From the Old Town to the New Town

From the old town to the new town, in Hamburg

The passage from the old town to the new town of Hamburg is made by a bridge that spans the Alsterfleet, between two streets with an evocative name. The Hamburg audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this historic frontier, marked by the Alter Wall and the Neuer Wall.

The frontier of the old and the new wall

The bridge that spans the Alsterfleet, one of the canals of the town, makes you pass from the old town, the Altstadt, to the new town, the Neustadt. On either side of the canal extend two streets with a revealing name: the Alter Wall and the Neuer Wall, which mean the old and the new wall. These names recall the location of the old fortifications of Hamburg: the medieval town was surrounded by ramparts, which were extended over its growth, the old wall marking the limit of the old town and the new wall that of the extension that gave birth to the Neustadt. Today, these two elegant arteries, lined with fine buildings and shops, no longer have anything defensive, but their names keep the memory of this urban history. To cross this bridge is thus to travel symbolically between two eras of the town. A witness of the evolution and the growth of the town, this passage from the old to the new town is an interesting stop of the discovery of Hamburg.

What to see

Here you cross the bridge over the Alsterfleet that separates the old town, the Altstadt, from the new town, the Neustadt, between the two elegant streets of the Alter Wall and the Neuer Wall, the old and the new wall, whose names recall the location of the old fortifications and the gradual extension of the town. This passage testifies to the growth of Hamburg. It is a stop to be discovered, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The passage from the old town to the new town lies on the bridge of the Alsterfleet, between the Alter Wall and the Neuer Wall, in the heart of Hamburg, reachable on foot. It is a freely accessible public space. You discover it during a walk in the centre.

What do the Alter Wall and the Neuer Wall mean in Hamburg?

They mean the old and the new wall: these two streets, on either side of the Alsterfleet, recall the location of the old fortifications of Hamburg, the old wall marking the limit of the old town and the new one that of the extension that gave birth to the Neustadt.

Where is this passage from the old to the new town of Hamburg?

On the bridge of the Alsterfleet, between the Alter Wall and the Neuer Wall, in the heart of Hamburg, in Germany.