Arriving in Wedel
Accommodation
Incoming students will have to find their own accommodation. Please take into account that this may take some time. Therefore, we recommend to start searching early. The easiest option is renting a room at the student accommodation, which is only about ten minutes from campus.
Some students prefer staying in privately rented apartments in Wedel and the north-western suburbs of Hamburg. If you do not live in Wedel, you will need a car or have to use public transportation to get to campus. Public transport within the Hamburg Metropolitan Region is excellent.
It is not a good idea to live in one of the smaller villages around Wedel, unless you have your own car. The rent may be cheaper, but public transport is infrequent, especially in the evening. The International office can help you find a private appartment.
Student accommodation: residence hall
Many of our students live in the residence hall, which is located within ten minutes walking distance of the university. It was opened in 1997 and has been well accepted by our students. The apartments are usually shared between six people. Everybody has a room to themselves, which is between 12 m² and 14 m² in size and usually comes unfurnished. Additionally, each apartment has two shared bathrooms, kitchen facilities, and a communal room. The rent starts from € 282 to € 345 without furniture including heating, electricity and internet, with a contract period of six months. Or a furnished room in a shared apartment for € 292. As these rooms are quite popular, they sometimes have a waiting list, so you should apply for them early. Enquiries regarding availability may be directed to the coordinator of the supplier, the Studentenwerk SH, via e-mail to wohnen@studentenwerk.sh or by phone at +49 431 88 16 315.
Private apartments
There is wide range of rental accommodation available nearby FH Wedel. Local residents who rent out rooms to students can be found online at www.wg-gesucht.de. The rent is usually higher than at the hall of residence, starting around €400,- and depending on size and facilities. When renting private apartments, it is important to note that the rent mentioned in the advert is for the room/flat only. You will have to pay for heating, electricity, telephone, internet and other things on top of it. Most landlords provide an estimate for these additional costs (the so-called "Nebenkosten"), which you should consider as the lower limit.
When you are searching for rooms or apartments online, words like "möbliert" or "teilmöbliert" will help you to find furnished apartments and/or rooms if you want to avoid having to buy (all) furniture for your stay in Germany.
Notice board: On our campus, you can find a notice board with advertisements for rooms or shared apartments nearby university of Wedel. However, for students from abroad it is advisable to start searching accommodation prior to the start of the semester.
Newspaper: Another way to find accommodation is browsing the local newspapers. The "Hamburger Abendblatt", one of Hamburg's biggest daily newspapers, has a section containing rental offers in Wedel, Hamburg and the suburbs surrounding it. You will find a similar section in Wedel's daily newspaper, the "Wedel-Schulauer Tageblatt". Both newspapers are in German only.
Internet real estate portals: You can also find numerous rental offers via the following real estate portals:
- www.wg-gesucht.de (renting a room in a shared apartment)
- Immonet
- immobilo
- Immobilienscout24
Public Transport & Airport
As international student, you will most likely arrive at Hamburg Airport, the region’s largest airport. It is well connected to Hamburg’s network of public railway (S-Bahn and U-Bahn), bus, and in fact ferry connections. In order to get to Wedel, simply enter the airport’s S-Bahn station, purchase a ticket and enter the next train towards Wedel. Note that all trains go in the right direction. However, some trains terminate short of Wedel at the Blankenese station. From there, you may wait for the next train to Wedel, or take a bus.
The public transport company of Hamburg, the HVV, serves the city itself and surrounding areas, including Wedel. You may find more information on their website. You can reach Hamburg’s central station, the Hauptbahnhof, within about 40 minutes from Wedel. Here, there are frequent regional, national and international train connections, as well as the main bus station just next to it.
Within Wedel, there are a number of bus lines getting you where you want to go. If you are going to be using them on a regular basis, it might be worth looking into a monthly subscription to save on fares.
Sights & Trips
Wedel is situated to the west of Hamburg and is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region. City trains and buses provide frequent and easy access to Hamburg's many attractions.
Wedel with its approximately 33,000 inhabitants is part of the administrative district Pinneberg. The river Elbe plays an important role in Wedel and is a main recreational spot. Not only tourists come here to take a walk along the waterfront or visit the ship greeting station Willkomm-Höft (lit. welcome point), to watch and listen as it welcomes every incoming ship to the port of Hamburg with its national anthem and gives farewell to departing ships in the same manner.
Wedel offers a good infrastructure. The university and shopping facilities can easily be reached. There is a variety of pubs and restaurants also, including a fantastic outdoor location directly on the beach.
Hamburg
The city of Hamburg is Germany's second largest metropolis with a population of 1.8 million inhabitants. It is one of the sixteen states of Germany and situated in the centre of Northern Germany.
Hamburg is one of the greenest cities in Germany, and with its wide range of cultural events and its extravagant shopping streets the harbour city attracts millions of tourists every year. The many streams, rivers and canals are crossed by some 2,500 bridges, more than London, Amsterdam and Venice combined. As of 2009 there were 100 consulates in Hamburg, a feat only surpassed by New York City and Hong Kong. Information on cultural events you can find on hamburg.de.