Photo: Oleg Kozlov / Shutterstock

GERMANY: The metropolis on the River Elbe is ideal for bike fans: flat land, perfectly developed bike paths – and plenty of things worth seeing on two wheels at the River Alster, at the harbour and in the city’s surroundings.

Bike fans have an easy ride in Hamburg: in addition to normal bike paths, the metropolis on the River Elbe also has a network of twelve large cycling routes which lead, in the form of a star, from the city’s Rathausmarkt in the city centre to the suburban city districts, as well as two ring connections around the city. The routes usually follow side streets, speed restricted areas and bike paths. This makes it easy and convenient to go by bike to the city’s places of interest, such as the Speicherstadt and HafenCity, the Rathaus and the St. Pauli Piers, numerous museums or even Tierpark Hagenbeck – supported by GPS route planning with your notebook, tablet or smartphone. On the city’s official website, there is plenty of information for cyclists – a map of the most important bike paths, route planners for cyclists, and a number of links to rental firms and tour providers.

Photo: EMOZION / Shutterstock

From the Adina Apartment Hotel Hamburg Michel, you can reach the River Elbe, the HafenCity and also the city centre in no time at all. Bikes can be rent at the hotel directly. Otherwise, we recommend taking a StadtRAD: you can rent one of the 2,450 bright red bikes from over 200 bike stations and just start pedalling. Using the internet or an app, it’s easy to find the way to the next bike. Bikes are also available from Call a Bike and nextbike at their many rental stations.

Photo: d13 / Shutterstock

If you prefer to have a guided tour on two wheels: the bike tour “Hamburg Compact“ includes the most important tourist attractions – from the Outer Alster via the Rathaus and St. Michael’s Church to the Speicherstadt, HafenCity, the St. Paul Piers and the St. Pauli district. You can also rent the perfect bike from the tour provider Hamburg City Cycles – whether you’re looking for a city, trekking or e-bike, tandem or children’s bike or even children’s bikes or seats.

On the website of the Hamburg tourist agency at Hamburg by bicycle, you can find many tips on bike tours in the city and surroundings. The 22km-long tour “From the city outskirts to the city centre on the Alsterlauf route” will lead you through wetlands and floodplains to the Rathausmarkt in the city centre. Through the Vierlanden and marshlands” is the name of one bike tour, which takes you through the rural city districts in the south-east of Hamburg. And if you have a bit more time, you can go on a bike tour through Altes Land, an area of reclaimed marshland just outside the city. You can take a ride along well developed bike paths through the largest interconnected fruit-growing region in Germany, between millions of apple trees, across green meadows, over dykes and alongside romantic waterways.

Photo: RossHellen / Shutterstock

Tours which connect boats and bikes in the harbour city are particularly charming, such as the “Bike – Boat – BBQ”, which connects a canoe tour with biking and is topped off with a barbecue buffet. To the motto of “Float and bike”, you can also combine a boat trip on the Elbe with a bike tour to the HafenCity or other destinations. If you want to take a bike tour around the Outer Alster and then paddle through the Alster canals in belly-boats, then look out for the guide “Auf der Alster um die Alster “! Book you next trip to Hamburg. Click here.