Scharnebeck twin ship lift

One of the most unusual structures in Germany is located in Scharnebeck. The lift for river ships was built in 1974 and it is the world's largest double lift (in 2016, China built a single lift, about 2.5 times bigger than this one, video).

In the vast majority of cases, gateways are being built to raise ships, but in this case the Germans decided to build the lift.


There is a road and a pedestrian pavement under the lift, so you can go up close and observe the rise or descent of the ship.The giant platform descends at arm's length. The lift operates almost without interruption.




Platforms weighing 5,800 tons and moving with the help of 240 steel cables and counterweights.


Getting there: parking (N 53 17.536 E 10 29.442). By public transport go to bus stop Adendorfer Straße, Scharnebeck, find timetable at http://www.bahn.de. From the bus stop you need to go to about 700 meters on foot.