Where to stay

Hamburg has a wealth of varied cultural attractions to choose from. Hotels in HafenCity are close to the concert halls of the Elbphilharmonie, with unique and very modern architecture built on top of an old warehouse. The Karolinenviertel neighborhood to the north is a great place to stay to attend the renowned Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra. Book a hotel in Saint Georg to see the European paintings and other art at the Hamburger Kunsthalle. Saint Pauli hotels are close to the Museum of Hamburg History and the theaters, bars, and nightclubs of the famous Reeperbahn street. Accommodations in Altona-Altstadt are just a 15-minute walk from the somewhat different attractions of Hamburg's red-light district.

Hamburg and its surrounding neighborhoods are filled with interesting architecture. Stay in Hamburg-Mitte's neighborhoods of Altstadt and Neustadt and take walking tours of their churches, museums, and older residential areas. Accommodations in Münzviertel are close to the Warehouse District (Speicherstadt), where large numbers of redbrick warehouses built in the late 1880s line the canals and now have been repurposed as shops, cafés, hotels, and bars. Altona-Altstadt has hotels in some of the city's oldest architectural gems. Book a hotel west of town in Blankenese to see the Treppenviertel or Stairs Quarter, with white homes on a hillside overlooking the Elbe River.

Hamburg City Center is a great place to stay to bring the kids to neighborhood playgrounds. An especially interesting one is in the pretty botanic garden of Planten un Blomen, where there's a free water and light show every night in summer. Stay in the Portuguese Quarter (Portugiesenviertel) to visit the Miniatur Wunderland, with a huge model train exhibit, flying planes, and a working volcano. This neighborhood is about a five-minute walk from Landungsbrücken, the ferry terminal where boats leave for tours of the canals. Book a hotel in Stellingen, northwest of the city, to visit the Tierpark Hagenbeck, the Hamburg Zoo. Accommodations in the southeastern borough of Bergedorf are great for riding bikes along tree-lined roads and visiting a castle. Arrange a hotel in Altona and bring kids to see the goings-on at the large Fish Market along the Elbe River.