Road trip time! Hamburg is about 5 hours (plus kids = 7ish) north of where we live, and we had never seen the region... summer holiday seemed the perfect time.
We drove up on a Monday, returning on Thursday, with 2 days in the city and one at a fruit farm in Jork. This region, apparently, produces the most fruit in western Europe! I bet it's gorgeous in spring.
Day 1: We tried out wimdu for an apartment just north of the city. The price was right, the location was great, and the owners were incredibly nice. It was a bit tight for four of us (mostly because the kids wanted to stay up late with us / not sleep), but worked fine for the short visit.
We had made afternoon reservations for Miniatur Wunderland, so we took our time getting to the city. We drove in, parking at Contipark (max 12 euros/ day, better than other lots that max out at 20 euros/day or so), which are all over central Hamburg. The plan was to walk through the warehouse district and make our way to Landungsbrücken for a boat ride along the Elbe. It was a long walk and not very scenic. Lots of business and apartment buildings, but some nice churches and parks too.
We stopped for a lunch at a nondescript pizza place en route. I was pretty disappointed; though they proudly advertised a lunch special of 6 euros / pizza, the waiter charged us full price upon learning we would only order one. Seemed a bit nickel-and-dimey... but it wasn't the first time I didn't love being a tourist in Hamburg.
Though a blustery day, the boat ride was lovely. We opted for the public transportation version, the boat 62 to Finkenwerder (board at gate 3). The cost: 11.60 euros for a group day pass, also good on intra-city trains and buses. This was much better than the 30-40 euros to take a "tour" boat, which were pretty similar as far as I could tell, apart from the audio guides. You could stay on the boat at Finkenwerder and just ride it all the way back around - perfect!
The sun came out as we landed, though to our dismay we learned there was no elevator or escalator to board the u-bahn back towards Speicherstadt. We had to lug the stroller and our stuff up a LOT of stairs. Though driving in Hamburg was not pleasant, I'm so glad we did it for the convenience.
Anyway, back we went to Miniatur Wunderland. The wait for no reservations was nearly an hour - so important to book ahead. It was very cool - the airport was my favorite part, but there were so many beautiful details... criminals escaping from a jail, skiers going up the gondola in Switzerland, people watching a drive-in movie in Florida... great for all ages. Two hours later, we emerged ready for a coffee break at Speicherstadt Kaffeerösterei along with a 'franz'.
The line was long, the coffee was good, and the sun was shining. Time to head back to the apartment, via Maybach for dinner. There was a playground across the way, but the kids were tired enough to eat (chanterelle mushrooms were in season and featured liberally on the menu) and head home.
Day 2: Today we planned to explore the old town and parks of Hamburg. We parked near the Radisson Blu, so we could end the day at Planten und Blomen. We walked from there to the Rathaus, a beautiful building offering regularly scheduled tours (in German, though some times in French and English). No matter - we had a blast running around the fountain in the gorgeous central courtyard, and photographing the lovely details of the building.
We picked Alex for lunch, a chain restaurant with a decent reputation, mostly for the view: there was plenty of outdoor seating facing the Alster Lake. Eating our overpriced burger and salad, we enjoyed watching the boats ride around... and saved some bread to feed to ducks after lunch. An unplanned kid bathroom run sent us into Europa Passage - so we got to see Hamburg's version of the MyZeil mall in Frankfurt. Loud, large, and full of all the stores you could possibly want. The kids fell asleep as we made our way back to the park, so the adults enjoyed quiet time in the well-shaded Botanical garden side of Planten und Blomen, hoping they would wake up when we got to the splashpad. This part of the park was massively crowded and not very shaded, so we only stayed for a bit of splashing around before heading to dinner.
With the sun out, we hoped for dinner at a biergarten; Schumachers seemed promising... well, it turned out they only had snacks. This was a bummer because we also discovered the Stadtpark in Winterhude, and the amazing Naturbad. Reminded me of Barton Creek in Austin - a huge and gorgeous natural pool in the middle of an enormous park. This would make for a great day 3 in Hamburg. Since we were short on time and had already planned day 3 at a farm, we reluctantly left in search of burgers (but not before grabbing ice cream) at the vegan and pretty good Froindlichst. Driving note: parking was almost always on the street at this point and drivers were beyond impatient - if you so much as paused to park, you'd get an instant honk. Yet another minus for touristing in Hamburg (there were more than a few).
Day 3: We left the city for a more rustic day at the Obstparadies Schuback in Jork. We had booked 2 picnickorbs for midmorning, hoping that would sustain us through the drive home. Jork was a pretty drive along the river, and the basket was ready when we arrived. We 'drove' the basket to our picnic place in a little wagon, which later proved a fun ride for the little ones. There was so much food! Add the perfect weather, quiet greenery, and pond / sand play area, and it was 3 hours of relaxation. We were ready to hit the road afterwards (though a nap would have been more fun). The baskets ran 22-24 euros apiece plus beverages (tip: bring your own sparkling water), which was well worth the unlimited time in a beautiful setting. Jork has a totally different feel from Hamburg, perhaps easier for a vacation with kids - farms, space, greenery... it was my favorite part of the trip.
Exploring the charming north was quite an adventure, but we were happy to return home - especially after a 7.5 hour drive!
We drove up on a Monday, returning on Thursday, with 2 days in the city and one at a fruit farm in Jork. This region, apparently, produces the most fruit in western Europe! I bet it's gorgeous in spring.
Day 1: We tried out wimdu for an apartment just north of the city. The price was right, the location was great, and the owners were incredibly nice. It was a bit tight for four of us (mostly because the kids wanted to stay up late with us / not sleep), but worked fine for the short visit.
We had made afternoon reservations for Miniatur Wunderland, so we took our time getting to the city. We drove in, parking at Contipark (max 12 euros/ day, better than other lots that max out at 20 euros/day or so), which are all over central Hamburg. The plan was to walk through the warehouse district and make our way to Landungsbrücken for a boat ride along the Elbe. It was a long walk and not very scenic. Lots of business and apartment buildings, but some nice churches and parks too.
We stopped for a lunch at a nondescript pizza place en route. I was pretty disappointed; though they proudly advertised a lunch special of 6 euros / pizza, the waiter charged us full price upon learning we would only order one. Seemed a bit nickel-and-dimey... but it wasn't the first time I didn't love being a tourist in Hamburg.
Though a blustery day, the boat ride was lovely. We opted for the public transportation version, the boat 62 to Finkenwerder (board at gate 3). The cost: 11.60 euros for a group day pass, also good on intra-city trains and buses. This was much better than the 30-40 euros to take a "tour" boat, which were pretty similar as far as I could tell, apart from the audio guides. You could stay on the boat at Finkenwerder and just ride it all the way back around - perfect!
The sun came out as we landed, though to our dismay we learned there was no elevator or escalator to board the u-bahn back towards Speicherstadt. We had to lug the stroller and our stuff up a LOT of stairs. Though driving in Hamburg was not pleasant, I'm so glad we did it for the convenience.
Anyway, back we went to Miniatur Wunderland. The wait for no reservations was nearly an hour - so important to book ahead. It was very cool - the airport was my favorite part, but there were so many beautiful details... criminals escaping from a jail, skiers going up the gondola in Switzerland, people watching a drive-in movie in Florida... great for all ages. Two hours later, we emerged ready for a coffee break at Speicherstadt Kaffeerösterei along with a 'franz'.
The line was long, the coffee was good, and the sun was shining. Time to head back to the apartment, via Maybach for dinner. There was a playground across the way, but the kids were tired enough to eat (chanterelle mushrooms were in season and featured liberally on the menu) and head home.
Day 2: Today we planned to explore the old town and parks of Hamburg. We parked near the Radisson Blu, so we could end the day at Planten und Blomen. We walked from there to the Rathaus, a beautiful building offering regularly scheduled tours (in German, though some times in French and English). No matter - we had a blast running around the fountain in the gorgeous central courtyard, and photographing the lovely details of the building.
We picked Alex for lunch, a chain restaurant with a decent reputation, mostly for the view: there was plenty of outdoor seating facing the Alster Lake. Eating our overpriced burger and salad, we enjoyed watching the boats ride around... and saved some bread to feed to ducks after lunch. An unplanned kid bathroom run sent us into Europa Passage - so we got to see Hamburg's version of the MyZeil mall in Frankfurt. Loud, large, and full of all the stores you could possibly want. The kids fell asleep as we made our way back to the park, so the adults enjoyed quiet time in the well-shaded Botanical garden side of Planten und Blomen, hoping they would wake up when we got to the splashpad. This part of the park was massively crowded and not very shaded, so we only stayed for a bit of splashing around before heading to dinner.
With the sun out, we hoped for dinner at a biergarten; Schumachers seemed promising... well, it turned out they only had snacks. This was a bummer because we also discovered the Stadtpark in Winterhude, and the amazing Naturbad. Reminded me of Barton Creek in Austin - a huge and gorgeous natural pool in the middle of an enormous park. This would make for a great day 3 in Hamburg. Since we were short on time and had already planned day 3 at a farm, we reluctantly left in search of burgers (but not before grabbing ice cream) at the vegan and pretty good Froindlichst. Driving note: parking was almost always on the street at this point and drivers were beyond impatient - if you so much as paused to park, you'd get an instant honk. Yet another minus for touristing in Hamburg (there were more than a few).
Day 3: We left the city for a more rustic day at the Obstparadies Schuback in Jork. We had booked 2 picnickorbs for midmorning, hoping that would sustain us through the drive home. Jork was a pretty drive along the river, and the basket was ready when we arrived. We 'drove' the basket to our picnic place in a little wagon, which later proved a fun ride for the little ones. There was so much food! Add the perfect weather, quiet greenery, and pond / sand play area, and it was 3 hours of relaxation. We were ready to hit the road afterwards (though a nap would have been more fun). The baskets ran 22-24 euros apiece plus beverages (tip: bring your own sparkling water), which was well worth the unlimited time in a beautiful setting. Jork has a totally different feel from Hamburg, perhaps easier for a vacation with kids - farms, space, greenery... it was my favorite part of the trip.Exploring the charming north was quite an adventure, but we were happy to return home - especially after a 7.5 hour drive!
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