Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. Hotel Le Royal Méridien Hamburg. View to the Lake

That is what you can see from your room when you stay at Le Royal Méridien Hamburg Hotel, which is located on the Alster in the center of Hamburg.

The Alster has been dammed since 1190 in order to power a watermill. One more dam was built later for a second mill, which changed the shape of the river to a lake.

To artificial lakes, “Außenalster” (outer Alster) and the smaller “Binnenalster” (inner Alster), together with the surrounding parks are an important recreational area in the city of Hamburg.