Sunrises and sunsets

Beach life

The beach bar on the small headland at the confluence of the Ihme and Leine rivers is a real hotspot for sunbathers in the summer.

People sitting in beach chairs by a river with a view of a bridge — View of the Dornröschen Bridge from the beach

You can relax in the hammocks and sun loungers on the beach, put your feet in the sand with a sundowner or dangle in the water and simply do nothing. That's vacation feeling in the middle of the city! And the sunset behind the Sleeping Beauty Bridge is one of the most beautiful in the city anyway!

Hanover's "Strandperle" on Fährmannsinsel

The incredibly lively Strandperle, part of the Spandau Project, is also very popular during the day, especially among young families from Linden and Nordstadt. In 2005, an artificial beach was created on the so-called Fährmannsinsel; ever since, the little ones have been able to dig in the sand undisturbed while the grown-ups enjoy the blazing sun in lounge chairs or go for a swim in the cool waters of the Ihme and Leine rivers. If you’re thirsty or hungry, you can grab a hot snack and ice-cold drinks at fair prices from the self-service counter of the bright-red bar container. By the way: you can borrow children’s toys at the bar—and from May through September, you can also rent stand-up paddle (SUP) boards. “Strandleben” collaborates with the Institute of Sports Science at Leibniz University and the University Sports Department in Hanover; students can rent the boards at half price. In addition, SUP courses are offered on summer weekends, and since May 2018, there have also been affordable group rates for 8 to 24 people.

Sleeping Beauty and her bridge

From this prime vantage point overlooking beach life, the view extends straight west across the Leine River to the Dornröschen Bridge, which sometimes serves as a stage for one spectacle or another. The Dornröschen Bridge owes its fairy-tale name to a popular garden restaurant located a little further downstream. However, it became famous citywide for the traditional vegetable battles between residents of Linden and Nordstadt, who first gathered there on a Saturday in September 2003—initially out of pure local patriotism and later just for fun—to pelt each other with rotten tomatoes and horse manure. To this day, residents of Linden and Nordstadt meet for this messy duel on the Sleeping Beauty Bridge, which has connected the two Hannover neighborhoods since 1959 and where, on warm summer evenings, residents from both neighborhoods harmoniously and peacefully enjoy the photogenic sunset over their neighborhood.

Life-size papier-mâché cars hang under a bridge

Bridges in Hanover

Ten Bridges in Hanover You Have to Walk Across at Least Once

Bridges connect people all over the world—and, of course, in Hanover as well. And they do so in many different ways: sometimes in very practical ways, like the pedestrian bridges...

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