A Day Trip to Frankfurt

When people think about Frankfurt, they rarely think about tourism. The financial hub of Germany is a work destination for many and is often thought of as a city with offices, commercial complexes, etc. But there are many lovely places in Frankfurt that tourists can visit—some historical and some modern.

Since I live in Darmstadt, a small city about 35 km south of Frankfurt, I have had many opportunities to visit Frankfurt. Today’s post is about spending a day in Frankfurt—the interesting places to visit and the great experiences you can have in this city.

Before I get to the details about places to visit and the best experiences, let me start with transportation, i.e. how to reach Frankfurt and travel within the city.

Reaching Frankfurt

Frankfurt can be reached by air, road or train. I have discussed all the options below:

By Air

Frankfurt is an important city with an international Airport, Frankfurt Flughafen, 10 km southwest of the city centre.

You can check various flight options to Frankfurt here.

If you have arrived in Frankfurt by flight and want to go towards the city centre, you can do so in many ways:

Using Public Transport: Look for the signs for Regional Bahnhof. Regional Bahnhof means regional train station. From there, you can take a train to the city centre. Your destination station depends on where you want to go in the city. For the best connectivity to all the local places, you can also reach the central station, Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof. From there, you can take a Strassenbahn (tram), S-Bahn (Suburban Train) OR U-Bahn (metro) to reach different places.

By rental car or taxi: You can book a rental car. We have used rental cars from SIXT on several occasions and found their service-great cars to be top-notch. You can book a cab if you don’t want to drive yourself. I have used Freenow and have always found it reliable. However, taxi costs are much higher than public transport costs. Download the FreeNow app to find taxis near you.

By shuttle bus: There is a bus called der Airliner that goes to Darmstadt. This is a very convenient option for travelling between Darmstadt and Frankfurt. You can see its timetable here.

By Train

Frankfurt can be reached by train from any city in Germany or elsewhere in Europe. Trains can be booked using Deutsche Bahn’s official website. Alternatively, you can compare various train options from your location to Frankfurt here.

By Road

Frankfurt is well connected by road too. Taking the Autobahn is the fastest way to reach Frankfurt from any other location by road.

Travelling within Frankfurt

Frankfurt is a big city and the places that you wish to visit could be located far from each other. Here are the various options you can use for travelling within the city:

Public Transport:

To travel within the city of Frankfurt using public transport, you can get tickets from the RMV kiosks at the stops and stations OR online. It is best to download the RMV Go App, which will help you find the connectivity between different locations. The link below gives you all the information about buying tickets for local transport: https://www.rmv.de/c/en/tickets

If you wish to combine visits ( like museum visits, river cruises, etc.) with public transport, you can buy a Frankfurt City Pass. This pass allows you to use public transport and access various activities, museum entry tickets, etc., at discounted prices. Check it out using this link.

If you want to visit a couple of nearby areas (other than Frankfurt), you can buy the RheinMainCard. This card allows unlimited travel in the RMV Area and discounts on many attractions, museum entries, etc.

By Car:

You can use your car to travel within the city or rent a car and explore the city in comfort. I find the services at SIXT quite good. The cars are of good quality, and the paperwork is hassle-free. Alternatively, you can also check ENTERPRISE, which also has good reviews.

Using Taxi:

I have used Freenow and find it reliable. However, taxi costs are much higher than public transport costs. Download the FreeNow app to find taxis near you.

In addition to the above options, e-bikes and e-scooters are also available in Frankfurt.

Accommodation in Frankfurt:

Since Frankfurt is very well connected, you can book accommodation based on your budget and not worry too much about transportation. However, if you go too far and plan to use public transport, be aware that the frequency may not be that high, which could lead to waiting and wasting your time. So, try to stay near the places you want to visit.

You can book accommodation using Booking.com

If accommodation in Frankfurt is expensive, you can look for accommodation in nearby areas such as Darmstadt, Langen, Neu Isenburg, Waldorf etc. These are towns and cities well connected with Frankfurt and may have cheaper accommodation.

Places to visit in Frankfurt

Römerberg

The most important landmark in Frankfurt is Römerberg. Characterized by a medieval building called the Römer ( now the town hall, called Rathaus in German), historical monuments and plenty of cafes, restaurants and souvenir shops, Römerberg is always bustling with activity. The fountain right in the middle and plenty of places of interest (including churches and museums) in the vicinity make Römerberg one of the most visited places in Frankfurt.

While in Römerberg, don’t miss checking out local shops and stopping by a cafe to enjoy the sites and sounds. Check out the memorial for Book Burning ( that happened during the Nazi era), The Fountain of Justice (Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen in German)-which played an important role at emperor coronations when a large public festival was held on the Römerberg. The fountain was then filled with wine instead of water, and the people of Frankfurt could enjoy the drink. Here, I would recommend you take a 2-hour walking tour with a local to understand the places better.
Nikolaikirche

On the Römerberg, you will find St. Nikolas Church (Nikolaikirche). This 12th-century Protestant church is an important landmark and must not be missed. It is open to the public and is a nice, quiet place amidst the noisy city centre.
Historischesmuseum (History Museum)

The Historical Museum Frankfurt is the city’s oldest museum that collects, researches, preserves, and exhibits Frankfurt’s cultural heritage. They also have a Jungemuseum focused on children, youth and families. Plenty of workshops and events are organized, keeping this target group in focus. You can find more details on their official website: https://junges-museum-frankfurt.de/. You can buy the tickets for your visit here. Note that if you have a city card, entry to this museum is discounted by 50%, and you don’t have to pay the full amount for this visit.
River Cruise on the Main

A short walk from Römerberg brings you to Primus Linie’s ticketing station. They organize river cruises on the Main River during the summer months. You can choose the cruise based on the duration ( 50 minutes or 100 minutes. Enjoy the lovely sights of Frankfurt while you comfortably sit on one of the chairs on the terrace or the inside and enjoy a beverage and snacks. They also have an audio guide that informs the visitors about the various landmarks that you cross while on the cruise. You can book your tickets here to avoid long queues and waiting times.
Stroll/bike along the Main

The next, not-to-miss experience is a walk along the Main River. Along both the banks, there are walking and cycling paths. There are plenty of green spaces too. As you walk, you will likely witness a Food festival, a flea market or other events, as this place is the hub of many public activities in Frankfurt. Various bridges connect the two banks -some are pedestrian-only bridges, and others are for both cards and pedestrians. Stand on the bridge to witness boat races, river cruises, the crowd’s hustle and bustle, and the beauty of the Main River.
Visit the Euro Tower

The Euro Tower is a 40-storey, 148-metre skyscraper in a small park near the tram station. Built in the 1970s, this structure is made of steel-reinforced concrete, aluminium, and glass and is a prominent landmark in Frankfurt. You can visit the tower, spend time at the park, and enjoy a meal at any of the many restaurants in the vicinity.
Visit Palmengarten

Palmengarten is a lovely garden in Frankfurt. Although it looks beautiful all through the year, its charm gets enhanced multifold in the spring season. During spring, the Rhododendrons bloom and fill the garden with their lovely colours. Palmengarten also has greenhouses for tropical plants, so, despite being in Germany, you can see rare species of cacti, palms and other succulent plants. Palmengarten also had an indoor butterfly park and a small lake to enjoy boating. Find more details about Palmengarten on their website: https://www.palmengarten.de/de/index.html. Note that if you have the Frankfurt city card, the entry fee to Palmengarten is reduced by 50%.

Although there are many more places to visit in Frankfurt, it is not possible to cover all of them in a single day. Therefore, I have limited this article to some of the city’s must-see attractions.

Now, let me take you through how you can plan your day trip to Frankfurt.

Planning your day trip to Frankfurt:

Start by visiting Palmengarten. If you love spending time with nature, you can easily spend 2-3 hours there.
After visiting Palmengarten, visit the Euro Tower and head towards Römerberg. Have lunch at Römerberg.
Post lunch, explore the important landmarks in and around Römerberg, such as Nikolaikirche, Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen, etc.
Head to the History Museum and spend your afternoon at the museum.
By evening, head towards the Main river. Enjoy a river cruise and/or a walk on the banks of the Main River and enjoy the sunset view on the Main.
With this, you can call it a day.

If you have more time in Frankfurt and are travelling with kids, I would recommend two more places which I have visited with my kids. My children enjoyed both these places. Hence I recommend you visit these when in Frankfurt:

Experiminta:

Experiminta is a science center in Frankfurt. This place has more than 130 STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) related activities and stations, through which kids can learn so much through fun and play. STEM is called MINT in German, which shows in the place’s name. We have visited this place a few times, and my children have also attended summer workshops here and have always found it engaging and interesting. So, if you have time and your kids are interested, make a visit to Experiminta. You can book your tickets here.
Trickfilmland:

Trickfilmland is an animation studio in Frankfurt. Here, you can attend a backstage experience tour and see how various technologies are used in creating animations. If you live in Frankfurt, you can even enrol your child in a summer workshop to try their hands at animation. We have attended a 1/5 hour tour in Trickfilmland, and we found it quite interesting. You can find out more about this place here.
Fraport Visitor Center

Located in Terminal 1 of Frankfurt airport, Fraport has more than 30 different interactive exhibitions through which, you can learn about what goes on behind the scenes of an airport. These exhibits present intriguing insights into the behind-the-scenes world of the Frankfurt airport and aviation. You can buy your tickets here.

For more holiday ideas in and around Germany, click here.

My article about 12 day trips from Frankfurt may also interest you.

Check out many more pictures of Frankfurt here.

A Day Trip to Frankfurt

A Day Trip to Frankfurt