Hannover is hosting Expo 2000 from June until October, and has made this small, attractive city a 'must visit' for anyone visiting Germany this year. The Expo is being held in the existing Messe (fairgrounds) on the outskirts of the city, easily reached by train, tram, bus, bike, or car.
We chose to take the train to Hannover, and stayed at HotelAtlanta, a great hotel in a quiet side-street near the train station. Admission to the Expo is not cheap at 69DM a day, but includes all public transportation, so arriving is simple. The grounds are open from 9am until midnight, with the pavilions open until 9:30. It would be impossible to go into any real detail of what to expect, as the Expo is incredibly huge. Anyone who has not visited a world's fair before will be shocked at the sheer size and scope. Nearly all of the world's countries are exhibiting, in addition to numerous corporate sponsors and the Themepark area.
Not to be missed are the exhibits in the Themepark, which are similar to what you would see in the Dome, or Disney's Epcot. The Themepark exhibits can easily take most of a day to see on their own. The national pavilions are all amazing, especially the Netherlands, which towers over the East side. The corporate pavilions Planet M, Postbox and Cyclebowl were great. Flambee is the name of the nightly water/fireworks/musical/theatrical show which, although a tad confusing, is impressive nonetheless.
Food is ample at the Expo, as one would expect. The best places to eat are the countries themselves (avoid the McDonalds and Imbiss stands). The Pasta restaurant near Planet M is great value and top quality.
I spent two days at the Expo, a total of 28 hours of walking around the site that makes Disney seem small! The most important item to bring is a pair of extremely comfortable shoes - or else your feet will never forgive you. Three days or more would ideally be best for seeing the fair. One is far too short to see even a tiny fraction of the exhibits, and I found two days to be rushed.
Hannover has obviously spent millions on freshening the city up, and it shows - the city is spotless, the streets felt totally safe, and the directions were well posted. The people were friendly and language was not as great a barrier as expected. For a first trip to Germany, it seemed to be the perfect destination.
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Jul 4th, 2000
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