Getting to Europe on KLM Thursday, August 22, 2024
We flew KLM Airlines from LAX to Amsterdam and then Amsterdam to Hamburg. We left LA just before 2:00 pm. The flight to Europe took about 9 ½ hours and 1 hour from Amsterdam to Hamburg. As shown in the pictures, our path to Europe took us over Hudson Bay and just north of Ireland. Since we flew Economy Comfort, we were well-rested when we arrived, well as much as we could be considering we were awake for more than 24 hours at that point.
In Amsterdam, we had just under 2 hours to transfer between flights and it's a good thing we did. It took more than a half hour to get through customs and 45 minutes to walk between terminals. Ample time, but we were a little nervous since we weren't sure how long it would take until we were at the gate. We also found there's no comfort seating on the Amsterdam to Hamburg leg of the trip. Glad it was only an hour.
Passed over Las Vegas and now on to Canada
Past Hudson Bay and on to Greenland
Finally approaching Europe
Almost there
Sunrise over Europe... a bright day ahead
Tour Itinerary
The Tour Itinerary portion of each section of this site covers the activities while on our Rick Steves (R/S) Tour and our activities when we were On Our Own. Our overall trip started three days before the R/S tour on Thursday, August 22nd, and ended on Sunday, September 8th two days after the R/S tour portion of our trip was over. The days/dates of our overall trip are shown in the top left corner of each section. In this section, Day 1 is the start of our R/S tour not the start of our trip which started on Day -3 (Getting to Europe above)...yeah confusing!
Day -2 (Friday - August 23) Arrive in Germany
After traveling for 12 hours (10.5 hours flying) we finally arrived in Hamberg. We only stopped once in Amsterdam. After spending 30 minutes in line for EU immigration, we hustled our butts from one wing of the airport, past a second wing, and then down to the middle of a third wing to hop onto a small KLM inter-city plane for a short 60-minute flight to Hamburg.
Once we landed in Hamburg it took us over an hour to locate the terminal for the S-Baun (subway) from the airport to the city center. Yup! Something that should have taken a few minutes. This is not the first time we've been that confused. Once we found the location, we purchased our tickets (couldn't use a credit card because the vending machine wanted a PIN...which. of course, we don't have) we boarded the subway, made one transfer, and rode to Stephansplatz. Easy peasy..if you exit correctly. But not us. We left via the nearest stairway which left us as far from our hotel as possible. Another 20 minutes wasted.
Once we checked in and found our room, we decided that although we needed to take it easy, we needed to revisit the subway to discover how to find the other lines, etc. In doing so, we ended up at the Jungfermstieg station and walked the underground passage to the Rathus station (U3 line). We surfaced to see where we were (you lose track of your surface location when moving around like a worm) and to see what was nearby. Two interesting finds. The St. Peters Church and the Hamburg Town Hall. When it started to rain, we decided to head back to our hotel and have an early dinner at the Hofbräu Munchen Beer Hall just a stone's throw from the front door of our hotel.
After that it's an early night to sleep away the 9 hours of jet lag we've accumulated and our bodies were screaming about.
Day -1 (Saturday - August 24) Our first full day in Germany On Our Own
Today we'll try to fit in as many sites as we can. Our plans include the Miniatur Wunderland (miniature museum), the International Maritime Museum, and a visit inside the Splichherstadt (the warehouse district).
Day 1 (Sunday - August 25) On Our Own
Before we meet with our tour group for the first time (in the late afternoon), we have several places we'd like to cross off our sightseeing list. Fischmarkt is first, followed by the Bismmark Memorial Statue and we finished with St. Michael's Church.
Itinerary Day 1
Day 1 (Sunday - August 25) Welcome to Germany (Starting the R/S tour)
We'll meet at 4 p.m. at our hotel in Hamburg for a "Welcome to Germany" meeting. Then we'll take a neighborhood walk to get a feel for this prosperous, progressive city and get acquainted over dinner together. Light walking: 2–4 miles throughout the day on mostly level terrain. No bus. Sleep in Hamburg.
Itinerary Day 2
Day 2 (Monday - August 26) Hamburg's Old Town and Harbor
Today we'll begin with a walking tour of the historic core of Hamburg, including the resilient St. Nicholas Church Memorial, where we'll learn about "Operation Gomorrah" — the allied firebombing campaign that devastated the city in 1943. Then we'll stroll through historic Speicherstadt to the stunning new Elbphilharmonie concert hall and hop aboard a boat to see the city's massive modern harbor. When we return shoreside we'll set you free for the afternoon/evening to explore more of this impressive port city. Moderate walking: 2–6 miles throughout the day with some hills and stairs. Boat: 1 hour. No bus. Sleep in Hamburg.
Day 2 (Monday - August 26) On Our Own
On our final afternoon in Hamburg we decided to visit a unique attraction...a WWII Flak Bunker.
Subways S-Baun & U-Baun Friday, August 23, 2024
Subways in Hamburg are the same as those we have ridden in London, Paris, Rome, etc. We had no problems getting to all the sites we visited. There were occasions where we had to switch between the various lines but that's straightforward.
We bought a single-day ticket to get us from the airport to our hotel.
We brought a Hamburg card for the two days we were on our own since it gave us full transportation and discounts for several of the sites we visited. Was it more cost-effective...maybe?
R/S Tours gave us a one-day pass on our last day in Hamburg.
Subways in Hamburg operate on the honor system. That is, you don't have to validate the ticket when you first use it. Tickets are active from the time you buy them and are good for 24 hours from that point. We were never asked to prove we bought a ticket.
In most stations, the subway platform in both directions was between the tracks, so you simply had to find the station you wanted and then pick your direction once on the platform.
St. Peters Church Friday, August 23, 2024
On our first day in Hamburg, we had one goal in mind...stay awake. We hadn't had any sleep for over 24 hours but that simply couldn't matter. The best thing we could do is keep moving. St Peters was the first place we found. It's a beautiful church (although not very ornate) sitting on the highest point of Hamburg. BTW it's the oldest congregation in Hamburg dating back to 1195. A great place to start.
North Aisle
Portrait of Martin Luther by Jacob Jacob`s Gemalde (1603)
Unknown artist and painting
East Aisle
Looking through to the alter
Diagram showing museums (church and firemans) hours of the observation tower
Bronze lion-head door handles (1342), left wing west portal
Full view from across the street
Plaque on the front of the church
St. Peter`s Church
St. Peters Church Mönckebergstraße, 20095 Hamburg
   
Hamburg Town Hall Friday, August 23, 2024
We visited the Town Hall twice. The first time was on the day we arrived in Hamburg. Since we were just getting ourselves familiar with the area and intended to return later, we stayed just a few minutes. We returned to the town hall after our orientation tour of Hamburg, wanting to see if we could go up into the tower. It turns out the answer is yes...BUT there's no elevator and no way that we were walking to the top. Oh well! I'm sure it was a nice view of the city, but we were to see the skyline from a number of other building in Hamburg later in our stay.
Clock tower immediately above the main entrance
Mian entrance and the clock tower
Base of the `May` Pole
May Pole
This second group of pictures was taken during our group walking tour (more below). Patricia explained about the statuary on the front of the building and how it shows that while royalty is given a place of prominence (lower down between the windows), ordinary citizens were placed above them to show that they actually mattered more.
Main Entrance
Common people (above the windows) and the royalty figures (between the windows)
Water Carrier
Worker toting merchandice
An Educator
Hamburg Town Hall
Hamburg Town Hall Rathausmarkt 1 20095 Hamburg
      
Hofbräu München Friday, August 23, 2024
After a little sightseeing, we stayed close to our hotel for dinner. Close in this case was a local beer hall a short distance from our front door. It was a great choice. We both had German dishes and finished with an apple strudel topped with ice cream. Our first meal in Germany was filled with yummy German foods (clearly a favorite).
After dinner, we had an interesting discussion with a waiter. Since it was late afternoon, well before the dinner hour, we wondered when they would get busy that evening. He said they were busy in the evening but not like it is starting with Octoberfest and ending after Christmas...the start of their busiest time of the year. He said it's crazy throughout the period having as many as 1200 guests in an evening...a lot of beer and a good indication of the size of the restaurant.
Monday, August 26th - We tried to find a new place we hadn't already been to for our last night in Hamburg. But having traveled around the entire block south of our hotel, we gave up looking further and returned to the Hofbräuhaus. It is a good choice the second time around. We both ordered different items and enjoyed them as well as the first. Still recommended.
As seen from the street out front
Our first meal in Germany
Yup! it`s Germany.
We sat at one end of the restaurant
There`s seating right outside the window
Hofbräu München Esplanade 6 Esplanade 6, 20354 Hamburg
      
Hotel Alster Hof (Yup... our hotel) Saturday, August 24, 2024
We ate all of our breakfasts at the hotel. They did a great job with a large, varied selection of both hot and cold foods: eggs (both scrambled and hard/soft boiled), bacon, various cold cuts, and fruits, including some delicious cut-up fresh pineapple. There was also a good selection of bakery items (breads and rolls). Yup, a very good hotel breakfast.
First, let me cover a wonderful surprise we received when we arrived. We had read that you could get advanced tickets for a specified time, and you'd be able to walk in shortly after you showed up. We immediately went online (weeks before our trip) to reserve spots. Wrong! For the 24th of August, the only time we could reserve was at 7:00 in the morning. Come on! No way that was going to work. Remember, this is our first full day in Europe, and we are still jet-lagged! So fine, we decided we'd get up a little early, have our breakfast, and get over there as early as we could, knowing fully well that we'd be waiting as much as two hours because we had no reservation. That was the plan, and that's what we did. We got there shortly before 9:00 am. To our surprise, we were 3rd and 4th in line...less than a 15-minute wait! Yup! A wonderful surprise!
So what did we see? You can read the information below, which does a good job with the "numbers," but it doesn't cover the WOW factor! There are two large floors in two buildings, filled with miniature versions of locations throughout Europe and beyond. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. With that in mind, I've limited the pictures to about 10,000 words. You should get a good sense of the Wow factor! Remember you can click on an in-line slide show picture to switch to full-screen display mode.
One more thing. A big chunk of the Wow! factor is the "childhood" reactions we had to most of the displays. And then there is the child's reaction in the airport video below. Ah, through a child's eyes. We felt the same way!
Finally, a recommendation? ABSOLUTELY! This is a must-see!
One of the conroll rooms
Scenes were displayed at night as well
St. Peters in Rome
Hamburg Warehouse district
Hamburg waterfront
Miami (Note the guy in the pool!)
Las Vagus
Western America
Hamburg not far from where wee stayed
Soccer stadium each of the fans is an individual piece - score board display is live
Another night shot
Airport - video (below) will show planes taking off
Southern Germany
Airport parking garage
Swiss mountain pass
Hamburg Harbor
Operations Control
Airport in operation
Miniatur Wunderland Kehrwieder 2/Block D 20457 Hamburg, Germany
      
International Maritime Museum Saturday, August 24, 2024
You wouldn't think a private collection could make a good museum, but this museum proves that can be true. The collection covers nine floors. We were advised to start on the ninth floor and walk down. Great advice. It's a lot easier walking down the nine flights rather than walking up them.
It must be said that this museum is an outstanding example of one person's obsession with collecting "things". The toys (thousands of them) on the 9th floor alone are overwhelming. But that's only one floor. The other eight floors do not have the same volume, but the collections on each is also outstanding.
Approaching from across the river
The very first item collected (from Peter`s mother)
Peter Tamm...this was his collection
Model trains...thousands of them
Lighthouses and small boats/ships
Ships of all types and sizes
Deep sea research
Waling harpoons
Insignias, Medals and Decoration
Naval uniforms from multiple countries
Dug out canoe
Art work with a nautical theme
A large ship model hanging for effect
Donors and Friends of the museum
Mockup of a cruise ship luxury cabin
Naval vessels from various nations
Commercial ships
International Maritime Museum Koreastraße 1 20457 Hamburg, Germany Tel: +49 40 30092300
      
Fischmarkt Sunday, August 25, 2024
The early (it starts at 5:00 am...but we didn't get there until 7:00 am) Fischmarkt (named after the location, not really a marketplace for fish) is a fascinating combination of food wagons (some selling fish), produce wagons (more on these below), and a flea market with people selling jewelry, tea shirts, hats, clothing, magnets, toys, plants/flowers and you name it...lining both sides of what used to be the fish market right along the edge of the Elbe. The area stretched for several miles. There were thousands of people looking for deals, and even a band was playing in the Pavillion (aka beer hall), reminding you of a mini October fest. Everyone was having a great time.
Oh Yeah! About the produce wagons. They're pictured below, but you need a description. The vendor lined up bags (paper, cloth, plastic) along the front of the stage and filled them one item at a time with various types of produce. When a customer was happy with the contents of a bag, they would agree on a price with the seller, and off they went with their purchase. This went on hour after hour...the entire time we were at the market!
Would we recommend it? You bet! It is unique.
Some clothing
Eels...nothing more to say
Some actual fish
Produce vendor
A better view of the bags
It goes on and on
In both directions
Further down the line
Still going far down
Inside the Pavillion
Anoher part of the Pavillion
Showing the proximity to the Elbe
Fischmarkt St. Pauli Fischmarkt 2 Altona, by the Elbe river 20359 Hamburg
      
St. Michael`s Church Sunday, August 25, 2024
We hoped for a great view of the city, and St Michael's is the place to go. However, there are 42 steps you have to climb before you can get onto the elevator. Was it worth the climb? You bet. 360º degree terrace with an unobstructed view of Hamburg. In each direction, there are pictorial displays identifying the landmarks and other sites you see on that side of the church. A great way to orient yourself to the city. In fact, we found two places (Otto von Bismark Memorial Statue and the WWII Nazi Flak Bunker) which we decided to visit after viewing them from the tower. We probably wouldn't have bothered otherwise. Note that there is a fee to visit the tower. We paid 6€ each, a reduced rate for seniors.
Entrance to the church
From down the block
TV Tower which we found out is no longer used
Flak Bunker (we saw it up close)
Bismark Statue (didn`t know it existed until this moment)
Looking down the Elbe
Straight down to the ground
It was VERY windy
Inside the elevator - top floor is 137.1 meters...450 feet
St. Michael`s Church Engl. Planke 1 20459 Hamburg, Germany
      
Otto von Bismark Memorial Statue Sunday, August 25, 2024
We noticed this statue off in the distance while we were looking down from St. Michael's steeple. I've included the picture I took from the steeple (the last one in the series). Obviously, if you can see the statue easily from that height/distance, it must be large. Yup! Sure is. In one of the pictures (although it's a little hard to see), Linda is standing at the base of the statue. As I said...very large. You'd think the size and location of the statue (alone in its own park) would mean that von Bismark is revered. But the area around it and the base of the statue, in particular, is in very bad condition, sad. There have been 13 million Euros recently set aside to provide badly needed maintenance on the statue, the structure that holds it, and the park it is in. How the mighty have fallen.
Wide Angle
As we approached
Linda in front of the statue
Taken on the steeple of St. Michael`s
Otto von Bismark Memorial Statue Alter Elbpark
Gasthaus an der Alster Sunday, August 25, 2024
This is our first tour group dinner together. We spent the time getting to know each other and sharing information about ourselves. Starting with names and home towns, we then moved on to our travel history and why we decided to see Germany. The food was great (although far more than we normally eat). Everyone enjoyed the evening. It was a great start to a great trip.
Out Front
Our group
Our group from another angle
The other half of our group
Our Group
Linda`s fish
The Bar area
Almost looks like the stage for a puppet show (interesting)
Even Boggy enjoyed the evening
Linda loves old sewing machines
Gasthaus an der Alster Ferdinandstraße 65-67 20095 Hamburg
      
Group Walking Tour Monday, August 26, 2024
On our first full day in Germany, our group met outside our hotel for a walking tour with our tour guide, Patricia. This is standard operating procedure for a Rick Steves tour, i.e., a walking tour to introduce us to the area, usually within walking distance of where we're staying. For those in our group who hadn't arrived early, it was an opportunity to plan the rest of the day.
Gathering for our first tour together
Patricia (our guide) starts with an intro
Patricia stops to give us some local details
We passed by Binnenalster (Inner Alster Lake)
Close up of the Town Hall (more above)
Court Yard of the Town Hall
Approaching St. Nicholas Memorial
Splichherstadt (the warehouse district)
Elbphilharmonie concert hall
St. Nicholas Church Memorial Monday, August 26, 2024
St. Nicholas Church Memorial Willy-Brandt-Straße 60 20457 Hamburg, Germany Tel: +49 40 371125
      
Stumbling Blocks Monday, August 26, 2024
This was the first time (on this tour) we came across some Stumbling Blocks. The blocks are 10cm (3.9 inch) square plates containing the names and dates of individuals who were victims of the Nazis. There are now more than 100,000 (in and outside of Germany) serving as a reminder that the evils of Nazi Germany affected people everywhere in Europe and from every walk of life. This is the largest group of blocks we saw. Most are in ones and twos embedded where the person(s) lived. When you encounter a block outside a building, you realize that the person identified is not just a name but someone who walked right where we stood and died at the hands of the Nazis for no reason but hatred.
Stumbling Blocks
Close Up
The Speicherstadt Monday, August 26, 2024
We passed by the warehouse district on our way to the Elbphilharmonie. We had previously visited one of the warehouses when we went to the Miniatur Wunderland (Minature Wonderland), housed in two of the units. This view is on the opposite side of the same buildings. It shows the canals used to move freight in and out of the port as well as the newer construction of apartments. A short time later we floated through the canals on our boat tour.
The Speicherstadt Brook 20457 Hamburg
   
Elbphilharmonie Monday, August 26, 2024
After we walked from the hotel by St. Nicholas and the historic Speicherstadt (warehouse district), we made our way to the Elbphilharmonie concert hall. While there is a lot of controversy about the addition of the concert hall portion of the building to the former warehouse that makes up the base (it took a lot longer then planned AND the cost overrun was 5 times he original estimate) I doubt that anyone is sorry it was built. The pictures we took were a beautiful view of the river and the marine community up and down the river. You can walk around the entire building, so there are some shots looking toward Hamburg as well. A great visit, provided as part of our tour.
Approaching the building... Symphony hall et cetera on top of the old warehouse
Escalator (Worlds longest curved) to the observation deck
Looking back down the escalator.
Stopping around to the observation deck.
Looking east down the Elbe
St. Catherine`s steeple on the right, St. Jacobi`s steeple on the left
Looking west down the Elbe
Observation deck on the east side of the building
Observation deck looking out onto the Elbe
Observation deck on the east side of the building.
Elbphilharmonie Platz d. Deutschen Einheit 4 20457 Hamburg, Germany Tel: +49 40 3576660
      
Boat Tour Monday, August 26, 2024
Our final group activity of the day was a boat tour of Hamburg Harbor, one of the busiest and most important harbors of Europe. Our guide, Helge, narrated our tour. It's a much different perspective than walking along the shore or even from the balcony of the Opera House.
The tour started by going into the inner harbor (Binnenhafen) in the canals amongst the old warehouses. We learned many businesses were now using them (including the Minature Museum we visited ...more above), offices, and apartments. Out into the harbor, we were treated to a close encounter with a Cosco cargo ship. We've all probably seen pictures of these ships, but getting close-up brought home their huge size—not something you can see from the shore.
A final note. We later found out that the battleship Bismark was launched near the location of the cargo ship.
Our Tour Boat
passing through the warehouse district
yeah a River boat (Not really a German thing)
A schooner which we`re told gives tours
A harbor view of the Fish Market
Even and old Russian submarine
The Cosco cargo ship
Cosco a lot closer
Nazi Flak Bunker Monday, August 26, 2024
On our final afternoon in Hamburg, we visited a unique attraction...a WWII Flak Bunker. Unfortunately, a very long set of stairs was the only way to get to the observation level. So, the only photos we have are of the outside. But that wasn't our goal. We just wanted to see the bunker up close. We first caught sight of the bunker while on the steeple of St. Michael's. Getting close to it was well worth the trip. Wow! It is huge. Imagine the labor (albeit slave labor) it took to build. Every yard of concrete had to be mixed and hailed to its final placement. Remember, the walls are 11.5 feet thick and 125 feet tall. That's a lot of concrete to mix and hail!
Beginning of the stairs to the observation deck
From the St. Michaels steeple
Nazi Flak Bunker Next to U3 Feldstraße
Hotel Alster Hof Friday, August 23, 2024
Nice hotel. Great location. There's a subway stop just down the street and a good selection of restaurants nearby. The room was spacious, and the air conditioning worked well. This was going to be an important theme for the entire trip! Oh yeah, great Internet, also an important theme.