"Hamburg, Freie und HanseStadt" Hamburg by Bushman23

To start with, the only reason i really wanted to see Hamburg was because my Dad was born there. I only spent a couple of days here too, because accommodation was pretty much booked out.
I almost left 2 hours after arriving though, and if it hadn't been for the fantastic staff at the Tourist info in the HauptBahnhof, i probably would have! This was due to the fact that the campsite i'd hoped to stay at was absolute rubbish (see the tip), and if i hadn't found the Youth Hostel, i would have left.

Anyway, some general knowledge about Hamburg:
Its the second largest city in Germany (Behind Berlin - Yes, i thought it was Munich too). It has a population of 1.6 Million people.
Even though it is 100Km from the Nordsee, it has the largest harbour in Germany, due to being situated on the Elbe river.
It has more canals & bridges than any other city in Europe (including Venice).

Check out Hamburg. A really good Website, but all in German i'm afraid...

The dry dock

So, what about Hamburg then? it's a beautiful city, thats for sure. Not as many parks and quiet areas as Berlin or Kiel, but definitely still enough to do! As its very touristy, there's loads of Shopping to do, Barge cruises on offer, Cafe's everywhere, historic churches, etcetera... And not too big to have to use public transport to get everywhere either.

Jugendherberge Auf Dem Stintfang

If you're gonna stay in Hamburg for a while, try get a hotel / Hostel close to the center of town, as it makes the stay much more enjoyable, and it's so much more convenient. I stayed very close to the LandungsBrucke, only about 20 minutes walk from the center of town. It was perfect. There are several hostels and hotels reasonably close to the business district, just ask at the Information center in the HauptBahnhof.

• Pros:Not huge, but definitely big enough!
• Cons:Some accommodation not so hot...
• In a nutshell:My first bad day in Germany, but more than made up for it in the End!