Tour of Frankfurt, Germany

Frankfurt was the largest old Gothic town of Central Europe before being extensivley dammaged during WWII. Between October 1943 and March 1944, the city was bombarded six times by the Allied Forces.

Over one thousand buildings of the old town, most of them being half-timbered houses, were destroyed.

The view left shows the mix of modern buildings with the pre-war buildings that remain.

Germany Map . Frankfurt Map.

The Main Square and City Hall, Romerberg/Romer, is situated in the old town of Frankfurt. This is an irregular shaped square with the Justice Fountain in the center, normally the favourite meeting place for locals and tourist.

Reconstruction of the square, which suffered severe destruction during the Second World War, was completed in 1986. The square has many open-fronted shops, that were once a common feature of the old town.

The square is situated about 1 mile east of the Main Railway Station.

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Frankfurt Cathedral is situated just off the northeast corner of the Main Square.

This is the main church of Frankfurt, constructed in the 14th and 15th centuries, on the foundation of an earlier church from the Merovingian time.

From 1356 onwards, kings of the Holy Roman Empire were elected in this Catholic church, and from 1562 to 1792, emperors were crowned here.

The cathedral suffered severe bomb damage during WW II, the interior was burned out completely. The cathedral was reconstructed in the 1950s, the height of the spire is 95 m.

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Boat Tours depart from about 200 yards south of the Main Square.

Traveling along the impressive skyline on an excursion boat, or going on a boat cruise to interesting towns and cities on the Rivers Main and the Rhine, offers numerous options for little ‘cruises’ and big tours.

Only a few steps away from the Romer, directly on the Main quay at the Eiserner Steg, there is the main landing stage and ticket kiosk of the Primus Line. You can set off on various excursions from this and other landing stages on the bank.

Bus / Boat Tours.

The Stadel Museum is situated about 0.7 miles southwest of the Main Square.

In 1815, the merchant and banker Johann Friedrich Stadel of Frankfurt, set forth in his will that his “sizeable collection of paintings, engravings and art objects be dedicated, along with as much of his fortune as remains at the time, to the foundation of a special, autonomous art institute bearing his name to provide the best for this town and its citizens”, thus laying the cornerstone for one of Germany’s oldest art museums, the Stadelsches Kunstinstitut.

Use the Google Map then change to Walking for precise directions.

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The Bull and Bear are situated in front of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange about 0.5 miles north of the Main Square.

The Bull and Bear represent the terms bull market and bear market, that describe upward and downward movements respectively.

The expressions "bullish" and "bearish" can also mean optimistic and pessimistic respectively ("bullish on technology stocks," or "bearish on gold", etc).

Use the Google Map then change to Walking for precise directions.

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The Old Opera House built in 1880, is situated about 1 mile northwest of the Main Square.

The Opera was extensively damaged During World War II. It took forty years for reconstruction to begin with the Opera reopening in 1981.

The building now serves as a congress and concert hall. The exterior of the Opera House is in the style of the Italian High Renaissance. Its main hall seats 2,500 people.

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The Deutsche Bank Twin Towers are situated about 1 mile northwest of the Main Square, close to the Old Opera House.

This is most prominent modern building in Frankfurt, the headquarters of Deutsche Bank, at the banking district.

It is one of the best known buildings in Germany because of its high media coverage.

The towers were originally planned as a hotel for the American Hyatt Hotel Group.

The largest man-shaped monolith of the world, created by the Swiss sculptor Max Bill, is located in front of the entrance.

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The Senckenberg Museum is situated about 1.7 miles northwest of the Main Square.

This is the largest museum of natural history in Germany. It is particularly popular with children, who enjoy the extensive collection of dinosaur skeletons: Senckenberg boasts the largest exhibition of large dinosaurs in Europe.

One particular treasure is a dinosaur fossil with unique, preserved scaled skin. The museum contains the world's largest and most diverse collection of stuffed birds with about 2000 specimens. In 2004, almost 400,000 people visited the museum.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a popular Full Day Coach Tour, about 114 miles southeast of Frankfurt.

The tour travels through the picturesque Spessart mountains. On the banks of the river Main you'll pass Wuerzburg before traveling along the Romantic Road.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber, is referred to as Germany's well-preserved 'Jewel of the Middle Ages' with its ramparts, city gates, town hall and Jakobskirche (church) and altar by the famous wood-carver Tilman Riemenschneider.

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For more information on Frankfurt, visit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurt.