Hamburg: A cyclist’s paradise

Hamburg, Europe’s Green Capital 2011, offers all cycling enthusiasts the advantages of a big city as well as direct access to nature. It’s a rare treat to be able to enjoy both nature and the city so close together. Over the past years, Hamburg has become more and more cycle-friendly. Cycling is a very special way of exploring Hamburg either for business, for pleasure or as a tourist. You are close to the heart of the city and in the midst of nature at the same time.

If you are interested in guided cycle tours of Hamburg’s city centre and its surroundings, you will soon come across the name of Bernd Kaupert who offers four different guided tours. In his company, cyclists can explore the sights of Hamburg, cycle around the Outer Alster Lake or around the harbour basin or discover the city’s leafy suburbs all the way to Blankenese. Other travel companies such as Twietenkieker, Stattreisen, the ADFC and Globetrotter offer various tours of the city as well as cycle day trips while all those who prefer pushing the pedals independently can simply set off on their own. Some of the best destinations for trips are the Altes Land region, the Ohlsdorf Cemetery, the Vierlande and Marschlande regions, the port city and all of Hamburg’s sights such as the Michel church tower, the historic city centre with its Town Hall, the Landing Bridges, the Jungfernstieg area and the Binnenalster lake.

Of course, you don’t have to bring your own bicycle when travelling to Hamburg. There are several quick and easy ways of hiring a rental bike. With the stadtRAD bike hire system in Hamburg you register once at any one of the 70 hiring terminals and can set off on your bike immediately. At the approx. 30 terminals of nextbike 250 rental bikes can be hired by cycling enthusiasts by telephone day and night. Some good news also come from the HVV, the Hamburg public transport system, which does not leave cyclists out in the rain: Bicycles can be carried on buses and trains free of charge during off-peak hours.

If simply cycling around gets too boring and if you want to add a little spice to your next cycling tour, why not give a modern type of paper chase, the so-called geocaching, a try? In geocaching people hide containers holding small items and a little notebook anywhere in the world and then post the GPS coordinates on the internet. With the help of these coordinates the geocacher then sets off to seek out the hidden treasure. Another interesting alternative addresses solo travellers looking for company. They can place an ad online with the ADFC cycle group to find pleasant and like-minded company. Because of its central location the ARCOTEL Rubin on Steindamm 63 provides the ideal starting point for a cycle tour of the city of Hamburg and its outskirts.