Hamburg City Guide - historical

Sightseeing is concentrated in two main areas, the city centre and the harbour.

Hamburg's historical centre has twice been consumed by flames, once by accident in 1842 and once by Allied bombing in 1943. It is consequently mostly modern with only a few surviving churches and ancient houses standing alongside neoclassical facades, some new, many expertly restored. The city centre looks onto its signature feature, the Alster Lake, of which the outer section (Aussenalster) is particularly attractive.

The other principal sightseeing centre is the harbour and the adjoining red-light district of St Pauli with its infamous main street, the Reeperbahn. The harbour is the second biggest in Europe and provides visitors with boat tours, museum ships, the Speicherstadt warehouse museums and the colourful comings and goings of any major port.

The once notorious St Pauli is not as dependent on the sex industry as it used to be (though it is still no place for the prudish) and large parts of it have been transformed into the city's leading nightlife area, with numerous theatres and respectable nightspots.