Frankfurt

Frankfurt is ripe with culture, restaurants, history, and is the center of banking and business in Europe. It’s a modern city with some great dining it. Eat dinner at one of their famous cider houses, experience the flavor of Frankfurt’s local dishes, visit a beer garden, spend the afternoon at one of the free parks, or visit a museum. While it lacks the charm of Munich, Cologne, or Berlin, the city is worth more than just being used a stopover point for connecting flights.

Typical Costs

• Hostel Prices: Most hostels in the city cost around $25 USD for a dorm bed and $65 for a private room.
• Budget Hotel Prices: The cheapest hotels will start at $50 USD a night for a double room with a private bath.
• Average Cost of Food: Frankfurt is known for its food and eating out in their cider houses will set you back about $13 USD for food and $4 for a beer. As long as you don’t go to high end restaurants, you can eat for under $20 per meal in this town. McDonalds and other fast food places cost around $8 USD. You can also get hotdogs and sausages for $3-4 from outside street vendors. A week’s worth of groceries will cost between $50 – 60.
• Transportation: A one day ticket on the U-Bahn will cost $7 USD. A Frankfurt Card, which costs $12, gives you access the airport train as well as the entire public transportation system.

Top Things to Do

• Visit the Dom – Frankfurt’s main attraction, the Dom (main cathedral) is dates back to the 14th century and crowned the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. It’s a place decorated for Emperors with stunning stone and glasswork. Admission is free.
• Eat and drink in Sachsenhausen – South of the main river, Sachsenhausen has many of the best cider bars and pubs in the city. Afterwards visiting some of these pubs, take a stroll on the river and enjoy the view.
• The Eiserner Steg – Otherwise known as the Iron Bridge, this bridge provides great views of the city and is on the way to Sachsenhausen.
• Visit the Städel-Museum – The Stadel Museum displays old and new pieces of art. It has over 10,000 pieces of art with a heavy focus on Germany and Renaissance art. It costs $8 USD to get in.
• Visit the Museum Judengasse – Germany has troubled past when it comes to its Jewish population.This museums teaches you about the Jews of the area and has a Holocaust Memorial Wall that lists the murdered Frankfurt Jewish citizens.
• Spend the day at the Palmengarten – This is Frankfurt’s Botanical Gardens and like most botanical gardens you’ll find a wide array of plants from around the world. Admission is $7 USD and there are many paths, gardens, flowers, and birds to see here. I think it’s one of the best things to do in the city.
• Walk around the Bornheim – Mostly a residential area, this area has many medieval style houses that survived the war. It’s Frankfurt’s historic area and is your only chance to see what the city looked like before World War II.
• The Römerberg – This is the central, old area features various buildings and a church from the 14th and 15th century (in reality, the buildings were mostly destroyed during World War II but completely rebuilt afterwards). The Römer itself is the town hall of Frankfurt. Cafés and shops can be found at the square itself and in the vicinity. Most of the area was rebuilt after the war.
• The City Forest – Located in the south of Frankfurt and about 48 square kilometres, it is regarded as the largest inner-city forest in Germany. The six playgrounds and nine ponds make the forest a popular places for both locals and tourists looking to relax and explore nature.
• Frankfurt Book Fair – Held in the middle of October, every year since the printing press was designed, this fair is considered the largest event of its kind within the publishing industry. It is a week long, but is only open to the public during the last 2 days. A day ticket is $16 USD.
• EXPLORA Science Center – Housed inside an old World War 2 bunker, this museum is filled with interactive exhibits and neat features. There are a range of puzzles, optical illusions, and mathematical games to check out. They even have a charge station for eBikes and electric cars. Science is cool!
• Visit the zoo – The Frankfurt zoo is somewhat of a typical inter-city zoo. They have many of the traditional, expected attractions you would hope to see. The highlight here, however, is the Grzmek-house, the night attraction where you wander around at night and see night animals.
• Visit Offenbach – Just a short bike ride out of Frankfurt, Offenbach is a smaller neighboring city. Despite its’ size, there are tons of little shops, a Flea market, a Farmer’s market, an old baroque castle, and various historical sights here. It is cheaper than Frankfurt and fun to spend a few days exploring.
• Messe Frankfurt – As one of the world’s largest exhibition centers, it is often host to a constant array of events held in the city. Just two short stops away from the Central Railway Station, it is easy to find and will give you something to do besides the normal tourist sightseeing activities.

Budget Tips

• Buy a U-Bahn card - Buying a week pass can save you about $13 USD.
• Purchase a Museumsufer ticket – For those of you that love checking out museums, this two-day pass will save you tons of money. At a mere $16 USD, this card guarantees you access to 29 museums in and around Frankfurt. That also includes any special exhibitions.

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