Incentives in Hamburg

Hamburg is a city you have to experience. Not just because it looks beautiful in pictures and inspires wanderlust, but because there are numerous nooks, hidden gems and sights to discover. Hamburg is more than the Elbphilharmonie, our main church the Michel and the harbour. There is plenty of evidence of this.

Probably the most classic option is a city tour in a double-decker bus, where the „Red Double Deckers“ are the obvious choice in Hamburg. Not quite as classic, but with more action, is the Hot Rod City Tour. The little cars, that actually resemble American hot rods, can be booked for company events or Christmas parties, for example, and simply bring a lot of fun! The main route takes you past the most important sights.

For those who prefer to see the city on their own feet, there is a very special provider in Hamburg that is also ideal for social programmes, team building or incentives: GeoBound! It’s a bit like a scavenger hunt 2.0, with a rally through the city – you solve puzzles as a team, look for the best photo spots in the city or take a GPS tour and find geocaches. Along the way, you explore the Hanseatic city of Hamburg.

But city tours in Hamburg are not only on the streets: A whole new perspective on the city opens up when you take a look at Hamburg from the water! Numerous providers such as Barkassen Meyer, Rainer Abicht or Alster-Touristik offer a wide variety of tours on the Elbe and Alster. A very special and historic way to experience Hamburg from the water is on the steamship “St. Georg”, which was built in 1876 and is also the oldest steamship in Germany. Whether it’s the evening trip by lights, the grand harbour tour or the canal trip through the UNSECO World Heritage Site Speicherstadt – on the water you feel at home in Hamburg and experience the city in a special way.

Hamburg’s history is one that revolves strongly around the port and trade. Hamburg was already in Hanseatic times a transhipment point for coffee, spices and goods from distant countries. Ships from all over the world landed in the Hanseatic city or were loaded and sailed out onto the world’s oceans. As a result, Hamburg has become a very cosmopolitan city, which is still very much in evidence today. When it comes to culinary and taste, you can even taste this history! Groups can immerse themselves in the taste of Hamburg at numerous tasting opportunities. A wonderful address for this is Spicy’s Spice Museum. The museum in the Speicherstadt is all about flavours and faraway countries! The refurbished old quayside warehouse houses over 50 raw spices and culinary herbs and more than 900 exhibits from the past five centuries, all revolving around spices, their cultivation and processing. In addition to spices, the Port of Hamburg is also famous for coffee. The Coffee Museum Burg brings this history to life. In the “Genuss Speicher” in the Speicherstadt, the Burg family, who have run a coffee shop and roasting house since 1923, have created a wonderful museum that you must experience if you are interested in the “black gold”. Things get sweet at CHOCOVERSUM by HACHEZ. Chocolate lovers will get their money’s worth here! Wonderful group offers including the production of your own chocolate creations will melt even the biggest chocolate heart! In Hanseatic times, Hamburg did not only trade in spices and coffee. What many people don’t know is that Hamburg was the “brewery of the Hanseatic League”. At times over 600 breweries ensured that the other Hanseatic cities were supplied with beer. Even today, Hamburg has a lot to offer here, because many smaller breweries produce craft beer and thus ensure an upswing of the craft beer scene in the city. You can taste that, too. Many breweries such as Überquell, Ratsherrn, the Wildwuchs Brauwerk,the Mikrobrauerei der Astra Brauerei or Landgang offer tastings and some also brewery tours. An absolute must for those interested in beer!

We come to the absolute classics in Hamburg. First of all, there is our landmark, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg. The concert hall, which has been home to almost every important and well-known orchestra and many world-famous pop acts, can also be visited by guided tours. Guests can immerse themselves in the architecture and the music that can be breathed in this house. The tours can also be booked in closed groups. One of Germany’s most popular tourist highlights can be found in the immediate vicinity. In the middle of the Speicherstadt is the Miniatur Wunderland. Here you can not only be excited about the world’s largest model railway, but also discover how the Miniatur Wunderland works, what goes on behind the scenes and what the world looks like behind the numerous lovingly designed miniature landscapes. You can also take a look behind the scenes at one of Germany’s best-known musical theatres: the Stage Theater am Hafen, where Disney’s “The Lion King” has been successfully staged for years. Have you always wanted to know how many costumes the actors have to change per performance? Or how the tricky technology behind the unique sets of the hit musical works? Then you should definitely book a guided tour, you will be thrilled! We stay musical, but go from musical to rock’n’roll! And to none other than the “Fab Four”. What die-hard music fans already know might be unknown to one or the other, namely that the Beatles’ career really took off in Hamburg. No one can tell this story as well as Stefanie Hempel, who offers a unique Beatles-Tour through the district. All we say to that is “Love, Love, Love”!

Despite being a large metropolis, Hamburg is a truly green city. Over 200 public parks and 4,900 hectares of green space mean that no less than 72 percent of Hamburg is green! One of the most beautiful green places in Hamburg is the Botanical Garden in Hamburg, better known as the „Loki Schmidt Garden“. The freely accessible park, which belongs to the University of Hamburg and is a kind of “research garden”, can also be visited on a guided tour. There are many thematic options to choose from.

Concrete grey and yet so green is the Wilhelmsburg energy bunker. The former flak bunker, a remnant of the Second World War in the middle of the district, has a completely different function today. It is an eco-power plant that supplies around 1,500 households with electricity and around 1,700 households with heat. In addition, the Energy Bunker is a shining example of the innovative use of regenerative energies and a pioneer for other regional power plants worldwide. Guided tours are also available for associations, delegations and other groups, explaining the innovative energy concept and, of course, including a look inside the bunker.

We are jumping into the “Altes Land” and turning from grey to green again! And to red and pink! Because the old country combines all three colours in a unique way: The „Altes Land“ is one of the largest fruit-growing areas in Europe. Around 10 million fruit trees grow here, around 90 percent of which are apple trees. At apple blossom time, the „Altes Land“ is a colourful spectacle, and a visit to the „Altes Land“ is also an experience at any other time of year. Even with your own company as an incentive. Whether it’s a guided tour of the Esteburg fruit-growing centre in Jork or the team event „boßeln“ (a northern german kind of „outdoor bowling“) at the Obsthof Lefers, the „Altes Land“ offers numerous must-see activities.

A really exciting industrial monument can be found on the „Elbinsel Kaltehofe“. Around 20 football field-sized basins on the island supplied Hamburg with fresh water for around one hundred years in their function as waterworks. Today, the structure is home to numerous bird species and has become a kind of nature discovery park. There are also guided tours for groups that look at the history and functioning of Hamburg’s water supply in wonderful surroundings. There are also other activities, such as disc golf or a nature discovery trail.

A very special team-building event can be found just under an hour from Hamburg Central Station in the Lüneburg Heath. Why is it so special? Natuerlichteambuilding is all about herding sheep! Up to 800 Heidschnucken sheep are led from A to B by the participants. The group takes on the role of shepherd and dog, so to speak. And it only works as a team! It’s about talking to each other, thinking together, keeping an overview, distributing tasks, doing the right thing correctly and, last but not least, gaining the right amount of respect.