Fly from Nice to Hamburg

Devastated by ally bombs during the Second World War, the former Hanseatic city (the Hanseatic League brought together the main merchant cities of Northern Europe, making it one of the largest political and commercial powers of the Middle Ages) has rebuilt what they could and reinvented what no longer existed. The result is a remarkable and all the more seductive with its warehouses (reworked to have a bohemian elegance), its audacious glass buildings (the remaining legacies of its prosperous and glorious past), all surrounded by a river, lakes and canals.
But behind this placid and bourgeois exterior, Hamburg hides a secret. It seems like a “cold beauty”, but you’ll see it's warm and wild. To the point where Germans themselves consider it the wildest city in the country. It’s the place that gave the Beatles their starting the 60s, fuelled by an explosive cocktail of avant-guard culture, luxurious yet original shopping, and nights that are as lively as they are mischievous. A bewitching concoction to be consumed during a fun-filled weekend getaway, as a couple or with friends, and without moderation.

• Navigate the colossal Hamburg port, which has graced the banks of the Elbe for centuries. Without it, the city would be nothing. Take Ferry 62 and take a 1 hour tour among the giants of the sea.
• Don’t miss Speicherstadt, a magical district with its ancient red brick warehouses that reflect off the narrow canals. Behind the Neo-Gothic façades you’ll find museums, bars, and restaurants.
• Head towards City Hall and tour this incredible neo-Renaissance building to see a few of its 647 rooms, all lavishly decorated.
• Visit one of Hamburg’s major museums: The Hamburg Kunsthalle, for fine art; The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, for fine, applied and decorative arts; Deichtorhallen, with two large open-structure buildings for modern art and photography; or the International Maritime Museum with its 50,000 models.
• Want something a bit more unique? Then head for Spicy's Gewürzmuseum (a spice museum!) or the U-Bootmuseum U-434 which lets you visit the world’s largest battle submarine, or else the Chocoversum, for something a bit sweeter...
• Awaken your inner child as you wander through Miniatur Wunderland, a paradise for model lovers: 15 kilometres of rails with a hundred model trains running over them, a realistic airport, 50,000 hand-painted figurines, and so much more.
• Let your hair down on the Reeperbahn, the liveliest street in Sankt Pauli, the Red Light District. Here you’ll find a succession of museums, cinemas, erotic dance clubs, Eros-Centers (brothels), and sex shops.
• Finish the night as the sun rises at the Fischauktionshalle, the fish market. Fish merchants and party goers mingle here from 4 am on. Substitute your usual breakfast for a Fischbrötchen, a sandwich with, among other things, pickled Bismark herring and onions.
• Go see Elphie. Elphie? Yes, the Elbphilharmonie, considered by many as the most beautiful concert hall in Europe, or even the world.
• Get out of Hamburg and head for Lubeck, around a hundred kilometres away. It’s a charming village with many incredible examples of both the Gothic and Renaissance periods.