Young Brits discover Hamburg

German boys are better-looking than English ones (feel free to disagree), still water is only served when specifically asked for and Milka chocolate is the thing to buy when in Germany. These are just a few of the conclusions of the participants of the third youth trip to Germany organised by the German National Tourist Office (GNTO) and UK-German Connection as part of their Discover Germany! programme.

After two successful trips to Berlin in 2006 and Cologne/Bonn last year, 15 students from 15 different schools in the UK travelled to Hamburg this July to get to know the city by the river Elbe from a young person’s point of view.

The itinerary for the 15-year-old winners of a competition organised by the GNTO and UK-German Connection included Hamburg’s sights such as the famous “Speicherstadt” (warehouse city), Fish Market, and the new urban development “HarbourCity”. The group also visited a German school (Gymnasium Ohmoor), the HSH Nordbank Arena, homeground of the Hamburger SV football team, and took part in the “Schlager Move” festival where “crazy Germans” enjoyed and sang along to cheesy music. In the recently opened International Maritime Museum the British students and their group leaders from UK-German Connection and the GNTO were the first English-speaking visitor group.

The students recorded their experiences in diaries, saying:

“Visiting Hamburg has been one of the best experiences of my life.”(Akshitha from Essex)

“I really saw so much more of Germany, the places we went to were all stunning and it was really well organised. It will be a trip I shall never ever forget and I wish it was longer, although after Uni I really want to go, and live in Germany for some time, so this trip has been just amazing for me and given a brilliant insight into their language and culture.” (Ben from Wiltshire)

“Hamburg is so unlike English cities – it is clean, the architecture is spectacular and it hasn’t been ruined by skyscrapers and there are many trees and greenery.” (Chloë from Tunbridge Wells)

“This trip was one of the best I have ever been on in my life and allowed me to experience a wonderful city I wouldn't normally have considered visiting.” (Stanley from Herts)

For the GNTO, working with a younger target group is an important part of the promotional activities in the UK market: “We believe that Germany has a lot to offer young people and we want to encourage this age group to go and experience the country’s activities and attractions in this respect”, says Udo Grebe, Director GNTO UK & Ireland.

Ute Paetzig, Director, UK-German Connection, adds: “I’m delighted that the meeting with German peers was such a success this year. Our sincere thanks go to Gymnasium Ohmoor for hosting our group. The school visit and the joint activities gave the participants a great insight into life in Germany and really made their international experience come to life. May the new friendships last for life!”

A six minute long film documenting the trip can be viewed on the following websites:

germany-tourism.co.uk
ukgermanconnection.org/dg-film