That's why you should visit Hamburg for Christmas

There is always something going on in Hamburg and there are thousands of good reasons to visit the Hanseatic city. But in December, there are five highlights you shouldn't miss. With beautiful Christmas markets, including the world's only over-18 Christmas market, an exciting restaurant scene, shopping experiences on the water and a flourishing craft beer scene, Hamburg offers everything you need during Advent.

Hamburg is the Christmas Capital

No less than 18 Christmas markets dress the Elbe metropolis in a festive garb and attract more than six million visitors every year. Every Hamburg guest will find exactly the Christmas market of their choice - from traditional and romantic to festive and frivolous. For example, the historical Christmas market in front of the town hall has an unforgettable atmosphere and is not only unique in Germany.

Delicious organic mulled wine, tempting sweets, high-quality handicrafts and the real Santa Claus not only make children's hearts beat faster. From the town hall and the Binnenalster, Christmas market fans can relax and stroll in search of culinary delights, gift ideas and much more. Discover the most beautiful Christmas markets in Hamburg.

We also celebrate Christmas in an uncoventional way

Christmas can be contemplative and quiet - and a bit boring. Hamburg offers the perfect contrast to this. If you're looking for a "wild" Christmas, you'll definitely get your money's worth at the Santa Pauli on the Reeperbahn, probably the only over-18 Christmas market in the world, or the gay and lesbian Christmas market "Winter Pride" in the St. Georg district near the city centre. Both are almost real Hamburg institutions and can even get Christmas grouches to drink mulled wine and eat gingerbread - and also cast a spell over visitors with their unique flair. At these Christmas markets, visitors will find more than the usual Christmas programme - namely lots of glitter, glamour and extravagance!

Here you get all Christmas presents

Christmas is gift time - no matter if you want to give presents to your loved ones or to yourself. The December weeks are perhaps the best time for a shopping spree in Hamburg, because only then can you combine shopping with a stroll among the Christmas markets. And what could be nicer than a tasty mulled wine to warm up and relax before you really go shopping again? There are more than enough opportunities for this on the Elbe and Alster, because Hamburg's boulevards are legendary: boulevards like Jungfernstieg with large department stores like Alsterhaus, or the famous Mönckebergstraße with its department and fashion stores, flagship stores, local retailers, cafés and snack bars that combine international flair with a North German atmosphere.

Enjoy first-class Christmas star cuisine

Everybody can eat in gourmet restaurants - especially in Hamburg. No fewer than eleven Michelin-crowned restaurants can be found in the Hanseatic City, including "The Table" by star chef Kevin Fehling, "Se7en Oceans" by Sebastian Andrée, "Jacobs Restaurant" with a view of the Elbe in Nienstedten and the fish restaurant "Jellyfish". But in addition to the big names, gourmets can also make exciting discoveries on the Elbe and Alster during the pre-Christmas period.

Two exciting new openings in Hamburg's HafenCity on the Elbe are real insider tips: star chef Kirill Kinfelt - who also owns the French-inspired "TrüffelSchwein" in the Winterhude district - serves seasonal dishes in a Scandinavian bistro atmosphere at the "Kinfelts" near the Elbphilharmonie. The market hall and restaurant under one roof is the new "Hobenköök". The "Hafenküche" in the old Oberhafen quarter is a unique mixture of market hall with food from 200 producers from Hamburg and the metropolitan region.

In Hamburg they say "cheers"

In Hamburg they say "cheers". Or maybe "skål"? After all, a real Danish "Julebryg" was brewed in Hamburg for the second time this year. The Danish brewer Anders Coisbo and Tobias Hess from the popular craft beer brewery "ÜberQuell" brewed the official "Collaboration Brew Julebryg" called "Christmas beer". In the brewery pub at St. Pauli Fish Market there are of course other seasonal beers on sale, including a "Winter Ale".

A seasonal winter beer can be tasted in the "Altes Mädchen" brewery inn in the creative Schanzenviertel district, which, like the "Kehrwieder Kreativbrauerei" in Hamburg's HafenCity and other establishments, is also one of Hamburg's hippest small breweries. By the way, a true beer classic returned to its roots at the end of November. The cult brand Astra opened a new trendy brewery house on the Reeperbahn in time for the Christmas season, which will be a combination of living room and brewery kitchen.