AllThingsGerman.net » Hotels

Stopping over in Frankfurt

Graham — Wed, 21 May 2008 10:08:49 +0000

Frankfurt is a central hub for many European flights, and I am often asked about things to do or places to stay for short “stop-over” visits.

The trouble with short visits of only a few hours is that you have to get from the airport to Frankfurt itself, and then back again in time to check-in for your flight. Although there is a good train connection between the airport and the city centre (a line called the “S8″) you need to allow plenty of time for delays finding your check-in desk and gate. The airport may not be as big as in some European cities (eg. Heathrow or Barajas), but it is complex enough still the same. If you are flying from Terminal 2, you will need to get off the train and onto the monorail to change terminals.

But if you do have a few hours to spare, then you can always buy a one-day rail ticket and travel around Frankfurt by train to see the sights. If you are visiting at the weekend, you might even like to take a ride on the Ebbelwoi Express – a tram that runs around Frankfurt serving traditional local snacks and drinks. The ride takes about an hour and goes through most of the older parts of the city.

Of course, if you have a bit more time to spare then you might like to sample the nightlife of the big city and stay in a hotel for the night. Generally speaking, hotels in Frankfurt should be booked in advance as they tend to fill up quickly if anything is on in the city such as trade fairs or concerts. The best way of finding a good hotel at a reasonable price is often to ask for recommendations. But if you don’t know anyone to ask, then you need a good online resource to give you some alternatives.

I have booked hotels online in the past, only to find out that people I met later with local knowledge had better options for me that were not available in the booking system.

So I was interested to find a site called Hotels Combined, where in Frankfurt alone they have over 300 hotels in their system! I had a look at what was available at short notice for the coming weekend, and found offers starting at around 30EUR per night, which sounds very good value for money.

The fact is, that Hotels Combined are not actually booking your hotel room – they are searching through different booking systems to find you the best offer. Once you have selected a hotel and price, they forward you to the relevant system so that you can book your room. But wait! Before you do that you can read reviews that other users have put in the system after their say. For example, you might be interested to find our where you can free WLAN access, or how far the hotel is from the main train station.

What is also interesting about the site, is that it covers some of the smaller towns outside of Frankfurt. I am a big fan of staying outside of the city centre in places such as Bad Homburg and Königstein, the latter of which I visited myself recently.

I word of warning if you are travelling on budget airlines, though. Frankfurt is not the same as Frankfurt-Hahn – that is over 100km away! But don’t worry, even around Hahn there are lots of things to do and places to see (such as trip on the Rhine). And there are hotels there as well…

Some other posts on this topic that you might like to read:

Hotel offers East German experience

Graham — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 05:14:49 +0000

A hotel in Berlin is offering the chance to experience a piece of East-German life.

“Ostel” gives its visitors some idea of what life was like under communisim, and is located within a typical “Plattenbau”.

With prices starting at 9EUR per Person (in a shared room), this also looks like being a good place for visitors on a low-budget to go, who can save and take in a bit of nostalgia at the same time. It is located near the Ostbahnhof in the Wriezener Karree.

Read the full story on the BBC News website or visit the Ostel homepage.

Some other posts on this topic that you might like to read:

Hotel Katharinenhof (Bad Homburg)

Graham — Wed, 02 May 2007 00:16:59 +0000

This hotel is outside of Bad Homburg in a part of the town called “Ober-Erlenbach”. It is reachable by bus (Nos. 2, 12 & 22), and is situated in the old-part of Ober-Erlenbach.

Particularly for visitors on business, this can be a welcome place to stay away from the centre. There are still sufficient facilities (restaurants, supermarket, …) within walking distance.

For more information, visit the homepage.

Some other posts on this topic that you might like to read:

Hotel “Zum Taunus” (Wehrheim)

Graham — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 22:39:22 +0000

If you’re prepared to stay even further out of Frankfurt, then Hotel “Zum Taunus” is the other hotel I used when I was flat hunting.

Wehrheim is reachable using the Taunusbahn. Some trains go through to Frankfurt, others end in Bad Homburg where you can change to the S-Bahn. By road it is easily reached using the B456.
For more information, visit the Wehrheim homepage or call direct on +49 6081 5168.

Some other posts on this topic that you might like to read:

Haus von Noorden (Bad Homburg)

Graham — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:39:12 +0000

If you’re flat hunting in Germany or just here on a short visit, then you’ll need somewhere to stay.

One of the hotels that I stayed in was “Haus von Noorden” in the Dornholzhausen part of Bad Homburg. It’s worth considering, even if you want to be in Frankfurt as it’s only about 20km away and accessible by S-Bahn and bus – and probably a lot cheaper than staying in Frankfurt itself.

For more details, visit Hotels Bad Homburg or call them direct on +49 6172 32895.