5 Best Sights in Hamburg, Germany

You don’t need to be a model-railroad enthusiast or a 10-year-old to be blown away by the sheer scale and attention to detail of the Miniatur Wunderland. The largest model railroad in the world features almost 17,000 square feet of little trains clickclacking their way through wonderfully faithful miniature replicas of Hamburg itself as well as foreign towns in Switzerland, Austria, the United States, Italy, and Scandinavia; a new South America section was added in 2021. Planes land at a little airport; every 15 minutes, day turns into night and hundreds of thousands of LED lights illuminate the trains, buildings, and streets. Unsurprisingly, it's one of Hamburg's most popular attractions, so it's best to book ahead, particularly on weekends and school holidays, when waiting times for entry can stretch to a couple of hours. If you do have to wait, free drinks and ice cream for children, and videos to watch ease the pain.

Hamburg’s newest landmark (and tallest building) is an impressive merger between the distinctive northern European redbrick architecture and a modern glass facade. The Elbphilharmonie, or Elphi as the locals call it, sits on top of an old warehouse building and its wavelike rooftop, resembling a hoisted sail or quartz crystal can be from seen miles away. The public waited nine years for what is now considered one of the largest and most acoustically advanced concert halls in the world. Inside are two concert halls, a hotel, and residential apartments. In addition, there is a public viewing area (Plaza) that extends around the whole building, offering spectacular 360-degree views of the city and harbor. The plaza is so popular that it requires a timed entry ticket, which is free if booked in person but has a fee if reserved in advance.

In an old 19th-century boiler house, this popular information center documents the HafenCity urban development project. In addition to changing photographic and architectural exhibitions, the center also has an impressive 1:500 scale model of the HafenCity. Free two-hour walking and cycling tours of the HafenCity are also available. Tours in English are offered for groups of 10 people or more and can be booked ahead of time on the center's website.

An excursion to this little museum, inside an original 19th-century warehouse, gives you a sense of the trade that flowed through the Speicherstadt in its heyday. Sacks of coffee and spices, chests of tea, and scales and mills are scattered throughout the museum, and there is information detailing the history and architecture of the district, as well as historical photographs and diagrams.

Hamburg's proud past as Europe's gateway to the world comes to life at the tiny but fascinating Spicy's Gewürzmuseum, where you can smell and touch more than 50 spices. More than 900 objects chronicle five centuries of the once-prosperous spice trade in Hamburg.