Blankenese (German pronunciationⓘ) is a suburban quarter in the borough of Altona in the western part of Hamburg, Germany; until 1938 it was an independent municipality in Holstein.

In 1060, Archbishop Adalbert of Bremen built a provost's residence at the site of an older settlement at the hill Süllberg.

[6] During World War II, the suburb held a Luftwaffe Officer Cadet camp, which became HQ 85 Group Signals for the Royal Air Force in 1945.

To the south is the widest point of the river Elbe (2.8 km) which provides various tourist and recreational opportunities as well as a view of the Airbus plant.

The views from the river-facing portions of Blankenese have resulted in highly desirable properties and expensive real estate prices.

[citation needed] The steep hillside residences boast many tiny, pedestrian-only streets and 4,864 stairs.

Blankenese's waterfront is serviced several times a day by a ferry connecting it with Cranz on the southern shore of the river.

[19] On the hill of Baursberg the waterworks of the same name is located since 1859, supplying the western suburbs of Hamburg and also the nearby town of Schenefeld.

However they afford scenic views and are popular with the locals, hence were allowed to remain there: The remains of the four-masted Finnish powered schooner Polstjernan (Polar Star), which caught fire on 20.10.1926 in today's Kiel Canal and was towed away by the Blankenese-based salvage company Harmstorf.

As the wreck tended to float in flood conditions it was weighted down with scrap metal from submarine parts after World War II and has since been used as a breakwater.

The Uwe was torn into pieces and while most of these chunks had eventually been towed into the harbor, it became apparent its stern was too heavy, and was left between the Polstjernan and the Lighthouse of Blankenese, where it remains to this day.

These webcams allow virtual visitors of Blankenese to watch the many commercial container and pleasure ships travel up and down the Elbe in real time.