The Jungfernstieg, the broad boulevard along the south shore of the Binnenalster, has been Hamburg's most fashionable promenade since the 17th century. The name dates from the days when unmarried daughters (Jungfern) were paraded along it by their mothers in the hope of attracting suitable husbands.
Today it is a mix of high-end shops (Tiffany, Bulgari, Cartier), the Alsterhaus department store, and waterfront cafés with views over the lake's central fountain. The white passenger ferries of the Alster fleet leave from the Jungfernstieg landing in the middle of the promenade. Behind the boulevard, a network of covered shopping passages — the Alsterarkaden, Hanse-Viertel, Europa Passage — extends back toward Mönckebergstraße.