Hamburg, the City of Bridges

Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany and considered to be one of the most beautiful in the country. It is also a popular tourist destinations because of its scenic beauty and unique blend of historical monuments and modern pubs and nightclubs, including the world-renowned red light district, the Reeperbahn. Despite being located astride the River Elbe, some 100 kilometres from the North Sea, Hamburg is a major port city. It has the country's biggest port - the second-busiest in Europe and only the third largest in the world, after London and New York. For those who love water, ships and harbors, Hamburg is hence, a must visit. Hamburg is practically surrounded on all sides by water. The Alster river has been divided into two lakes that lie on either side of the city, the Binnen and Aussenalster (Inner and Outer) and the River Elbe flows right through into the North Sea. All this water means an abundance of canals, streams and bridges. In fact, it’s a little known fact that Hamburg has more bridges inside its city limits than any other city in the world and more canals than Amsterdam and Venice combined. The figure has been put somewhere around 2,300 to over 2,500 - more than London, Amsterdam and Venice put together. Here are some of the most notable bridges around the city. Köhlbrandbrücke The Köhlbrandbrücke was inaugurated in 1974 and is one of the most prominent landmarks in Hamburg. It is 3940 metres long and the central, cable-stayed part has a span of 325 metres. From 1974 until 1991 it was the lonest cable stayed bridge span in the world. Now, it is the second longest bridge in Germany. Photo credit Photo credit Photo credit Hamburg Elbbrücken Hamburg Elbbrücken refers to several independent bridges which cross the River Elbe in Hamburg.