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Winterhude

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Winterhude is pompous townhouses, red-brick apartment buildings, modern offices and lots of green all wrapped up into one.

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imago stock & people / Lars Berg

Green, in high demand, well-connected 

The Outer Alster to the south, with the Stadtpark as the centrepiece - Winterhude’s beauty knows no boundaries and belongs to the most popular district of Hamburg. About 55.000 people live in this elegant quarter, making it the fifth-largest neighbourhood of the city. 

The rents reflect this popularity: unlike most other areas in Hamburg, monthly rates didn’t grow rapidly in past years - but have been high above the city’s average rates for a long time. 

Through the U1, U3 and S-Bahn trains, Winterhude is extraordinarily well-connected. Across the S-Bahn tracks in Winterhude’s east there’s Barmbek-Nord. Other neighbouring districts are Alsterdorf in the north, Eppendorf and Harvestehude in the west, as well as Uhlenhorst and Barmbek-Süd in the south. 

The many faces of Winterhude 

Winterhude has many different sides: the most elegant can be found in the south. Between the mansions around the Outer Alster, the Mühlenkamp street with its cafes and restaurants and the fancy apartments along the canals, Winterhude offers some of the classiest parts of the city. 

Further north, things become a little more easy-going. Housing may be more affordable here, but the beautiful living quarters with their small shops and cozy cafes are still home to many well-to-do residents of the city. Winterhuder Marktplatz square is the centre of this area. On Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays, people can shop fresh produce at the weekly market.

North of the Stadtpark, there are the 120 hectares of the City Nord commercial area. The office buildings were built in the 1950s and 1960s, when Hamburg desperately needed office spaces outside the city centre. The area’s utopian cityscapes were modeled around the commercial complexes of New York. Construction was finished in 1974 and today, some of the office buildings are under monument protection. 

The Jarrestadt area is located between Wiesendamm, Glindweg and the Goldbek and Osterbek canals. Multi-levelled red-brick buildings dominate the scenery in these streets, that were designed by Fritz Schumacher in the 1920s. At the time, this area was regarded an ideal neighbourhood for the working class, due to proximity to both, the industrial plants of the city, as well as to the vast park in the north. 

The Stadtpark 

After celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2014, the Stadtpark is still Winterhude’s most important destination for free-time relaxation. The 120 hectares offer plenty of open space for barbeque parties, hiking trips, jogging and enjoying nature. 

In addition, the park offers the Planetarium, a monumental former water tower in the western part of the park. Further point of interest in Hamburg’s second-largest green area is the Stadtpark lake with its open-air swimming pool. Several cafes and restaurants are distributed across the park. 

During the summer months, the park becomes a beautiful event location. The Stadtpark Open Air presents national and international artists throughout the summer months. The Stadtpark Revival is a motor sports derby that focuses on classic cars and motorbikes. 

Kampnagel culture

For culturally-minded visitors and residents of Winterhude, Kampnagel is the first location to keep in mind. Since 1984, the theatre has developed into one of the world’s leading centres for performance arts. On the grounds of former machine factory Nagel & Kaemp, the self-proclaimed ‘art factory’ comprises six stages, the Alabama cinema and nine practise spaces. The annual Internationales Sommerfestival is the highlight of the year.

Other cultural hotspots of Winterhude are the Komödie Winterhuder Fährhaus and Goldbekhaus. Both offer many interesting performances and events. Sporthalle Hamburg offers enough room for large indoor concerts. Since 2014 the Polizeimuseum (lit. police museum) is located in the north of Winterhude. 

The history of Winterhude

Winterhude was first mentioned in 1250, when it was still a small farm village. From the 14th century on, the village belonged to the Harvestehude monastery. After the reformation, it became part of Hamburg. To further integrate Winterhude into Hamburg, a ferry line was established between the north-eastern banks of the Alster lake and the centrally-located Jungfernstieg. 1874 Winterhude was officially named a Hamburg suburb and the incorporation ensued 20 years later. In the following century, the neighbourhood flourished. After the factories were moved out of the inner-city, the area became the popular residential area that it is today.