Scared to drive in Frankfurt....

The Messe is in the city. Just a few minutes away with public transportation. You aren't outside of the city at all. Use the local RMV transportation website to find the routes and times. http://www.rmv.de/en/ If you use the sSearch function, here on the Helpline on Frankfurt, dozens of my posts will come up listing all of the many things there are to see and do in this city. If you tell me the dates, I can even tell you what fests are going on or any other special events.

"I've heard Frankfurt is hard to navigate by auto." You heard correctly, but getting to your hotel probably isn't difficult. It's right off of the A5. BTW, the main difficulty with driving in Frankfurt is that if you have to turn around, there's virtually nowhere to turn left to make a U turn. You have to take a right and circle around the block.

I don't know specifics of Frankfurt but if you're really that scared then I would suggest to just take a shuttle/cab to the hotel and rent a car the next day from a non-airport location. You'll save a bit on your auto rental by not renting from an airport location. Alternately - use the train. No parking, no petrol, no tolls, no insurance, no accident, etc.

Just to clarify, we already have arranged for a rental car from the airport. Otherwise, we'd need to get it from somewhere on a Sunday, which I was told would be difficult. I'm not so worried about driving to the hotel from the airport, because they have free parking. It's the 'beyond' that I'm worried about....

"It's the 'beyond' that I'm worried about..." If all you're doing is driving to your hotel then driving to Rothenburg (over-rated, sorry couldn't help it) the next day, don't sweat it. Like I said, your hotel is right by A5. To get to Rothenburg, get back on A5 towards Basel, then A3 towards Würzburg, then A7 towards Füssen.

We'd like to venture out into Frankfurt for a few hours if there's something to see nearby, since we'll be arriving at the hotel about noon and will be looking for some time to kill. Not keen on trying to find parking in a big, unfamiliar city. Any ideas of what to do or where to eat if you only had a few hours? Is driving via cab an easy option or do hotels have buses/vans that take people into the city?

Lol....I'm so glad you posted this because when I went to the site, it shows that rail and bus service will be disrupted in Frankfurt on the day of my arrival because of Blockupy Frankfurt. Really?!?

Why not stay in Mainz or in Wiesbaden, they are almost as close to the airport as Frankfurt? Or choose one of the many lovely little towns that are quite near Frankfurt. Take a look at Kronberg or Bad Homburg. I am one of those people that think it is dangerous to drive much at all after a Trans-Atlantic flight, especially in a foreign country to boot, so please do not continue your longish drive to Rothenburg after you land. When they have done driving tests with people who are tired, they are almost as dangerous on the road as drunks.

I don't disagree with Jo, it's not a good idea to drive when you're exhausted - a lot like drunk driving. The key is to get at least a few solid hours of sleep on the flight so you can function. Driving in Germany is as easy as it gets. The roads are good, the signage logical - in many ways it's the closest thing to driving in the states you are likely to see, including rush hour traffic around the bigger cities.

Angela, Frankfurt is not hard to navigate! GPS and you are there ASAP! Find out if the hotel has parking and you can google map the area and it will show you parking also. I agree that Rothenberg is a sweet little town. But I think resting in Franfurt for a night is a good idea. Not fun or safe to be tired and grumpy on the Autobahn and navigating to an unknown destination. Besides Franfurt has a great downtown area to walk around and eat a little dinner. Enjoy your trip! Christina