Hannover itinerary: 1 to 2 days
Plans for one and two days in Hannover, day by day: the Herrenhausen Gardens, the Berggarten, the New Town Hall and the Marktkirche first, then the Georgengarten, the Lower Saxony State Museum, the Sprengel Museum and the Maschsee as you add a day. Every stop has a typical visit length.
How long do you have?
Map: 2 days
Hannover in 1 day
Day 1
Herrenhausen Gardens Must see
Baroque Great Garden of the Hanoverian kings with grand fountains, plus the Berggarten botanical garden and the English-style Georgengarten.
Berggarten
Botanical garden within the Herrenhausen Gardens, with greenhouses, orchids and themed plantings, and one of the oldest in Germany.
New Town Hall (Neues Rathaus)
Large Wilhelmine town hall of 1913 with a domed tower, an inclined lift to its viewing platform and scale models of the city.
Marktkirche
Brick Gothic church in the old town of Hannover, dating from the 14th century and rebuilt after wartime damage.
Hannover in 2 days
Day 1
Herrenhausen Gardens Must see
Baroque Great Garden of the Hanoverian kings with grand fountains, plus the Berggarten botanical garden and the English-style Georgengarten.
Berggarten
Botanical garden within the Herrenhausen Gardens, with greenhouses, orchids and themed plantings, and one of the oldest in Germany.
Georgengarten
English-style landscape park at Herrenhausen with lawns, tree-lined avenues and the Wilhelm Busch Museum, good for a relaxed walk.
Day 2
Marktkirche
Brick Gothic church in the old town of Hannover, dating from the 14th century and rebuilt after wartime damage.
New Town Hall (Neues Rathaus)
Large Wilhelmine town hall of 1913 with a domed tower, an inclined lift to its viewing platform and scale models of the city.
Lower Saxony State Museum Must see
Museum of art, natural history, archaeology and ethnology in a large building by the New Town Hall park.
Sprengel Museum Must see
Museum of modern art on the Maschsee with works by Picasso, Klee and Max Beckmann, and a large collection by Niki de Saint Phalle.
Maschsee Must see
Artificial lake of 1936 south of the centre with sailing, boat trips and walking paths along the shore.
Watch: Hannover
A one-minute look at the plan: every stop, day by day, with the map.
When to go to Hannover
May to September has the best weather for the Herrenhausen Gardens and the Maschsee, with fountains and boats in operation, although rain can fall in any month. Winter is grey and cold with few visitors, and the Christmas market runs from late November. The Schützenfest in late June and early July is the city's biggest festival, and trade fairs such as the Hannover Messe in spring and autumn push up hotel prices.
Plan the rest of your trip
- Where to stay: hotels in Hannover on Booking.com or Trip.com
- Skip-the-line tickets: museums and sights in Hannover on Tiqets
- Tours and day trips: things to do in Hannover on GetYourGuide
- From the airport: a private transfer in Hannover with Kiwitaxi
- Data on arrival: an eSIM for Germany from Airalo
- Last day: leave your bags in Hannover with Radical Storage and keep sightseeing
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Tips for Hannover
- The Herrenhausen Gardens (the Great Garden, Berggarten and Georgengarten) are best from spring to early autumn, when the fountains run; the Great Garden's fountains are switched off in winter.
- The Lower Saxony State Museum and the Sprengel Museum are closed on Mondays; check opening days before planning.
- Hannover's city centre is flat and compact, and the Red Thread, a line painted on the pavement, leads on foot past 36 sights of the old town.
- A day ticket for the Stadtbahn and buses (GVH) covers the trip to the Herrenhausen Gardens and the Maschsee.
- The New Town Hall has a curved inclined lift up its dome to a viewing platform; check opening times before you go.
Make it your own
Open the guide in Andiamo Places to see every stop on a map with walking directions, move places between days, check opening hours for your dates, and add your own finds. After the trip, your photos become a journal and, if you like, a printed photo book.
Guides are made with the help of AI and public sources such as Wikipedia, and may contain errors. Opening hours and prices change, so check before you go. Spotted a wrong photo, a pin in the wrong place, a missing stop or a better one? Write to andiamotravelapp@gmail.com: the e-mail opens with this guide filled in.
Photo credits
- Berggarten: Carsten Steger, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Georgengarten: Carsten Steger, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Herrenhausen Gardens: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain
- Lower Saxony State Museum: Losch, Copyrighted free use
- Marktkirche: Clemensfranz, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Maschsee: Amhaaw19, CC BY-SA 4.0
- New Town Hall (Neues Rathaus): Thomas Wolf , www.foto-tw.de, CC BY-SA 3.0 de
- Sprengel Museum: The original uploader was Axel Hindemith at German Wikipedia ., Public domain
Opening hours change; check before you go. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
