weekend for a bit of fun.

Best Bars in Hamburg

Hamburg has always been a melting point. From the red light district to the atmospheric nightlife hubs like St. Pauli there’s a wide range of spots to satisfy a wide range of lad’s holidays. Below we’ve included some of our favourite Hamburg bars, where we recommend our stags go:-

Blockbrau

The quintessential ‘beer hall’ of Germany actually comes from regions like Bavaria, and as you’re a fair few miles away from Munich – there aren’t that many venues to be found in Hamburg. That said, if you couldn’t leave Germany without seeing one of these halls, then Blockbrau is what you need. With its long tables, bench seats and constantly bustling atmosphere Blockbrau gives you that hall atmosphere. As well as serving endless amounts of proper German beer this is also a fantastic location to start a stag night – with tons of great stomach lining foods served til late.

Jolly Roger

If you’re a true dyed-in-the-wool footie fanatic then you might know about St. Pauli. Not just one of the wildest neighbourhoods in the city, they’re also one of the most interesting football teams in the world. Known for their alternative, passionate fans who call themselves the ‘Kult’ they’ve transformed into one of the most welcoming and friendly, yet wild and party loving clubs around. What does this have to do with Hamburg’s best bars? Well they own a certain bar that goes by the name of the Jolly Roger.

Run by the fans for the fans, if you’re looking for a wild atmosphere and cheap beer (and you’re on a stag, so your answer to those is both yes) then look no further. Most of the time the Jolly Roger appears like a standard dive bar, albeit one with very friendly staff. But when St. Pauli play it transforms into a really wild party hub. Before and after the game it’s the place to be. And if St. Pauli win? Its where you want to be to kick your night off to the next level!