If you are reading this you must be wondering:
Is the Hamburg CARD worth it when I visit Hamburg, Germany?
One of my best pieces of advice for self-guided travelers to Europe (or any metropolitan place, really) is to check and see if they offer a city card. City cards are typically short-term cards that allow tourists to travel and visit key attractions at a discount or free. In a similar vein, I strongly recommend looking into museum passes in cities like Paris or London if you want to maximize your tour experience.
Related: Is the Berlin Welcome Card worth it?
Related: Is the iAmsterdam Card worth it?
What is the Hamburg CARD?
The Hamburg CARD is the city tourist card that offers free metro transportation including buses, trains, and ferries, as well as discounts to popular city sights in Hamburg, Germany. Note, you can purchase the option without the public transportation, but I believe the included transportation is the biggest draw to the card.
Pros:
- Includes public transportation
- Valid per calendar day (vs. 24 hours) so you can fully maximize your experience
- Affordable starting at 11.90€ a day with discounts for multiple days and group tickets of 2 or more
Cons:
- Offers discounts to museums and sights but not free admission
Tip: Make a list of the activities that you want to do in a certain city including transportation costs. Compare the expenses of those activities with the card. If the cost is lower with the card, then the card is a good deal.
The Math:
Realistically, you would want to have at least two days with the card, unless you are a museum fiend and can go to all the museums and attractions in one day. Because we were also using the card as our primary source of transportation, we purchased a 3-day, 2-person bundle.
| Activity | With Card | Without Card |
|---|---|---|
| Hamburg CARD (3 day Group) | €26.45 | €0 |
| Transportation>Transportation (3 days) | €0 | €26.40 |
| Miniatur Wunderland | €19.00 | €19.00 |
| Maritime Museum | €13.00 | €17.00 |
| Automuseum Prototyp | €10.00 | €12.00 |
| Total | €68.45 | €75.40 |
The Verdict: Is the Hamburg CARD worth it?
While the savings are not substantial, the ability to have transportation and discounts on activities we were already going to go to was super valuable. Plus, it gave us some ideas to help prioritize and plan out our itinerary.
The card gets more value the more people are linked and the more days you have it because you can spread out your activities and get better savings per day of use. This is an excellent choice for first timers.