Our Gay City Trip Hamburg – The Hanseatic city in the Northern part of Germany was high on our gay travel’s bucket list already for a while. And so, we were happy to take the opportunity to visit Hamburg for three days in early summer. Exploring the main port city of Germany was a comforting journey through the old parts like the Warehouse District and the gay (friendly) neighborhood St. Georg. And don’t forget our Pyjama Park Hotel stay at one of the most crowded party streets of Hamburg, the Reeperbahn. During our long weekend in Hamburg, we have been able to see different parts of the city of Hamburg, and we have to admit, we loved it. Internationally driven, we felt safe in Hamburg walking together while keeping our heads up to not miss all the beauty the city’s architecture has to offer. Join us gay travel bloggers on our tour through Hamburg by ferry boat tour to the harbor, visiting the Hamburg Miniatur Wunderland, two escape rooms, and enjoyed a great evening with Disney’s Musical ALADDIN. Enjoy a Gay City Trip in Hamburg through a couple of men‘s eyes.
Gay City Trip Hamburg – 2nd biggest German City
The city of Hamburg is full of history tightly connected to sailor men, ships, and the port. Especially the architecture is exceptional since it is a mixture of traditional brick buildings and modern architecture. We really like that kind of Urban grown environment very much in touch with green and peaceful parks throughout the city and crowded party areas in Hamburg – St. Pauli, Hamburg Schenkenviertel, and the gay district Hamburg St. Georg. Our impression of the people of Hamburg: friendly and open-minded but Nordic rough with some surreptitiously looks on a gay couple walking openly gay hand-in-hand through the city.
Hamburg as the second-biggest city in Germany is easy to explore on foot. Additionally, the well-organized public transport makes using the ferries, buses, subway, and city train (S-Bahn) a very convenient alternative. Although the bike ways are not as good as in the Netherlands, biking in Hamburg is a good option to see more of the beautiful city. And don’t forget to visit Hamburg during the annual CSD Gay Pride Parade Hamburg as it is one of the biggest LGBT events in Germany. More information from the Hamburg Tourism information >
How to get to Hamburg and around
The City of Hamburg is perfectly connected to the Hamburg Airport (from Amsterdam by KLM Airlines & more Low Coast Airlines) by the German public train service, called S-Bahn. Just go downstairs to the trains (follow the green round sign with a white “S” in the middle) and jump in the S1 going directly to the Hamburg Central Station. Please don’t forget to buy your tickets before boarding the train. If you bought the Hamburg Card, this trip is included. Just show your digital mobile card with your ID card/passport when asked by a conductor. Within Hamburg, you can use the Subway, Buses, Ferries, and city trains (S-Bahn) included in your Hamburg Card. Find here the network overview >
Pyjama Park Hotel at Reeperbahn
Hamburg, in particular, the Reeperbahn in St. Pauli, is well known for its nightlife. Loads of bars, clubs, and restaurants next to each other creating a “ganz geile” atmosphere until late at night. The Pyjama Park Hotel, was located right at the beginning of the Reeperbahn in an old town building above the Pyjama Bar.
Street Food Session – St. Pauli StrassenMampf
Already arriving on Thursday for a long weekend in Hamburg? Every Thursday from 5 pm to 11 pm right in front of our Hotel on the Reeperbahn Spielbudenplatz, foodies and gourmets finding a huge selection of food trucks offering a broad ranch of burgers, beers, and other delicious meals. We tried the vegetarian burgers of Vincent Vegan Hamburg and the burger sandwiches of F*Burger Hamburg. And what tastes better than to combine these with a German Banana-Weizen beer! Yammi! More about the Street Food Session – St. Pauli Straßenmampf >
Explore Hamburg with a free Boat Trip
For us, the best advantage of the Hamburg Card was the free usage of Hamburg Public Transportation Services. That includes next to buses and trains also the ferry system. Now you can enjoy a harbor boat tour without paying for it. For a relaxed one-hour tour around the harbor, we recommend ferry number 62 from the Landungsbrücken, the stop where all ferries and tour boats are departing. Don’t forget to dress accordingly to the weather if you want to enjoy the view from the upper deck of the ferry. And don’t forget to bring your Hamburg Card, of course. Then the trip is for free, hop on hop off!
Escape Room No.1: TEAMESCAPE
Also, Hamburg has a lively escape room scene. TeamEscape is one of the higher-ranked escape rooms that drew our attention. Being a franchise with rooms in most big German cities and even across the border, TeamEscape is a well-known brand with nice themed rooms and cool puzzles. Being not the biggest fan ourselves of rooms that are sold and simply copied we were positively surprised that some of them have a connecting story. For instance, if you played one part of the story in Berlin you can pick up where you left in Hamburg. We were locked up in The Hofman Formula. An escape room themed like a private laboratory where you will have 60 min to find the finished antiserum that will protect humankind from a pandemic. With our Hamburg friend Daniel, we explored Dr. Hofman’s lab and searched every medical corner to find the antiserum just in time! More information about TeamEscape >
Restaurant Kaiser’s Hafen City
Hungry while wandering the warehouse district of Hamburg? We were, and we took our seat in the sun right by the waterside at Restaurant Bistro Kaiser’s. Ordering a big German Weizen beer and a typical south German Elsässer Flammkuchen made Karl feel home and Daan very comfortable. Enjoying Hamburg’s beautiful Hafencity on a sunny terrace is just the best experience you can have. Cheers!
Miniature Land Hamburg – Small World
Being a nerd or a grown-up child is nothing special at this place. Believe us, you will be amazed by this fantasy world created out of steel, plaster, colors, thousands of plastic figures, and of course, thousands of working hours. The largest model railway in the world invites its visitors to slow down and focus on the smallest details. This is not your grandpa’s attic hobby… it is Hamburg’s historic warehouse district WUNDER.
Our Tips: 1. Make a reservation beforehand (or wait an hour as standby) 2. Plan at least three hours to discover all the small stories, hidden jokes, and press all the interactive buttons 3. Go early because this attraction is a hit! Our must-see: Switzerland, America and the Airport. All Information about the Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg >
Gay Germany Travel Guide
According to the Spartacus Gay Travel Index, Germany is ranking among the top 10 LGBT-friendly countries in the world and is known as a very welcoming and gay-friendly country according to the annual Gay Travel Index – and, of course, to our own queer experiences!
Escape Room No. 2 – ADVENTURE TEAM
Yes, we did a second escape room! After reading Adventure Team’s design credo to “eliminate locks as much as possible and to build mechanical and electronic barriers instead” we were very interested to see what this young and friendly team would come up with. We played ‘Countdown to meltdown’ which is an escape room themed like a nuclear power station (room). We loved the nuclear idea and the tension that was building up during our 60 minutes of playtime (mostly created by the Alert Mission Emergency Entity A.M.E.E.). The difficulty level was high as promised though we couldn’t really tell the difference to another normal escape room concerning the quantity of the locks nor mechanical (or electronic) puzzles. Still, it was a lot of fun finishing our task in the last few seconds (you prob want to play this room with min. 4 people) and we are very curious about all the cool plans Adventure Team is cooking up. More information about Adventure Team >
Our favorite Dinner Places in Hamburg
Restaurant “Le Su” at Lange Reihe St. Georg Gay Neighborhood
Time for Lunch, time for some healthy and delicious food. Searching for a good place offering vegetarian food but also some meat options, we found Restaurant Le Su in the gay area of St. Georg in Hamburg at the Lange Reihe road. Self-made Mediterranean delicacies, super friendly staff, and seats inside and outside making this place a very good choice for lunch and dinner. We loved the self-made Hummus, amazing!
Restaurant “Neni” at 25Hours Hotel Altes Hafenamt
Located in the middle of the Hafen City of Hamburg, the 25hours Hotels found their home as stylish and new Warehouse looking buildings. There are two 25-hours Hotels next to each other. At the basement of the 25hours Hotel Altes Hafenamt, we discovered the beautiful bar and Restaurant Neni. The food was good, the drinks refreshing and the design and style of the environment stunning. We especially liked the wall painting at the Boilerman bar: a portrait of a derelict from Hamburg. Conversely, for posing for the portrait, he gets a warm meal whenever he wants to.
Perfect Evening – Disney’s Musical ALADDIN
You can also name Hamburg the German Musical Capital. With the musicals “Lion King”, “Das Wunder von Bern”, the “Phantom der Oper I und II” and the new Musical “Aladdin”, you can choose your favorite performance for a perfect evening event. We decided to watch Disney’s Musical Aladdin (by Stage Entertainment) and enjoyed a very colorful Arabic night in Agrabah with powerful singers, an energetic ensemble, and a wonderful background set.
The tour behind the scenes with Kris Siekerman and Mark van Beelen from the current cast of Aladdin gave us an insight into hundreds of unique costumes and some little secrets about the Aladdin-show. Thumbs up – it was not our last musical in Hamburg, for sure!
Drinks with Gay friends in Hamburg
After a wonderful day in Germany’s port city number one, we were looking for a nice gay place for some drinks with old and new friends from Hamburg. This time, it was the popular M&V Gay Bar at the street called “Lange Reihe” in the gay district St. Georg in Hamburg, As locals told us, this is the best gay bar in Hamburg. This traditional gay bar with a nice crowd, handsome staff, and delicious German beers was truly a welcoming spot for a relaxed time, just a 10-minute walk from Hamburg central station.
Our Gay City Trip Hamburg in Northern Germany
We are based in Amsterdam, the Dutch capital of the country surrounded and very closely connected to water. Hamburg felt similar, like a German mixture of the modern port city of Rotterdam and the historical part of the capital of the Netherlands. Neighborhoods like the Schanzenviertel or St. Georg offering space and locations for the young and hipster folks while the Hafen City and the old town part of the Inner and Outer Alster Lake are more moderate and crowded with tourists. Take your time wandering around, explore the contrasts of the old and new Hamburg, smell the fresh salty breeze from the water, and listen to all the seabirds. Our Gay City Trip in Hamburg was fascinating. We will come back.
Interested in more information for your Hamburg-Trip? Leave a comment or write an email, and we will try to help to provide you with all the things you need to know. Don’t be afraid and ask away! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube for more adventures.
Karl & Daan.
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