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Frankfurt, Germany Attractions

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Frankfurt Attractions

When bombs rained down on Frankfurt in 1944, nearly all the old half-timbered buildings were leveled. In what seemed like record time, residents of Frankfurt rebuilt their city into a fine mélange of modern and traditional architecture and faithfully restored some of their most prized old buildings as well.
Although Frankfurt doesn't have the monuments or museums to equal Munich or Berlin, its museums and exhibition halls still lure some 2 million visitors annually. As the cultural director of the city of Frankfurt, Dr. Hans Bernhard Nordhoff, told us, "We offer you everything from Goethe to Andy Warhol, from Tyrannosaurus Rex to the female ideal of Botticelli."

Many of the grandest museums lie along the Main on the south bank -- often called "Museum Embankment," in itself a dazzling array of contemporary architecture even before you go inside to look at the exhibits.

Parks
Frankfurt has a lot of parks. Locals like to point out that while the city has no Central Park as New York does, it is itself a central park. A botanic city ring has replaced the enclosing city walls of old Frankfurt. Along the Main is a park landscape where you'll see bankers taking their lunch break beneath statues of heroes from the past.

The Palmengarten (tel. 069/21233939), is a park and a botanical garden. During the last decade, the gardens have been renewed and the conservatories and historic greenhouses completely reconstructed. You can admire a perennial garden, an expanded rock garden, and a beautiful rose garden. A huge gallery that serves as an exhibition hall for flower shows and other botanical exhibitions surrounds the 1869 palm house. In recent years, new conservatories have been added: The Tropicarium is a complex for tropical vegetation; the Sub-Antarctic House displays plants from southern Chile, Argentina, and New Zealand; and the Entrance Conservatory houses insectivorous plants and bromeliads. Collections of orchids, palms, succulents, water lilies, and many others are also on display.

The botanical garden is open daily March to October 9am to 6pm, February 9am to 5pm, and November to January 9am to 4pm. In the park area, there's a small lake where people can row boats. In summer, concerts are given in the band shell; evening events include open-air dancing, jazz, and fountain illumination. There are some facilities for food.

Bethmann Park, with its Chinese gardens, is another interesting park. It lies immediately to the northeast of Stadmitte, and is reached by bus no. 30 or tram no. 12.

Römerberg
The Altstadt (U-Bahn/S-Bahn: Hauptwache) centers on three Gothic buildings with stepped gables, known collectively as the Römer, Römerberg (tel. 069/21234814). These houses were originally built between 1288 and 1305 and bought by the city a century later for use as the Rathaus. The second floor of the center house is the Imperial Hall (Kaisersaal), lined with the romanticized 19th-century portraits of 52 emperors; 13 of them celebrated their coronation banquets here. You can visit this hall daily 10am to 1pm and 2 to 5pm.

The elaborate facade of the Römer, with its ornate balcony and statues of four emperors, overlooks Römerplatz (Römerberg Square). On festive occasions in days gone by, the square was the scene of oxen roasts that featured flowing wine. Today, unfortunately, the Fountain of Justitia pours forth only water, but oxen are still roasted on special occasions.

Dom
The dominant feature of the Altstadt is the 15th-century, red-sandstone tower of the Dom St. Bartholomäus in whose chapels the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire were elected and crowned for nearly 300 years. The church was constructed between the 13th and 15th centuries on the site of a Carolingian building. It is most noted for its west tower or Westturm, which is greatly ornamented and crowned by a polygonal gable. It's topped by both a lantern and a dome. Surprisingly, the cathedral was not completed until 1877, but it was based on plans created by the Dom's original architect, Madern Gerthener. Destroyed by Allied bombs in 1944, it was rebuilt in 1953. One of its chief treasures is its choir stalls, which represent brilliant Upper Rhine craftsmanship, dating from around the mid-14th century. In the north chancel look for Maria Schlafaltar (Altar of Mary Sleeping), dating from 1434. It is the only altar remaining from the church's original interior. Open daily at no charge from 9am to noon and 2 to 6pm.

In the cloister is the Dom Museum (tel. 069/29703236) which, among other things, exhibits robes of the imperial electors. These robes, which are still quite sumptuous, were worn at coronation ceremonies. The oldest vestments date from the 1400s. Walk west of the cathedral to the Historischer Garten, or archaeological garden, with ruins of both Roman and Carolingian fortifications. Hours are Tuesday to Friday 10am to 5pm and Saturday and Sunday 11am to 5pm.

Frankfurt Activities

Walking Tours
Most of the heart of Frankfurt can be covered on foot. Nearly all the main sights lie within the boundaries of the old town walls, which today form a stretch of narrow parkland, almost a perfect half-moon around the Altstadt or old city. Once one of the great old towns of Europe, the Altstadt was blasted in two horrendous air raids in 1944. Some of its buildings have been sympathetically reconstructed in the old style.

A good place to start exploring Frankfurt is at the Römerberg, or historical core of the city. This is actually the site where Charlemagne erected his fort. In medieval times, the Römerberg was the marketplace of Frankfurt.

The most important building in the Stadmitte is the red-sandstone church of St. Bartholomäus, often called "the Dom" although it isn't a cathedral. It was the venue for the coronation of the Holy Roman Emperors even though it didn't have cathedral status.
Directly to the east of Römerplatz stands the glaring modern building, Kultur-Schirn, a cultural center where various exhibitions are held. It is a controversial postmodern structure that meets with ridicule among Frankfurters, who like their architecture traditional.

The Goethe-Haus and Goethe-Museum are only a short walk north of the center in the northern Altstadt. To the north of this is Zeil, the Fifth Avenue of Germany and one of Europe's greatest shopping streets.

Another landmark of the Stadmitte is Hauptwache, an 18th-century baroque building that is a virtual Times Square of Frankfurt, as it lies at the junction of both the U-Bahn and the S-Bahn lines. Northwest of the Hauptwache is the Börse, the stock exchange of Frankfurt.

The Hauptbahnhof, at the western edge of the center of town, opens onto a large street called Am Hauptbahnhof. As you walk out of the station, Düsseldorferstrasse will be on your left and Baselerstrasse on your right, heading south toward the Main River. You have a choice of three streets heading east to the center of the Altstadt (Old Town): Taunusstrasse, Kaiserstrasse, and Münchner Strasse. Münchner Strasse leads directly into Theaterplatz, with its opera house. Taunusstrasse goes to three of the major Altstadt squares in the southern part of the city: Goetheplatz, Rathenauplatz, and (most important) the Hauptwache, with its rail connections. In this section of Frankfurt, along Kaiserstrasse, some of the best shops are found.

The Main River flows slightly south of the Altstadt. Many bridges, including the Alte Brücke and the Obermainbrücke, cross this important waterway. On the south bank of the Main is a popular district, Alt-Sachsenhausen, center of the apple-wine taverns (more about them later). For other major attractions, you'll have to branch out, heading east to the Frankfurt Zoo or northwest to the Palmengarten (both easily reached by public transportation).
Street Maps - Arm yourself with a detailed street map, not the general overview handed out by the tourist office. Maps are sold at most bookstores and news kiosks.