Part hotel, part rooftop garden and part cultural hub, the newly opened “Green Bunker” in the St. Pauli district in Hamburg, Germany is the re-imagination of a former air raid bunker.

Originally built as an anti-aircraft bunker in 1942, the extension and greening of the colossal high-rise bunker from the Second World War took five years of construction to transform.

Today, clients visiting the city, which has more bridges than Amsterdam and Venice, can choose to spend the night at the REVERB by Hard Rock Hotel, the first hotel of the new Hard Rock brand in Europe.

The property features 134 rooms and suites and offers five restaurants on the rooftop, accessible to both hotel guests and the public: Constant Grind bakery, Karo & Paul — a three-story bar with live music, the main restaurant La Sala, and Green Beanie for quick bites in the rooftop garden.

Alternatively, clients can also choose to visit the roof top garden, which is open to the public by accessing its 335 stairs or taking the 560-metre long “mountain path” lined with railings, which starts at the bunker’s ground level and winds up to the top alongside the building with panoramic views in all directions.

The rooftop transformation began in 2019, with the addition of five new floors. Over the years some 4,700 trees, along with 16,000 shrubs, bushes, and plants, were crane-lifted to the rooftop to transform the bunker into an urban oasis.

Visiting the bunker via the mountain path is free of charge. The rooftop garden can accommodate up to 900 people, with access controlled by AI-supported camera surveillance.

In addition to its traditional hotel operations, the REVERB Hotel also offers three furnished guest flats for artists or scholarship holders, which can be booked by Hamburg’s cultural institutions through the Ministry of Culture and Media.

“We are delighted to offer creative minds an inspiring place where artists can enjoy their time in a unique atmosphere,” says Till Westheuser, hotel director of REVERB Hamburg. “Supporting the cultural and media sectors is essential for us, especially as part of the neighbourhood.”

A memorial for the victims and forced labourers of WWII is situated on the ground floor.

For more information visit: hamburgbunker.com.