Tables in the rain
The arches shelter outdoor seating, which is very practical in Hamburg.
Bernhard Diener — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pauli-Pirat — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pauli-Pirat — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gunnar Klack — CC BY-SA 4.0
A pedestrian street in central Hamburg with a continuous arcade running along one side — from which it takes its name. It was built in the nineteenth century as a refined shopping street on the European model: columns and arches shading the pavement and sheltering it from Hamburg's frequent rain, with shops on the ground floor and apartments above. The idea was imported from northern Italy and Paris, and signalled that Hamburg was a cosmopolitan city rather than only a port. Today it holds cafés, restaurants and small shops, with outdoor tables under the arches that work even in rain — which is what makes it practically useful in a city where it rains a great deal. The street links the main shopping district to the Inner Alster lake, so you pass through it naturally moving between them. This is not a sight but a street to walk. But knowing it is the city's oldest arcaded pedestrian street changes what you see. Always open and free.
The arches shelter outdoor seating, which is very practical in Hamburg.
Built to say Hamburg was cosmopolitan, not only a port.
It links the shops to the lake, a pleasant walk between them.
Between Jungfernstieg and the Alster, central Hamburg
BinnenalsterThe Binnenalster is a roughly square lake in the middle of Hamburg, originally p4 minutes walk4.9
Alster FountainThe Alster Fountain plays in the middle of the Binnenalster, the inner Alster la5 minutes walk4.6
The Alte PostA building of 1847 in central Hamburg, built as the main post office, and among 5 minutes walk4.8
The Alster ArcadesThe Alster Arcades are a white arcaded walk running along the bank of a canal in6 minutes walk4.6
BleichenfleetThe Bleichenfleet is one of the Fleete — the old canals cutting through central 8 minutes walk4.6Two lakes in central Hamburg formed when the Alster river was dammed in the Middle Ages to power mills. The Inner Alster is small and ringed by grand buildings and cafés; the Outer Alster is much larger, surrounded by parks and a walking path of about seven kilometres. Walking round the Outer Alster is among the best things to do in Hamburg in good weather, and small boats sail on it in summer.
A great deal, and unpredictably more than heavily. The rain is spread across many days of the year, usually light and intermittent with wind. The practical upshot is that an umbrella is less useful than a hooded waterproof, and planning a full day outdoors is a gamble in any season. Arcaded streets and covered passages are part of how the city adapted.