Fodor's Expert Review Mönckebergstrasse

This broad street of shops, which cuts through the city's Altstadt, is one of Hamburg’s major thoroughfares. Built between 1908 and 1911 to connect the main train station to the town hall, but only open to taxis and buses, the street is perfect for a stroll. Home to the Karstadt department store, electronics megastore Saturn, mindblowing buildings such as the Levante Passage, as well as a host of global brand stores from Adidas to Zara, it swells with local and out-of-town shoppers on Saturday and public holidays. The best cafés and restaurants tend to be found on side streets off Mönckebergstrasse, where the rents for shop space are generally not as high.