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8 hour Layover at Frankfurt International Airport

My Lufthansa flight has an 8 hour layover at Frankfurt, for a SEA-FRA and FRA-BLL connection. I do not want to leave Terminal 1 and would like any ideas on what to do inside the airport. Wondering if there is any sort of airport tour and are there lounges where one can purchase a day pass? Any thoughts you'd like to share will be much appreciated.

Posted by
1986 posts

There used to be cinemas on one of the lower floors. However for 8 hours i would take the train to Frankfurt (one or a few stations on) and spend a couple of hours in the Old Town and adjacent very large pedestrian mall/shopping area. Also the Frankfurt Cathedral? (dom?) is right in that neighbourhood. Have lunch iin the Ratskeller- always a safe and interesting place to eat. Or if you prefer there is a large McDonalds

Posted by
6898 posts

We were in the domestic terminal at Frankfurt for 4 hours after transitioning from the international terminal. All that was there was some duty-free areas and cigarette machines. There were smoking areas. Not even a soda or food machine. If you leave the area, you will have to show your ticket and passport to re-enter. My wife went for a walk without her passport and mistakenly left the area. They wouldn't let her back in. They did sent a security person to locate me so that I could give them her passport and ticket. Fun stuff.

Posted by
8934 posts

Considering the city is only an 11 min. train ride away, why in the world would you sit in an airport for 8 hours? Walking around outside will help you with your jetlag and Frankfurt has much more to offer than what many people think. If you really do want to stay in the airport though, pony up some cash to stay in one of the lounges, as they offer showers, food, and resting spots. Other than that, Terminal 1 has shopping galore, as well as food, but the food is pricey. It makes more sense to buy a ticket for the train and go into Frankfurt for a delicious German meal than eat at the airport.

Posted by
2297 posts

Unless you have a citizenship that would make leaving the transit area difficult without an additional visa I would highly recommend to leave the airport and take the train into the city. It is a very short an easy ride by train and getting out there into the natural sun light will help you tremendously to deal with jetlag. Not to mention that Frankfurt has some great sites to offer that are fun to explore.

Posted by
11 posts

Thank you all for good suggestions. Despite the fact that Frankfurt city is so close, via trains I love to ride, I'd rather not leave FRA or Terminal 1. I will be travelling alone at this point, with everything in my carry-on which I will keep next to me until I arrive in Denmark. (This is the first part of a trip to the Arabian Peninsula, where I can't easily replace the items in my carry-on.)