Flying out of Hannover Airport

No direct knowledge but we have stayed at a Maritim Hotel in the Düsseldorf airport and loved the hotel chain. I wouldn’t hesitate to book this chain at another German airport. I also noticed that my favorite chain, Motel One, will be opening its first hotel in Hannover this spring by the Opera Haus.

On another note, if you have that extra day exploring near Goslar please consider these two towns from the former east Germany, Wernigerode and Quedlinburg. You’ll love them I think.

We also spent time in Celle and Lüneberg when we visited Bergen-Belsen many years ago, a very moving experience.

I have flown out of Hannover-Langenhagen ages ago, the last time 1989 to Berlin-Tegel, took public transportation from Hannover Hbf to the airport.

Very good choices visiting Lüneburg, Celle and Goslar I recommend the Bormann Museum in Celle if you're into the history of Hannover.

Delighted to hear of someone actually visiting Northern Germany!

I have flown out of Hannover many times and cannot remember any special difficulties.

We hate these early departures

Absolutely, I totally agree. Especially since they usually tell you to be there three hours before departure for international flights. What's the point in spending money on a hotel if we have to get up at 2 a.m. to catch the S-Bahn at 3.30 a.m.? Irony: last time we flew out of Hamburg at 8 a.m., and it turned out the check-in counter wasn't even open before 6 a.m.! In case you have luggage to check, you might want to find out if your airline offers an early check-in for luggage the night before. Obviously, this is not worth the hassle if you have to go all the way to Langenhagen for that. But if you are staying in an airport hotel, it might give you an extra hour of sleep in the morning.

Just an idea, not sure if this might work: Have you looked into train connections from Hannover to Amsterdam or Paris? I don't think this will be any more uncomfortable than any of the other solutions, and you would travel with a much better environmental conscience. :-) I hope they will soon reinstall more sleepers and couchettes; there aren't any really good connections from Hannover yet. In case your arrival is via Amsterdam or Paris too, there are some good sleeper connections to Munich.

Celle, Lüneberg, Goslar

Hannover itself can't compete, except for the Herrenhausen Gardens and the Sprengelmuseum (and the zoo, if you like zoos). You might also have a look at Hildesheim with two UNESCO world heritage churches and a renowned Egyptian museum.

Thanks Mona for the Hotel Information. The Maritim is within walking distance of the airport.

Thanks Mona and Fred for recommendations of things to see.

Thanks Anna. We were cross posting.

We like northern Germany. I was stationed in Bremerhaven for about 18 months in the 1980's and we really enjoyed our time there. Our daughter was born in Bremerhaven. We have stopped in Goslar and Bad Hersfeld a couple times traveling to my former headquarters in Heidelberg.

Our original plan was to fly open jaw Munich-Amsterdam, with a last overnight in Leiden. The Netherlands was closed to Americans recently. It is open again but there are still some Covid related restrictions/difficulties in visiting. It might be best to limit the countries in which we overnight given the differing Covid restrictions.

My aunt lives in Hannover and I have flown in and out of the airport there. It’s very small and super easy to navigate. When I departed it took all of 5 minutes to check in, go through security and arrive at my gate. I didn’t stay at a hotel so I can’t help you with that.

It might be best to limit the countries in which we overnight given
the differing Covid restrictions.

Oh, I see, yes, that absolutely makes sense. And here we were, believing Covid might reduce humanity's carbon footprint!

Sorry I can't help with hotel recommendations either as we never needed one. :-)

Gary, I don't mean to conjure up imaginary problems, but if the airport is that small, I would want to make sure whether or not you can actually do your complete, international check-in there. Or, even if you have a single ticket with multiple legs, could you be forced to do EU departure and US data harvesting in Paris or Amsterdam? Would the first flight be on a commuter-type subsidiary airline?

I have had great success with two-segment flights with Lufthansa/United and Lufthansa/Lufthansa United Code-Share. But those were at major airports, like Paris-Duesseldorf-NYC or Cologne-Frankfurt-NYC. (I didn't actually look up actual trips, just quoting from memory) I also got great responses by Lufthansa to delays and labor actions.

Hi,

Another recommendation for a day trip from Hannover is Minden. I've done that a few times spending the day in Minden after arriving in Hannover Hbf early in the morning on the night train.

If you're into history, specifically Prussian history, the Prussian Museum is there., called Preußen in Westfalen., walkable from the train station. Other than that the Zentrum's architecture reveals numerous half-timber houses.

There is more to see in Minden, historical reminders/memorials, etc.

How about going out to Porta Westfalica, get a taxi from Minden's train station is the easiest way. The S-Bahn only goes to Porta Westfalica station, you still need the taxi after that. Porta Westfalica was under construction, I mean the immediate area, and all that a few years ago. I was there then but in 2007 I did see it before any of this was done.

Thanks Andrea for the airport info.

Thanks Tim. You might be right. The flights will be Air France Hop to Paris or KLM City Hopper to Amsterdam. There is considerable time in each Paris and Amsterdam to make the transfer. The tickets will booked through Delta. The worst flight snafu we ever had coming back from Germany was with Lufthansa out of Munich. Family of four of us arrived 3 hours early to find the flight full. They got us home out of Zurich on Swiss Air on standby.

Thanks again Fred and Anna.

Double check that bargain airlines aren't using a different, more distant (Paris/Amsterdam) airport than the one your US flight leaves from! Just in case.

You may know that some airlines are terrified of failing to meet the US demand for immigration data X hours before the passenger lands. That's why they tell you to check in 3 hours early.

We have stayed at the Hotel Mussman several times using Hannover as a base for day trips ( Lubeck, Helgoland, etc), as well as attending the Hannover opera. The Mussman is just across the street from the Hauptbahnhof. It is an excellent hotel; moderate pricing, superb included breakfast, accommodating staff.
https://www.grandhotel.de/en/

Tim, The connecting flights are through CDG in Paris and AMS in Amsterdam. My wife flew on a commuter Air France airline from Budapest to CDG a few years ago. Their bags were checked through and they only had to clear border control. The operation was smooth at CDG. I believe this is the same sort of arrangement. Nothing is ever certain in air travel.

Thanks Traveling Mom. I will check the Hotel Mussman.

if the airport is that small

It's not "that small". It's a fully equipped international airport. :-)

True, it is fully equipped. But it is very small compared to most airports tourists use and it is fast and easy to navigate. As I said upthread, I was in the door, checked in, through security and at my gate in 5 minutes. I was in no way criticizing it. It was great!

We booked the flights Hannover-Paris-Salt Lake City. Thanks again for everyone's input.

Any reason for Hannover instead of Hamburg? Is the fare that much cheaper?

"Any reason for Hannover instead of Hamburg? Is the fare that much cheaper?"

The prices and schedules are about the same. Hannover is a little more convenient to my plan for seeing towns in this area.