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Key Attractions Herrenhäuser Gärten Although little remains of the original palace buildings, the Herrenhäusen Gardens are one of the city’s most popular attractions, particularly during the summer months, when there are festivals, Baroque fireworks and theatre performances. The symmetrical Baroque landscape of the Great Garden (Grosser Garten) was laid out by Duke Johann Friedrich of Calenberg, at the end of the 17th century, and includes the oldest hedge theatre in Europe, an enormous fountain – 70m (230ft) at full pressure – and ornamental flower beds. In contrast, the Berggarten – the former palace utility or herbal garden – features a botanical collection of more than 12,000 different plants. To complete the picture, in the 19th century, a romantic ‘English’ Garden (Georgengarten) was created around Herrenhäuser Allee, in honour of George IV. The Wilhelm-Busch-Museum/German Museum for Caricature & Critical Drawing is housed in Wallmoden Palace in the Georgengarten. The museum features a collection of work by German satirical artist Wilhem Busch and exhibitions by contemporary cartoonists. Herrenhäuser Strasse 4 Tel: (0511) 1684 7576. Transport: Light-rail 4 or 5 Herrenhäuser Gärten. Opening hours: Daily 0800-2000 (May-Aug); daily 0800-1630 (Nov-Jan); daily until dusk (Sep, Oct, Feb-Apr), Grosser Garten and Berggarten; Daily 24 hours, Georgengarten. Admission: €2.50; €3 including summer illuminations. Wilhelm-Busch-Museum/German Museum for Caricature & Critical Drawing Wallmoden Palace, Gerogengarten Tel: (0511) 714 076. Fax: (0511) 701 1222). Website: www.wilhelm-busch-museum.de Opening hours: Tues-Sat 1100-1700, Sun 1100-1800 (summer); Tues-Sat 1100-1600, Sun 1100-1800 (winter). Admission: €4.50 (concessions available). Sprengel-Museum Opened in 1979, the Sprengel Museum combines the endowment of Dr Bernhard Sprengel with the 20th-century art collections of the state of Lower Saxony and the city of Hanover. Offering a comprehensive educational programme, the museum now rates as one of the most important centres of modern art in Germany. Exciting exhibitions of contemporary art, photography and new media complement a permanent collection of modern classics, including works by Picasso, Klee and Schwitters. Kurt-Schwitters-Platz Tel: (0511) 1684 3875. Fax: (0511) 1684 5093. Website: www.sprengel-museum.de Transport: Bus 250. Opening hours: Wed-Sun 1000-1800, Tues 1000-2000. Admission: €3.50 (concessions available). Rathaus (Town Hall) An object of derision when it opened in 1913, the monumental architecture and copper-coated dome of Hanover’s ‘new’ Town Hall have since made it the city’s main landmark. Visitors can ascend the dome by means of the unique curving lift, for an excellent bird’s-eye view of the city and Maschsee. Below the dome, the huge vaulted central hall houses four models of the city, representing Hanseatic Hanover in 1689, 1939 pre-war Hanover, 1945 after the devastating bombing raids and finally the present day city – the latter model is constantly updated to reflect the rapidly changing face of modern Hanover. Council chambers are only open to visitors on an official guided tour. Trammplatz 2 Tel: (0511) 1684 2292. Transport: U-Bahn Aegidientorplatz or Waterloo-Platz. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 0930-1730, Sat and Sun 1000-1700. Admission: €2; €3 (including ascent of the dome); guided tours available through Hanover Tourismus Service (see Tourist Information). Niedersächsisches Landesmuseum (Lower Saxony State Museum) This museum is housed in a neo-Renaissance building opposite the Maschpark. It contains a selection of paintings and sculptures spanning nine centuries, as well as interesting archaeological, ethnological and natural history exhibits. The stars of the archaeological collection are the bodies of prehistoric Homo sapiens found in the local peat bogs. Willy-Brandt-Allee 5 Tel: (0511) 98075. Fax: (0511) 980 7640. E-mail: nlmhl@compuserve.com Website: www.nlmh.de Transport: U-Bahn Aegidientorplatz. Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1700, Thurs 1000-1900. Admission: €3. Eilenriede Eilenriede park is virtually a city forest and Hanover’s ‘green lungs’. It covers an area of 650 hectares (1943 acres), larger than Central Park in New York. The park comprises woodland and meadows, crisscrossed by a network of paths and fitness trails and dotted with numerous monuments, a minigolf course, a toboggan slope, restaurants, cafés and beer gardens. The northern part of Eilenriede encompasses a bird sanctuary and the popular Hannover Zoo, which houses 1300 animals. The zoo is much better than many of its ilk, with visitors able to take the new ‘Zambezi Boat Ride’ through an African landscape and get some idea of how the animals would look in their natural environment. This also allows the animals to be free from small cages and given a (relatively) natural environment. There are plans for a new ‘Yukon Bay’ section, a massive project that would give the seal, sea lions, penguins and polar bears far more space than they currently have in the more traditional enclosure. Between Kleefeld and the List, through Kirchrode to Waldheim Transport: Any number of bus and U-bahn lines, depending on point of entry to the park Hannover Zoo Adenauer Allee 3 Tel: (0511) 280 740 (zoo). Fax: (0511) 2807 4122. E-mail: info@zoo-hannover.de Website: www.zoo-hannover.de Transport: U-Bahn Zoo. Opening hours: Daily 0900-1900 (Mar-Oct); daily 0900-1600 (Nov-Feb). Admission: €14.50. Maschsee The 68-hectare (168-acre) Maschsee Lake was dug out between 1934 and 1936, providing the city with an enviable aquatic playground. Pleasure seekers can enjoy boat trips for €6 or illuminated evening cruises (including dinner), available from April to October from Rudolf-von-Bennigsen-Ufer. A recent addition to the Maschsee fleet is a solar-powered catamaran. The lake is surrounded by parkland and has a number of restaurants, beer gardens and a casino on its shores. During summer, Maschsee provides the perfect setting for a popular cultural and entertainment festival (see the Cultural Events section in Culture). Rudolf von Bennigsen Ufer Tel: (0511) 700 950. Fax: (0511) 700 0582 (boat trips with Üstra Reisen GmbH). E-mail: info@uestra-reisen.de Website: www.uestra-reisen.de Transport: U-Bahn Schlägerstrasse, Geibelstrasse, Altenbekener Damm or Döhrener Turm; bus 132, 250 or 267. Opening hours: Daily 24 hours. Admission: Free. Street Art Hanover’s bountiful street art is a highlight of visiting the city. Much of the innovative public art dates back to the 1970s, with a plethora of weird and wonderful creations, from multi-coloured shapes through to surreal sculptures, such as a stag with a figure of a man sitting atop its antlers. Perhaps the most famous work are the three buxom ‘Nanas’ placed on the banks of the Leine river. These characters were creations of French artist Niki de St Phalle, who died in 2002. Many of the city’s bizarre fountains are also works of art in themselves, as are a number of Hanover’s bus stops. Throughout the city |
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