As of: March 14, 2024, 4:30 p.m
By: Sven Trautwein
What characterizes a book city?
A good range of bookstores, libraries and cultural events.
Only one city in Germany has more to offer.
The criteria that make a city the ideal book city are a wide range of bookstores, libraries and cultural events.
There is only one city in Germany that has more to offer than Hamburg, the second most beautiful book city in the country.
Where were most novels written?
The travel portal
loveholidays.com
has compiled a ranking of European cities that are considered the most attractive travel destinations for book lovers.
Book reader: The most beautiful cities in Europe
Hamburg is the second most beautiful book city in Germany.
Which city is ahead and leads the ranking in Europe?
© Thomas Lammeyer/imageborker/Imago
A total of 51 places in Europe were assessed and five different aspects were compared: the number of bookstores and public libraries in each city and their ratings.
Find out here which city has the most extensive offerings for book fans and which German city even surpasses Hamburg.
1st place: London
London, the literary heart of the United Kingdom, is at the top of the list of ultimate destinations for book lovers.
With 164 bookstores and 157 public libraries, the city offers a perfect environment for anyone who likes to get lost in a good book, right in the middle of an iconic metropolis.
Visit popular bookstores such as Libreria or Any Amount of Books, or browse the renowned bookstores in Cecil Court. Of course, be sure to check out the exhibitions and rare books on display at the British Library - the ultimate book lover's paradise , do not miss.
A city trip to London that is all about literature has a lot to offer.
Here you can find more of London's beautiful bookstores.
And while you're on the island, plan a trip to the world's first book town, Hay-on-Wye.
Stay up to date on new releases, book tips and news from comedy, streaming and music with the free newsletter from our partner 24books.de.
2nd place: Paris
Paris has captivated writers and poets for centuries.
With 117 bookstores and 103 public libraries, the city offers an impressive selection for literature lovers.
The American Library in Paris, the largest English-language lending library in Europe, is an absolute highlight.
The French National Library is also often praised as one of the most beautiful libraries in the world.
A stroll along the Seine leads to bookstores like Shakespeare and Company, once frequented by literary heavyweights like Ernest Hemingway and James Joyce.
Here you can discover the history and legacy of writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and TS Eliot, who once called Paris home.
3rd place: Athens
Known for some of the world's most famous myths, Athens is a perfect destination for book enthusiasts. If you are interested in both ancient tales and contemporary literature, Athens is the place to start.
With its 167 bookstores and 32 public libraries, the capital of Greece offers an ideal environment for those who want to re-evaluate works such as the Iliad and the Odyssey.
From Plato's Academy to the Acropolis, the city has inspired countless literary works over the centuries.
The National Library of Athens, an impressive and magnificent building, houses over a million books whose origins can be traced back to the 9th century.
In addition, “Zonar's Café” was a meeting place for many renowned foreign authors in the 1930s, including Jorge Luis Borges, Evelyn Waugh and Henry Miller.
Berlin in 7th place
Dublin, Vienna and Budapest follow in fourth, fifth and sixth place.
In seventh place is Berlin, the first German city in this ranking for book lovers.
There are almost 100 bookstores and 70 public libraries here.
Around 900 novels are set in the city.
Crime award winner Johannes Groschupf reveals in an exclusive interview with
Ippen.Media
why Berlin offers the perfect backdrop for suspense literature.
Here we introduce you to five titles that take place in Berlin.
The “Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam” (OBA) is the largest public library in Europe and also an architectural jewel.
© Patrick van Emst/Bruno Press/Imago
Hamburg follows as the second German city in 19th place with 90 bookstores and 28 public libraries.
According to
loveholidays.com
, it is the second most beautiful city for book lovers in Germany.
The Hanseatic city offers many interesting locations for books.
Things are a little more unusual, for example, in “Tatort Hafen: Death at the Landungsbrücken”, whose story takes place not on the water, but on the water.
Crime novels, for example by Hubertus Borck, delight readers with atmospheric depictions of the Hanseatic city.
He reveals how he works and writes in an interview with
Ippen.Media
.
Amsterdam takes last place in the ranking with 58 bookstores and 32 public libraries.
“OBA” is the largest public library in Europe and is definitely worth a visit.
The most beautiful book cities in Europe: How did the evaluation come about?
Number of Bookstores:
The number of bookstores in each location listed on Google Maps.
Average Bookstore Rating:
The average Google rating out of 5 for bookstores in each location as listed on Google Maps.
Number of Public Libraries:
The number of public libraries in each location, as listed on Google Maps.
Average Public Library Rating:
The average Google rating out of 5 for public libraries in each location, as listed on Google Maps.
Number of Notable Book Settings:
The number of notable books set in each location.
Which ten cities are considered the most livable in Europe?
Two of them are in Germany.