GERMANY - Europe by Eurail 2015: Touring Europe by Train - page 234

Base City: HAMBURG
www.hamburg-tourism.de
E-mail: [e-mail]
City Dialing Code: 040
The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg is an impressive title—for an equally im-
pressive city. Its 1.7 million residents are proud of their city and are eager to show
it. Hamburg is the largest in a league of “Hansa” cities in Germany that medieval
merchants organized to secure greater safety and privileges in trading. For a long
time nobility was barred from entering this affluent city, which sits poised between
the Elbe River and Alster Lake.
Hamburg is full of surprises. It has more bridges than the combined total of Ams-
terdam and Venice. The city's harbor is one of the leading ports in Europe and ranks
as one of the top 10 largest ports in the world—notwithstanding the fact that it is 68
miles inland from the North Sea!
Chartered in 1189, Hamburg occupies a 288-square-mile area, 20 percent of
which is covered by water. To the delight of residents and visitors alike, about 10
percent of the city's total area has been landscaped into public parks. Many of
these areas date from the 18th century, when landscaping was fostered by the city's
wealthy residents as one of the arts.
Hamburgians have their port to thank for the development of their city to its cur-
rent stature—an expansive metropolis of international business and culture. During
the first weekend of May, the Hamburgians begin a three-day celebration to com-
memorate the year 1189, when Emperor Frederick Barbarossa granted Hamburg its
“free port” status. The term free port means that transit cargo is exempt from cus-
tom duties. Not all of the harbor area, however, is classified as a free port.
Arriving by Air
Hamburg International Airport, 8 miles north of the city center at Fuhlsbüttel.
Hamburg Airport officially opened its new facilities in 2005 with two state-of-the-art
terminals.
Terminal 2 serves all Deutsche Lufthansa, Condor, and Star Alliance flights, in-
cluding SAS, LOT, and their partner airlines. Terminal 1 handles all other airlines