GERMANY WORLD CUP 2006
Hamburg
Hamburg is Germany's second-largest city and main seaport. Nonetheless, and given its location, ships must travel over 120km inland on the Elbe River to reach the city port. Said to be the home of more millionaires than in any other part of Europe, Hamburg offers splendid hotels and charming villas. But this cosmopolitan city is also well known for its thriving nightlife. The most famous street is the Reeperbahn, in the St Pauli district, offering a huge assortment of with bars, prostitutes and sex clubs. It was here where the Beatles began playing at the Star Club.
One major tourist attraction are the canals that crisscross the city, and is said to have more bridges than Amsterdam and Venice put together.
One major show being prepare for the World Cup, is a laser-light visual effect by the artist Michael Batz, who plans to install blue neon goalposts around the city's more prominent buildings, through which shots of goals will be projected.
Getting there
By air
The airport bus will take 25 minutes from Hamburg Airport to the Hauptbahnhof (Central Station). A smaller airport is the Hamburg-Lübeck Airport, 37 miles from Hamburg via motorway A1.
By rail
Hamburg has 5 major stations: the Hauptbahnhof (Central), Altona, Dammtor, Harburg and Bergedorf. The long-distance trains stop at the Hauptbahnhof, Dammtor and Altona stations.
Links :
Deutsche Bahn
European Rail
By road
All main German cities are serviced by Eurlolines and tickets can be purchased at Deutsche Bahn (representative agents), which you'll find in main railway stations. If travelling by private car, you'll find information on the German motorway network at autobahn-online.de.
Accomodation
The most central place to find a room is Fifaworldcup.com. The majority of listed hotels are located close to the venue which will save you a lot of time on match day. Searching for the right place to stay is made simple for bookers - just name which team you are supporting and a list of hotels will appear for you to select in each city that they will play in.
The stadium
Constructed on the site of SV Hamburg's old Volksparkstadion ground, Hamburg's new AOL Arena opened for the Germany v Greece international in 2000. The pitch was rotated and the stands completely rebuilt at an estimated cost of €97m. The arena now seats 50,000 fans.
Getting there : From the main station, take the S-Bahn (S21) to Elbgaustrasse; from there, it's a two-minute walk. Alternatively, get off at Stellingen and take the shuttle bus to the stadium.
Official website
If you don't get a ticket
Reeperbahn, in the St Pauli district is your best bet to find a bar or two with a screen and a crowd to keep you company.
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