I am planning a trip this fall to Germany, flying into Frankfurt Airport and picking up rental car. Since this is my first time driving in Germany, I'm trying to map out my route from the airport to destination. Can anyone describe the process out of Airport once you've picked up rental car (e.g., street name you would turn onto after exiting rental car pick-up)? Thank you!
Posted by
23 posts
Hello,
I am flying into Frankfurt this April and picking up a rental vehicle there as well. My destination is due south of Frankfurt towards Heidelberg but I will be relying on road signs and GPS (which I hope to rent) to get me there.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
Where are you going? Frankfurt Int'l sits near the junction of two major Autobahn routes, A5 and A3. The easiest way to navigate out of the airport is to know which cities lie in your direction of travel. For example, A3 runs towards Köln and Düsseldorf in one direction, and Aschaffenburg, Würzburg and Nürnberg in the other (roughtly NW to SE). Likewise, A5 runs towards Kassel in the north, and to Karlsruhe, Heidelberg and Basel in the south. Keep your eyes open, follow the signs and you won't go wrong.
But I hope you aren't planning on driving a long distance immediately after an overseas flight. Jet-lagged travelers getting into accidents on these heavily traveled Autobahn routes are a significant hazard. I used to live a little to the south of Frankfurt, and one morning on my commute, I just missed what I later learned was a fatal accident caused by just such a traveler. Please take this into consideration if you haven't already.
Note to the poster above going to Heidelberg... to avoid an infamous speed trap going in to Heidelberg, watch the road signs very closely (don't let the GPS distract you). You'll turn off of A5 onto A656. Note very carefully for the sign that indicates the Autobahn has ended (the road will look the same, only the sign will indicate the change) and the Ortschild for Heidelberg. The latter indicates that urban speed limits (50 km/hr) now apply. If you don't slow down, the radar camera will send you a nice souvenir photo and invoice in the mail.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
Signposting will be to an Autobahn, and a city. Depends where you are going. Signs will says something like "A5 Karlsruhe", or "A3 Köln".
Posted by
Augsburg, Bavaria
2335 posts
You may want to download the Map "getting to / from Frankfurt Airport" here:
https://www.frankfurt-airport.com/content/airport-site/en/infopool/download-center.html
Posted by
Atlanta
4859 posts
Are you sure you want to drive the same day you arrive? Jet lag, lack of sleep, and not being familiar with the local road system around Frankfurt can all be a problem. There are some people that are not bothered by any of those things. Others think they are ok but are really driving somewhat impaired. Still others are complete zombies and should never drive the same day. Depending on your first destination, you might want to take a train there and then rent a car. Don't mean to rain on your parade, just something to think about.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thank you! That is good advice.
Posted by
Missouri City
252 posts
We use to fly into Frankfurt Airport often and to save on the airport tax, we would take a taxi to Kelsterback, which is only a few miles away from the airport, to pick up our rental car. There are two rental companies that I know of in Kelsterback; one is Europcar and the other is Avis which is the one we used. They have shorter opening hours than the airport location but if it works for your arrival, then you will save money. You can then return the car to Frankfurt Airport without penalty.