Hamburg Hotels and Restaurants

Hotels

Hamburg has more than 300 hotels, pensions, hostels, and other lodgings, with nearly 45,000 guest beds. If you're looking for a place to stay, you're likely to have plenty of options--although it never hurts to book ahead, especially during summer and around holidays such as Christmas and Easter. Conventions, trade shows, and other events can also affect occupancy rates.

We recommend staying in the city center, if you can. Hotels between the Binnenalster and the harbor are likely to be especially convenient, with St. Pauli being a good choice if you plan to go clubbing until the wee hours.

Specific hotels worth mentioning include the luxurious and legendary Viere Jahrezeiten (now part of the Fairmont chain), the perfectly-situated Steigenberger Hotel Hamburg (inset photo), and the museum ship Cap San Diego (see photo at top of page), a retired freighter from the 1960s that offers staterooms with private facilities--including the former captain's suite--at surprisingly reasonable rates.

If you're looking for a hostel, try the Youth Hostel Hamburg "Auf dem Stintfang," a Hostelling International affiliate in the city center. The hostel has a view of the harbor and is within walking distance of the Reeperbahn nightlife district.

Booking.com, our hotel partner (and Europe's largest secure reservations service), offers hundreds of hotels, guesthouses, and other accommodations in Hamburg. We've personally used Booking.com to reserve places to stay on three continents.

Restaurants

Hamburg offers food for every taste, from McDonald's to Michelin-starred restaurants. The tourist office's restaurant listings offer a helpful introduction to the local gastronomic scene.

Don't miss out on the chance to enjoy local dishes such as Labskaus or Hamburg's beloved Franzbrötchen sweet rolls. A good place to try Hamburger cuisine (as opposed to a hamburger) is the café at the Ballinstadt Emigration Museum, which has tasty stick-to-the-ribs specialties at reasonable prices.

Finally, no visit to Germany (and especially to Hamburg, which has many citizens of Turkish descent) is complete without at least one meal from a Döner Kebab eat-in or take-out shop. Qype.co.uk has member reviews of Kebab shops in and around Hamburg.