Hamburg’s tourism sector is looking forward to the city’s new landmark: Elbphilharmonie Hamburg to open in January 2017

Hamburg, 9 March, 2016 (HHT) – Hamburg has established itself as one of the most popular city break destinations in Europe. With the opening of the concert hall “Elbphilharmonie Hamburg” on 11 and 12 January, 2017, the city now offers a unique new travel occasion with high international visibility. At the ITB Berlin, the Northern German City showcases its cultural diversity, while also presenting this unparalleled concert hall to the travel industry and trade journalists.

The Elbphilharmonie Hamburg is located in the HafenCity Hamburg district between the Speicherstadt UNESCO World Heritage Site and the port, which has always served as the heart and the engine of the city. The new concert hall with its unique architecture represents the diverse, maritime flair of Hamburg – a city that is built on tradition and modernity and continues to successfully reshape its future by drawing on courage, creativity, innovation and cosmopolitanism.

The dazzling glass structure of the Elbphilharmonie rises up to a height of 110 metres upon the former Kaispeicher A, a historic warehouse that was once used for storing tea, tobacco and coffee. The Elbphilharmonie is now emerging as a new magnet for locals and guests alike. The spectacular building offers a one-of-a-kind Hamburg experience: it comprises three concert halls with a diverse music programme, a large area for music education activities, a hotel and a restaurant, as well as the public Plaza at a height of 37 metres that provides visitors with a stunning view of the city..

Olaf Scholz, First Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, comments: “The Elbphilharmonie builds on the city’s diverse cultural life and its rich music tradition. The Elbphilharmonie embraces an open-door policy. The publicly accessible Plaza will serve as a spectacular place of encounter, enabling Hamburg’s locals and guests to experience the city’s contrasting urban landscape from a bird’s eye perspective.”

Impetus for raising Hamburg’s international profile

"The Elbphilharmonie will add considerably to raising Hamburg’s international profile and to putting Hamburg on the world map as a top-class destination,” says Dr. Rolf Strittmatter, Managing Director of the Hamburg Tourist Board. The board has been implementing an internationalisation campaign for the last three years, which is aimed at adapting the quality of services and infrastructure to the needs of international guests.

Combining amazing acoustics with inspiring architecture

While Hamburg’s locals and guests to the city are struck by the Elbphilharmonie’s spectacular silhouette, the inside of the building further impresses with its amazing acoustics and inspiring architecture. The centrepiece of the building is the Grand Hall. Much like the terraced planting of vineyards, 2,100 seats ascend around the central stage. As the maximum distance between the audience and the conductor is no more than 30 metres, the Grand Hall offers an intimate experience. To ensure perfect acoustics, the architects collaborated with star acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota in designing a special wall and ceiling structure – the “White Skin”. The Grand Hall will provide a spectacular stage for Hamburg’s vibrant classical music scene and stars from around the world.
More: www.elbphilharmonie.de

Artistic director Christoph-Lieben-Seutter explains the Elbphilharmonie’s artistic claim: “The Elbphilharmonie marks the beginning of a new era for Hamburg as a city of music. The concert programme features top-class artists and orchestras from around the world and provides Hamburg’s orchestras with an international platform in their own city. The Elbphilharmonie will equally cater for Hamburg’s residents and guests from around the world. Attracted by this new architectural landmark, they will find plenty of occasions for attending a concert.”

Outlook: positive investment climate in tourism to continue

Dr. Rolf Strittmatter is optimistic about the tourism year ahead: “For 2016, we are expecting an increase in the number of overnight stays by 3 to 5 percent, with a target of more than 13 million overnight stays.” In addition to creating new travel occasions and sharpening its quality profile, Hamburg is further expanding its flight connections. Hamburg’s growing hotel market is offering exciting new concepts. A total of 31 hotel projects are to be developed by 2018, with a level of investment of 1 billion euro – among them the Westin hotel in the Elbphilharmonie with its 244 rooms, which will open in November 2016. More information on tourism in Hamburg: www.hamburg-travel.com.

Further information for tour operators on visiting the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg:

• Tickets for concerts in the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg can be booked from 20 June 2016 directly from the Elbphilharmonie and Laeiszhalle Service GmbH as well as from the relevant event organisers. Tickets may not be reserved in advance. Group tickets (from 21 to max. 40 tickets) can also be booked from 20 June. For the event period between 11/01/2017 and 31/07/2017 tickets will only be available at fixed quotas and at full price.

• A spontaneous visit to the Plaza will be free of charge for almost two years. For a nominal fee of EUR 2.00, tickets may also be booked for a fixed time window to enable visitors to easily access the Plaza without waiting times. Tickets can be purchased in the ticket centre, at vending machines or online. Already in the six-month opening period up until August 2017, tour operators will have access to ticket quotas for a Plaza visit for five or more visitors – despite the expected high demand by Hamburg’s locals and individual tourists.

• Detailed booking conditions will be published in July 2016 and binding bookings may also be made from July 2016. Tickets may not be resold to end customers outside an overall package. Already at this stage, operators may express their specific booking requests by sending an e-mail to plaza@elbphilharmonie.de. Any requests that are sent to the above e-mail address will be answered from July 2016 according to the date of receipt. This ticketing scheme shall apply to the period up until 31 July 2017.

Media-Service:

• Press section of the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg’s website on elbphilharmonie.de/presse.en

• More media information about the ITB-presentation of the Hamburg Tourist Board on marketing.hamburg.de/itb2016.html

• Further information, stories and tips on Hamburg by the Media Service of Hamburg Marketing GmbH on mediarelations.hamburg.de. Photos for editorial use on www.mediaserver.hamburg.de.