Except for Berlin, few Americans venture north of Frankfurt and so miss this great port city. Like Berlin and Munich, Hamburg is full of fine restaurants, top-flight shops, theaters, museums, and concert halls. It has one of Europe's finest ballet companies.

Top Sights: 
• St. Michael's Church
• Fine Arts Museum
• Sunday morning Altona Fischmarkt 
• Reeperbahn, the city's legal and lively "red light" district.

Suggested Activity: 
• Go west along the north shore of the Elbe to Wedel. There you'll find the Schiffsbegr¸ssungsanlage, a place where the many ships traveling the Elbe between the sea and Hamburg are saluted. As each ship passes this point, the flag of its home country is raised and its national anthem is played over a speaker system.

A Place to Stay: 
• Hotel Abtei, Abteistr. 14 (tel. +49/040/442905, fax 449820, email abtei@relaischateaux.fr) Doubles $181 to $253
• Hotel Hafen Hamburg, Seewartenstr. 9 (tel. +49/040 /31113-0, fax 311 13755, email info@hotel-hamburg.de) Doubles $92-$123

A Place to Eat: 
• Fischereihafen-Restaurant, Grosse Elbstr. 143 , tel. +49/040/381816