At the Kellinghusenstraße mit Sabrina Hanisch

Do you know the swing with the best view in Hamburg? The hidden vending machine with art-to-go on the Elbe? Or the smallest vineyard in the world - right by Hamburg's harbour? Sabrina Hanisch aka sabrinaxfavs presents hidden places like these on Instagram and TikTok. For a good year now, the 32-year-old has been providing Hamburg residents and visitors to the city with tips - from cafés to flea markets to ideas for dates in the rain. And with growing success: currently around 13k people follow her on Instagram and over 20k on TikTok.

Sabrina finds the places she presents literally in passing, she says: "In fact, I just walk a lot through the different parts of the city. In the process, I might discover a new sign on a door or a backyard." Besides her channels, she works as a freelance consultant for social media marketing.

We don't meet Sabrina in passing, but at the hvv switch station Kellinghusenstraße, which is directly in front of the old brick building of the Holthusenbad.

Sabrina, you're actually from Hanover. What brought you to Hamburg in 2019?

I studied in Lüneburg and was often in Hamburg when I was a student, either for part-time jobs or for coffee at the weekend. Lüneburg became too small for me at some point. I moved here rather abruptly and without a plan - I didn't have a job or any concrete idea. I just knew that I wanted to live here.

Four years later, you are something of a social city guide for the city. How did you come up with that?

I've been keeping a list of cafés in Hamburg that I find exciting for a long time. When I was there, I used to rate the places for myself on this list. That was fun for me: for some reason I'm usually drawn to new places. At some point I decided to share these places on social media. And it's going great: my channels have totally grown within a year.

How did it happen so quickly?

To be honest, it surprised me too. I think it's important to many that the tips are authentic, and I really try to stay true to myself. I only recommend spots that I would also recommend to my friends. And obviously many people like that, which makes me very happy. But sometimes there is also criticism, for example when I reveal supposed insider tips that some visitors would prefer to keep to themselves.

How, for example?

For example, my tip about the swing with the beautiful view near the Bismarckstein, or the Kaffeegarten Schuldt in the Treppenviertel.

Why did we meet here on Kellinghusenstraße?

I live just around the corner.When I set off to find exciting and new places, Kellinghusenstraße station is my starting point.I usually take the U-Bahn or S-Bahn here. And I sometimes go to the swimming pool here - that's why I knew the hvv switch point.

Do you use car-sharing?

For the way to the airport sometimes, yes. But mostly I take the S-Bahn or U-Bahn.

Do you have an insider tip for us?

I recently discovered a vegetarian Italian restaurant in St. Georg that offers almost everything vegan - Carino. I think it's great because most Italian menus only offer one or two vegetarian dishes. The staff is super friendly and they also have a cosy garden. A real Hamburg pearl.

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