Comparison: Hamburg City Pass vs. Hamburg Card - When is each worth it?

Are you currently planning a short trip to Hamburg? Then I have a hot tip for you to save money. Get yourself a City Pass! A what? Here I explain what that is and reveal all the options for a Hamburg Pass for sights in Hamburg and other attractions. I compared: Hamburg City Pass vs. Hamburg Card. Read here about my experience and the comparison of both cards.

In more and more cities, passes for attractions, tours, and sightseeing are now offered. These 'City Passes' are special cards that allow you to visit a certain number of sights and museums at a discount or even for free.

Sometimes public transportation rides, tickets for a hop-on hop-off bus, or discounts for restaurants and shops are included.

The great advantage of these sightseeing cards is that you only have to pay once, and then you can visit all included attractions at your leisure. You won't need to take out your wallet on-site and you have an overview of your budget. Amazing, right? Note for Hamburg: This does not apply to the Hamburg Card. More on that in the article.

For Hamburg, there are three passes: The Hamburg City Pass (also known as Turbopass Hamburg), the Hamburg Card, and recently the Hamburg Card Culinary as an addition. We tested the sightseeing passes and share our experience here. At the end, we'll let you know in the conclusion which pass was worth it for us!

For all first-timers in Hamburg and frugal travelers, there is the Hamburg City Pass (view details here). With this City Pass, you can save not only time but also cash.

You pay for the pass upon purchase and can then visit all sights and Hamburg's top attractions for free. Otherwise, you can even skip the line at the popular Panoptikum wax museum. For additional city tours, restaurants, and shops, you receive up to 50% off.

The Hamburg City Pass is available optionally with or without a ticket for public transport (HHV). Depending on how long you stay in Hamburg, you can choose a pass duration of 1 to 7 days.

You order the City Pass easily online and receive it directly via email. Just print it out or show it on-site with your smartphone. It couldn't be easier.

With the Hamburg City Pass, you can visit so many attractions for free that you save a good amount of money on sightseeing! This way, you might even treat yourself to a nice dinner afterwards!

Tip for groups: If you are traveling in a group of at least 7 people to Hamburg, you will also receive a 5% group discount! However, you must ensure to check the box for it during the booking process!

Hamburg City Pass 1 day without public transport: $28.90, with public transport: $34.90

Hamburg City Pass 2 days without public transport: $45.90, with public transport: $59.90

Hamburg City Pass 3 days without public transport: $55.90, with public transport: $74.90

Hamburg City Pass 4 days without public transport: $65.90, with public transport: $89.90

Hamburg City Pass 5 days without public transport: $75.90, with public transport: $99.90

Hamburg City Pass 6 days without public transport: $85.90, with public transport: $109.90

Hamburg City Pass 7 days without public transport: $89.90, with public transport: $119.90

Here are some examples of what is included in the Hamburg City Pass:

• St. Michael's Tower (Michel) with observation deck (one of the most beautiful views in Hamburg)

• Red Light District Tour "Pleasure & Vice" or "On the Trail of Drag Queen Olivia"*

• Original harbor cruise with audio guide

• Hamburg harbor tour

• Panoptikum wax museum without waiting in line

• 1 day on the red hop-on-hop-off bus*

• Cap San Diego (the largest operational museum freighter in the world)

• Rickmer Rickmers sailing ship

• Black Light District - Black Light Mini Golf

• Hamburger Kunsthalle

*Important Note: With the 1-day pass, these are optional attractions, meaning you can use EITHER the hop-on hop-off bus OR participate in the guided tour "St. Pauli Pleasure & Vice". All passes of 2 days or more include both attractions!

Here we created two small calculation examples for the Hamburg City Pass. This way, you can see exactly what you can save.

Day 1

• "Michel" St. Michaelis Tower $6

• Hamburger Kunsthalle: $16

• Memorial St. Nikolai (observation tower and museum): $6

• Alster Round Trip with the Alstersteamer: $22

Day 2

• Original harbor cruise: $22

• Wax Museum: $7.50

• City tour hop-on hop-off bus: $18.50

• Rickmer Rickmers museum ship: $7

Visiting these 8 attractions would cost $105. The Hamburg City Pass for 2 days costs only $59.90. You save a whopping $45.10 per person.

Day 1

• Guided Landmarks Tour from St. Michael's Church to Elbphilharmonie: $22

• Altona Museum of Art and Culture: $8.50

• Hamburger Kunsthalle: $16

• City tour hop-on hop-off bus: $18.50

Day 2

• Ballin City Emigration Museum: $13

• Cap San Diego (museum ship): $9.50

• International Maritime Museum: $15

• Alster Round Trip with the Alstersteamer: $22

Day 3

• Tour through the Warehouse District: $5

• Original harbor cruise: $22

• Panoptikum wax museum (without waiting in line): $7.50

• Black Light District, a highlight for young and old: $13.90

Visiting these 12 attractions would cost $172.90.

The Hamburg City Pass for 3 days costs only $74.90. You save $98 per person.

Note: Both examples include day tickets for the HVV. These normally cost an additional $6.90 per day.

We love this pass because we can order it before the trip. Once there, we don't have to worry about our budget. Plus, we keep discovering new attractions and tours that we would never have booked without the pass. We love the City Pass!

• Free entry to the most popular museums and sights in Hamburg (only the Miniatur Wunderland is not included). Pay for the pass once, no more wallet needed.

• Free harbor cruise and Alster round trip.

• Includes hop-on hop-off bus ticket or Reeperbahn tour (both included with a 2-day Hamburg City Pass)

• Optional public transport ticket: Free travel on buses, trains, and harbor ferries throughout the city including the airport (area AB)

• Explore Hamburg flexibly: Turbopass is available for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 days

• Up to 50% off on further tours, restaurants, shops, and more.

• Digital ticket as a QR code on your smartphone

You order the Turbopass Hamburg before your trip on the website. You will immediately receive an email with all the important information and a pass that you can load onto your smartphone (QR code).

Additionally, you receive a travel guide as a PDF with all the important information about the included attractions, tours, and sights. So you have everything together and can experience Hamburg stress-free.

The Hamburg Card was once the only tourist card for attractions and sights in Hamburg. There are two versions of this: Hamburg Card (with public transportation, valid in the HVV area of Hamburg AB), and Hamburg Card Premium Plus (with additional culinary and sustainable partners).

Buses, trains, and harbor ferries to/from the airport are included. You also get up to 50% off at over 150 attractions and sights.

Additionally, there is also the Hamburg Card Local, which does not include public transport, but only the discounts on sights and attractions. This is available only for 1, 3, or 5 days.

Our tip: Save with the group ticket starting from 2 persons.

• The Hamburg Card is valid from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. the following day. Therefore, we recommend starting sightseeing early. Additionally, there are fewer tourists at that time.

• You receive the card directly as an online ticket on your phone. Very practical!

• Download the Hamburg Card App on your phone. In this app, each month you will find a special attraction where you receive free admission or a discount.

• Up to 30% off harbor, Alster, and city tours

• Discount at Miniatur Wunderland (a must-see)

• Discount on Hamburg city tours

• Up to 50% off many sights and museums

• Night Michel: discounted evening entry to the Hamburg landmark

• Up to 28% off for a musical or theater (usually applies to remaining tickets at the box office)

• Public transportation of the HVV (depending on the card area AB or total area)

You can find all included attractions in the Hamburg Card flyer.

Tickets for public transport valid in the Hamburg AB area

• Hamburg Card 1 day: $11.90

• Hamburg Card 2 days: $20.90

• Hamburg Card 3 days: $29.90

• Hamburg Card 4 days: $39.50

• Hamburg Card 5 days: $46.90

Tickets for public transport valid in the total area AB, plus advantages with culinary and sustainable partners.

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 1 day: $13.90

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 2 days: $23.90

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 3 days: $33.90

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 4 days: $44.90

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 5 days: $52.90

For locals, there is the Hamburg Card LOCAL. This card offers the same discounts as the Hamburg Card, but WITHOUT public transport. The card is ideal and really cheap if you like to explore the city on foot or by bike (recently also by e-scooter).

• Hamburg Card Local 1 day: $5

• Hamburg Card Local 3 days: $9.50

• Hamburg Card Local 7 days: $10.50

(up to 2 adults and 3 children ages 6 to 14):

• 1 day: $7.50

• 3 days: $11

• 7 days: $14

• 1 day: $6.50

• 3 days: $10

• 7 days: $13

You can order the card directly from Hamburg Tourism on their website

For those who not only want to do sightseeing but also enjoy some fish sandwiches or a delicious fish dish in a restaurant, there is now the Hamburg Card Culinary.

This includes discounts of up to 20% at over 50 restaurants and snack bars throughout Hamburg. A good additional option if you're out all day and want to recharge while sightseeing.

• Hamburg Card Culinary 1 day: $5

• Hamburg Card Culinary couple ticket 1 day: $6.50

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 3 days: $9.50

• Hamburg Card Culinary couple ticket 3 days: $10

• Hamburg Card Premium Plus 7 days: $10.50

• Hamburg Card Culinary couple ticket 7 days: $13

If we had to buy a pass again, we would choose the Turbopass (City Card). Because the Hamburg Card offers many discounts that students and seniors already receive. Therefore, the card is only worth it for many to a limited extent.

In contrast, the Hamburg City Pass (buy here) was very worthwhile for us. We didn't have to worry about which tours we still needed to book in Hamburg. We always had the tickets in the form of the sightseeing card with us.

Thus, the City Pass is truly ideal for every tourist in Hamburg visiting for the first time and wanting to do many activities. Especially city tours, even on special themes, are always popular with us.

And since we enjoy being by the harbor, we always take a harbor cruise with the ferries.

The Hamburg Card is a discount card offering up to 50% off attractions and sights in Hamburg. It is also valid as a ticket for buses, trains, and harbor ferries.

The day pass is valid from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. the following day. If you wake up early and spend the whole day sightseeing in Hamburg, the pass pays off. Also, check out the alternative Turbopass Hamburg (also called the Hamburg City Pass; the better alternative, in my opinion, for exploring the Hanseatic city).

The Hamburg City Pass (also known as Turbopass) offers you free admission to many attractions and sights in Hamburg, and it also serves as a ticket. It includes a harbor cruise, the hop-on hop-off bus, an Uber ticket, and much more.

If you want to pay once and then not have to calculate anymore, the Hamburg Turbopass is absolutely worth it. It is valid from one to five days and offers you the opportunity to visit numerous attractions and sights in Hamburg easily. Additionally, you receive discounts of up to 50% on selected restaurants and other sights.

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