Is Hamburg Worth Visiting In 2025? Things To Do & Reasons To Visit
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If you’ve found this article, you’re likely considering a trip to Hamburg but are unsure if it’s the right place for you.
Is Hamburg worth visiting? A completely normal question- and one that I had too.
After spending 3 days in Hamburg, I feel confident to provide an answer to this query along with an overview of what Hamburg has to offer.
🇩🇪 When planning a trip to Hamburg, I recommend using:
✈️ Flights: Skyscanner
🏨 Hotels: Booking.com
💵 Hostels: Hostelworld
🗺 Tours & Activities: Viator and GetYourGuide
🚗 Car Rental: Discover Cars
🚌 Transport: Flixbus
🏥 Travel Insurance: Safetywing
📱E-SIM: Airalo
💻 VPN: Surfshark
Is Hamburg Worth Visiting? YES!
In my opinion, Hamburg is definitely worth visiting. Without a doubt! I would recommend it to anyone and there are a number of reasons to visit Hamburg. For example:
- Lots of things to see: Hamburg has many impressive buildings and landmarks, making it a great city for sightseeing.
- Cheap flights: flights to Hamburg are usually very cheap. I managed to find return flights from Dublin for €30!
- Walkable city: Everything in Hamburg is within walking distance and you can easily see the city’s main sights just by walking.
- Shopping: Hamburg is known for being a great city for shoppers. There are plenty of great shop options ranging from luxury brands to designer clothes.

- Good attractions: Hamburg is home to lots of museums and attractions for tourists like Miniatur Wunderland and Chocoversum.
- The food is amazing: German cuisine is delicious and there’s no better place to get a taste than Hamburg. My personal favourite is pretzels.
- Luxury and wealth: Hamburg’s residents are some of the most wealthy around. There are 40,000+ millionaires in the city, meaning 1 in roughly 45 people are millionaires.
- It’s beautiful: If nothing else, Hamburg is a beautiful place to visit. The streets, houses and pretty much anything in the city is so picturesque.
These are just some reasons to head to Hamburg, it would be impossible to list them all.
But don’t just take my word for it, Hamburg is known to be one of the best German cities to visit. Hamburg is also considered one of the cheapest cities in Germany to visit too!

During my time in Hamburg, I also found there to be a lot of German tourists visiting the city. And my German friend I made in my Copenhagen hostel also recommended I visit Hamburg.
If it’s good enough for the Germans to visit Hamburg when it’s in their own country, it’s more than good enough for me.
Hamburg is also a city for anyone and everyone. During my time there I encountered solo travellers, couples and families. It’s the perfect destination for any kind of traveller.
So, is Hamburg worth visiting? Yes, for sure.
10 Best Things To Do In Hamburg
Although I think Hamburg is worth visiting, it’s up to you to weigh up whether you think the city is worth visiting or not. So to help you make your decision, I have created a list of 10 of the best things to do in Hamburg.
1) Visit Miniatur Wunderland: Miniatur Wunderland is the largest miniature model railway in the world. Ironic, right? It’s also Germany’s most popular attraction. There are thousands of trains, buildings and everything. The attention to detail is extraordinary and I would honestly consider coming to Hamburg for Miniatur Wunderland alone.

2) See St. Michel’s Church: St Michel’s Church is probably the most well-known church in Hamburg. The exterior is beautiful and the interior is beautiful, but one of the best parts about St Miche’s Church is that you can go up to the top and admire a beautiful view over Hamburg. You can also see the inside of the clock and see how it works and functions.
3) Step inside the Rathaus: The Rathaus, or Town Hall, in Hamburg is one of the largest in the world. It’s another beautiful building in Hamburg and I can only describe it as impressive. Personally, I prefer copper roofs once they have turned emerald. I think it makes the building look so pretty.
4) Admire Elbphilharmonie Hamburg: As described by my FreeTour guide in Hamburg, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg building is the landmark in Hamburg. It took 10 years to build the concert hall and it’s quite spectacular. Any adjective I use would be an understatement. Top tip: You can go up to the plaza for free and get a wonderful view over the port and Elbe River.


5) Make chocolate at Chocoversum: Chocoversum is a chocolate factory which offers tours in which you can find out about the process of making chocolate. Starting with the cocoa pods all the way to a chocolate bar. You also get to try everything along the way! It’s a pretty unique experience and definitely one of the best things I did in Hamburg.
6) Enjoy a walk through Planten un Blomen: Planten un Blomen is filled with colourful flowers and plants. There are many paths and walking routes to choose from and the park makes for a really nice walk. The University’s exotic plant greenhouses are especially cool to look at.
7) Explore the Harbour: The harbour of Hamburg is famous for being one of the most active in the world. Hamburg’s port oversees 138.2 million tonnes worth of cargo each year, that’s tons! *ba dum tss* Aside from the port’s function, it’s a really nice place to visit too. It’s nice to walk around and see the iconic harbour for yourself. It’s actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site too!

8) Visit Hamburg’s zoo: Tierpark Hagenbeck, otherwise known as Hamburg’s zoo, is known for being of really high quality. You can feed quite a few animals too, most notably giraffes and elephants and it only costs a few euros to buy the food. It’s a really fun day out and you should try and fit it into your Hamburg schedule.
9) See St. Nikolai Church: Having had most of the church destroyed during World War 2, St. Nikolia Church is one of the most unique churches I have ever visited. There’s pretty much only the steeple left along with a few walls and ruins. It’s fascinating and now also serves as a memorial for the war.
10) Take a Beatles Tour: The Beatles are one of the most famous bands of all time but did you know their fame began in Hamburg? There are plenty of Hamburg Beatles tours which show you the most iconic parts of the city for the band. The tours are really interesting and I would be sure to check one out while visiting Hamburg.

What Is Hamburg Known For?
There are many reasons Hamburg is known to be a great city to visit, I give the reasons above. But what is Hamburg known for?
Hamburg is nicknamed “The Gateway to the World” due to the large amount of cargo processed through its port.
Hamburg is also known for its incredible music and musical scene, hence the construction of the Elbphilharmonie. The musical scene is deeply rooted in the history of Hamburg and I would definitely recommend attending a concert, theatre or musical during your trip.

Another thing Hamburg is known for is being a city filled with bridges. In fact, there are 2500 bridges in Hamburg. That’s a lot of bridges!
You may also be familiar with Hamburg’s 2 football (soccer) teams: Hamburger S.V. and FC St. Pauli. They play in the German football league, the Bundesliga.
Lastly, Hamburg is famous for being a rich city. As I said above, there are over 40,000 millionaires in the city. That means 1 in 45 people is a millionaire. This state really blew my mind in Hamburg. Every time I saw more than 50 locals I tried to imagine which one was the millionaire lol!

Best Time To Visit Hamburg
The best months to visit Hamburg are May, June and September. The reason being that the weather is good, but it’s not the peak tourist months of July and August.
Hamburg can get pretty cold and wet in the winter months. That being said, I visited Hamburg in February once and had a great trip. If the weather doesn’t bother you, you can visit Hamburg all year round.

But if you choose to visit in May, June and September you can enjoy sunny days while avoiding the highest prices of the summer holiday months.
You can of course visit in July and August too to take advantage of the good weather, but just be prepared to pay inflated prices for accommodation (this will be the case wherever you go in these months).
Nonetheless, you can have a memorable trip to Hamburg at any time of the year.
Where To Stay In Hamburg
In my opinion and from my experience, the best part of Hamburg to stay in is around Hamburg HBF, the central station.
I always try and stay near the central station no matter which city it is I’m visiting.

Regarding Hamburg, staying near Hamburg HBF means you are within walking distance of all of the main tourist attractions. For example, Hamburg HBF to Chocoversum is a 9-minute walk. The area is also pretty affordable too.
One of the best hotels in the area is the Reichshof Hotel Hamburg which is a highly rated (8.3/10) hotel right beside the central station. You get a view from your hotel window! You can’t go wrong with booking a stay at the Reichshof Hotel, I would thoroughly recommend it. If nothing else, it’s in the perfect area.
If you are visiting Hamburg on a budget or visiting Hamburg solo, you may wish to stay in a hostel. I recommend staying in A&O Hamburg Hauptbahnhof. It’s a really clean, modern hostel with great facilities and I had a great stay here. And once again, it’s in the perfect area. The HBF is literally in the name! It’s one of the best hostels I’ve stayed in and you can read more in my review of A&O Hostel Hamburg.
➡️ Best hotel in Hamburg: Reichshof Hotel Hamburg
➡️ Best budget-friendly hostel in Hamburg: A&O Hamburg Hauptbahnhof

How To Get Around Hamburg
The best way to get around Hamburg is by walking. All of the main sights and tourist attractions are on the western side of the centre of the city, meaning everything is pretty close together.
For example, from Hamburg Rathaus to Miniatur Wunderland is a 17-minute walk and that’s probably 2 of the furthest apart attractions.

The public transport is exceptional in Hamburg though, if walking isn’t your thing or if you aren’t able to walk for long durations.
Another option is cycling, which would be a good option if you have less time in Hamburg and need to see the sights in a shorter period of time.
Is Hamburg Worth Visiting: FAQ
Below are a few questions related to “Is Hamburg worth visiting?” along with my answers.
Hamburg is considered a must-see because there are a number of beautiful landmarks such as Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Hamburg Port, Hamburg Rathaus, St. Michel’s Church and more. The whole of Hamburg is picturesque.
Yes, Hamburg is definitely walkable. Most of the main tourist attractions are on the western side of the city, meaning everything is pretty close together and definitely within walking distance.
For sure! Hamburg is definitely worth seeing, especially the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and the UNESCO World Heritage Site that is Hamburg Port. Hamburg itself is beautiful but the landmarks definitely make the city worth seeing.
Hamburg is best known for