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Germany City Travel + Tourism Guide: Hannover

Hanover (Hannover)

• Located in Lower Saxony, north central Germany
• Explore nature in the nearby Lüneburger Heide
• Population of 520,000 people
• Site of Expo 2000 & the annual CeBit & Hanover Messe trade fairs
• Region with close historic ties to Britain
• Gateway to the picturesque towns of Celle, Hameln & Hildesheim
• Relaxed, easy-going city with some fine museums

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Hanover, the present-day capital of Lower Saxony, dates back to the 12th century. The area has close historical links to Britain. In 1714 the son of the Electress of Hannover, Georg Ludwig, ascended to the British throne as George I. Hanover was built up on the back of trade and the brewing industry, both of which are still major sectors in the local economy. The city was heavily bombed in World War II and little of the Altstadt (Old Town) remains intact.

The city takes great pride in hosting two important trade fairs: the CeBit - the largest office information and telecommunications trade show held annually in March and the Hannover Messe, an industrial fair held in April. Hanover also hosted Expo 2000 and the exhibition site at Messegelände still has many of the original exhibits in situe, including: Deutsche Post's 46.5m Postbox - the biggest in the world, the Dutch "Eco-Sandwich", a Bhutanese temple and Germany's glass Expo-Plaza.

Hanover's main attraction are the gardens of Herrenhausen (access by U-Bahn #4 or #5) to the west of the city which were laid out from the 17th century onwards. The gardens include a fantastic maze, botannical gardens, modern hot houses and two museums and are a great place to simply relax and wander.

In the reconstructed Altstadt there remains the 14th-century Martkiche church, the Altes Rathaus (Old Town Hall) and the Ballhof, which now stages plays.

The Kestner Museum houses some impressive Greek, Roman and Egyptian art and the popular Niedersächsisches Landesmuseum has a collection of art from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.

Beer lovers will enjoy Hanover's two main brews: Gilde and Herrenhausen.

Within easy reach of the city are the still preserved towns of Celle and Hameln (of Pied Piper fame), untouched by war, they contain many ornate half-timbered houses, cobbled streets and castles. Hildesheim, once acknowledged as the most beautiful of German towns, has been completely rebuilt in the original wooden style after wartime damage - a remarkable achievement.

Around Hannover

65km from Hannover is the theme park Heide-Park Soltau with the world's steepest wooden roller coaster and a 103m Gyro-Drop-Tower among its many rides on both land and water. There's also a dolphinarium and other animal shows. There are trains to Soltau from both Hamburg and Hannover and then a bus to the park or there is a direct bus from Hamburg.

It is also possible to visit the former Nazi Concentration Camp at Bergen-Belsen, 25 km north of Celle.

Hanover Tourist Offices

Ernst August Platz 2
Tel: 16 84 97 00/01.02
Fax: 16 84 97 07/08
Located in the same building as the main post office north of the station

Getting to Hanover

Air

Hanover's glitzy airport is within easy reach of the center by S-Bahn #5 (16 mins) and is served by several European airways including British Airways (BA), Air France and KLM.

Train

The Hauptbahnhof (main station) is the most modern in Germany, centrally located and adjoins the city's bus station. Hanover has direct rail connections to Hamburg (75 mins), Berlin (90 mins), Frankfurt (2 hours 15 mins), Munich (4 hours 30 mins) and London (8 hours 30 mins).

Bus/Road

Hanover connects by autobahn (via the A2 and A7) with Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt and Munich and on to Amsterdam and Brussels.

City Transport

Hanover has an excellent public transport system of buses and combination streetcar/U-Bahn line. The steetcars (trams) go underground through the city center. Purchase the HannoverCard at the tourist office which offers unlimited public transport and discounts at city museums and other attractions.

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Accommodation

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Eating

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Drinking

The main station area has the usual assortment of bars, pubs and restaurants. The streets around Marktplatz in the old town are another good venue to sample the local beers.

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Local football teams

Hannover 96 (founded in 1896) is a solid though unspectacular member of the First Division of Germany’s Bundesliga. The team known as the "Die Roten" or "The Reds" won the German championship in 1938 and 1954 and the Cup in 1992. They have moved between the first and second divisions in recent years. Their home the Niedersachsenstadion seats 45,000 and is being reconstructed for the 2006 World Cup.

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