Lübeck – an ideal day trip from Hamburg

Lübeck is a medieval city only about 60 km from Hamburg, which makes it an ideal day trip destination from Hamburg

My partner and I paid €34 (€28 for 1 person) for our regional day ticket (regional day ticket) from Hamburg. We caught the 9.15 direct train which took only 45 minutes.

I did wonder why the shorter journey to Lübeck cost more than that for Schwerin and Hannover. Perhaps it’s because there’re more frequent trains? No matter, it was still great value for money!

Like other central stations in Germany, Lübeck Hauptbahnhof is another impressive building

From the train station exit, Altstadt (old city) is well signposted and very soon, the iconic Holstentor is in sight, needing no further direction!

Holstentor (Holsten Gate)

This building is not only the symbol of the city but, together with the old city, it is also recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It houses Museum Holstentor

The Salzspeicher (salt storehouses)

Holsten Gate is the gateway to more photo opportunities! Passing through the gate and across the traffic lights we found ourselves by Upper Trave River looking at a row of distinctive buildings.

They are the Salzspeicher, brick-built salt warehouses dated between the 16th and 18th centuries. Nowadays the building (at least one of them as I didn’t investigate further) is occupied by the fashion house Heick & Schmaltz

In the days before digital cameras I would have run out of films by now!!

Along Trave River

On the opposite side of the Salzspeicher is a pier with a booth for a boat trip tickets.

We booked the next available boat trip on the Elbe-Lübeck Canal which would leave at 11.00 and take an hour. The ticket cost €14 per person. While waiting for the boat trip we walked on both sides of the river to take in the lovely views

Views from the river boat trip

The trip was on an open top wide boat. It was fine because it was a warm sunny day. The commentary was conducted in German and that was fine too as the passing sceneries spoke eloquently for themselves

Views from St Petrikirche (St. Peter’s Church)

After seeing Lübeck on foot and from a boat, what could be better than a bird’s eye view of the city from the tower of St Peter’s Church?! The entrance fee was €4 per person.

This time there were no steep narrow stairs to climb as the viewing platform could be reached by a lift plus a few steps. The views over the city were quite stunning, especially on such a sunny day!

Das Lübecker Rathaus (The Lübeck Town Hall)

The façade of Das Lübecker Rathaus is so different from that in Hamburg or Hannover. Unfortunately after a late lunch at the café at St Peter’s Church, we were too late for the last guided tour of the town hall at 15.00. In truth we wouldn’t have been able to make the other times at 11.00 and 12.00 (Monday to Friday) anyway.

Still the square afforded plenty of photo opportunities