{"id":58537,"date":"2026-04-10T00:21:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:21:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/58537\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T00:21:36","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:21:36","slug":"the-german-city-that-has-berlin-teetering-on-its-trendy-pedestal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/58537\/","title":{"rendered":"The German city that has Berlin teetering on its trendy pedestal"},"content":{"rendered":"

Visiting Berlin<\/a> automatically gives you the stamp of cultural approval, but is its rival Hamburg<\/a> just as brag-worthy? After just a flying visit, it\u2019s not hard to think that this major port city has the capital teetering on the edge of its trendy pedestal.<\/p>\n

After a short flight from Stansted (and a convoluted train journey from the airport), I reached Hamburg Hauptbahnhof, the city\u2019s impressively grand main station. Its Parisian-style glass roof presides over the second largest footfall of any European rail terminal. Bustling is an understatement.<\/p>\n

However, lingering over the platforms was the logo of a global technology brand, firmly imposing itself on the scene. I started to fear that my alternative to Berlin might be overcommercialised and that I\u2019d accidentally embarked on a trip to a tourist trap. My solution was to find injections of both culture and food, resisting the temptation of the glowing golden arches behind me.<\/p>\n

\"Hamburg<\/p>\n

Hamburg Hauptbahnhof is the city\u2019s main railway station (Getty\/iStock)<\/p>\n

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Once I left the station, my first glimpse of the city was reassuring. I was met with the remedial chimes of cyclists, without a conspicuous candy store in sight.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the architecture that gives this canal city its exuberant character: brick expressionism stands sturdy, while Art Nouveau buildings are slotted among sleek postmodernist structures. It’s green, too, with foliage thriving within the infrastructure. It immediately felt less rigid than Berlin.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a decidedly outdoorsy city, which helps curate an intrinsic buzz. It was hard not to notice how stylish the locals were, especially as I lugged along with my underseat cabin bag like a cap-wearing turtle. In a bid to fit in with the 3pm wave of young creative types, I perched in a cafe with an iced matcha and a slice of pistachio cake.<\/p>\n

Hamburg is a city of balance, something that became most visually apparent after taking a bus through the edgy St Pauli district, famed for the \u201csinful mile\u201d of its red light district and, more noticeably, the foreboding Feldstrasse Bunker<\/a>. The anti-aircraft building, built in the Second World War, has now been transformed into a culturally rich art space \u2013\u00a0and is an iconic part of the skyline. There\u2019s no need to step foot in the plant-adorned space to appreciate the enormity of it. It\u2019s massive. Instead of Nazi artillery, it\u2019s now home for some, with a roof garden \u2013\u00a0and pub\u00a0\u2013 open to all. It also hosts Uebel & Gefa\u0308hrlich<\/a>, a nightclub that hosts some of the most chic music events in the city.<\/p>\n

I was intrigued, but was moved elsewhere by the growing rumble of my stomach. A short bus ride away dropped me in between sleek Sternschanze and rebellious St Pauli, where I discovered Kiosques. <\/a>The restaurant is an amalgamation of a bakery, osteria and wine bar, where everything on the menu is in lower case,\u00a0that modern signifier of cool.<\/p>\n

The clientele of the neighbourhood pasta bar, fronted by the Michelin-starred chef Fabio Haebel, matches the typography of the menu. Sophisticated. My bank account and I were equally thrilled to discover it doesn\u2019t have Michelin-star prices.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The imposing Feldstrasse Bunker in the St Pauli neighbourhood (Getty\/iStock)<\/p>\n

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I perched on a lone stool and devoured a punnet of olives, a silver platter of spicy vodka rigatoni and Germany\u2019s finest drink, riesling. Sitting alone was once a marker of loneliness. Inside Kiosques\u2019 industrial walls, however, I felt liberated. Hamburg will do that to you.<\/p>\n

I headed back over the numerous canals, which are covered by more than 2,500 bridges. I was searching for the underground Gr\u00f6ninger beer hall<\/a>, situated on the cusp of the redbrick Speicherstadt Unesco site \u2013 home to the world\u2019s largest complex of warehouses.<\/p>\n

\"Layla<\/p>\n

Layla enjoyed a pint of pilsner at a historic brewery (Layla Nicholson)<\/p>\n

The cavernous brewery dates back to 1793. I enjoyed a pint of pilsner from a wooden barrel (but drew the line at the bar snacks, which included pig knuckle.) Then it was time to trot back to modernity. I walked to my hotel during golden hour, with the sun gleaming off the iceberg shaped Elbphilharmonie concert hall<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Pockets of street art and al fresco drinkers lined my route, but I never felt as if I was wading through a sea of tourists \u2013\u00a0unlike in Berlin. I still felt safe. Hamburg has the hedonism of the capital, but it manifests itself in a more refined manner.<\/p>\n

Those who want to appear cool might be eager to declare themselves a Berliner, but, in 2026, I suggest you wear the badge of a Hamburger instead.<\/p>\n

It has that irresistible mixture of culture, history and style, with none of the crowds. I know I\u2019ll be back for my second bite of the action soon.<\/p>\n

How to do it<\/p>\n

Ryanair<\/a> flies from London Stansted to Hamburg, with prices starting at \u00a344 return. Flights take around one hour and 45 minutes.<\/p>\n

Where to stay<\/p>\n

Superbude Hamburg St Pauli<\/a> is situated in the heart of the action, and is all about music, art and community. It\u2019s decorated with upcycled furniture and hosts drinks in the evenings. Rooms from \u00a367 per night.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Visiting Berlin automatically gives you the stamp of cultural approval, but is its rival Hamburg just as brag-worthy?…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58538,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[99],"tags":[112,6312,190,32279,5663],"class_list":["post-58537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-berlin","tag-berlin","tag-city","tag-germany","tag-hamburg-hauptbahnhof","tag-st-pauli"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@dk\/116377556405124814","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}