Don't Disrespect Frankfurt - Trip Report June 2018

Airfare: I intended to use Aeroplan points for this trip, as I have plenty of points I need to use. I wanted two things in a reward flight:

• long leg first. I dislike doing a shorter hop in North America and then on to Europe, as I get no sleep, and there are always more flight options to my final destination from within Europe.

• business class seats. I did a lot of flying for work last year, and this was to be my payoff for all those hard miles in coach.

I was willing to live with these common limitations on points usage:

• higher co-pay fees on Air Canada. These are notorious, and FlyerTalk has many threads on how to avoid them. From Calgary, the only workable strategy is to fly to the U.S. and take United instead, which has far lower co-pay fees. This conflicted with my key objective above. I checked out many options but decided to stick with an AC nonstop from Calgary to Europe. That limited my possible destinations to Frankfurt or London.

• early commit date. To get a nonstop flight on points, you need to commit pretty much the earliest date possible, in my case 355 days in advance of the flight. You can always get a reward flight with less notice, but it will typically take 24-36 hours and multiple layovers instead of the desirable nonstop flight.

• partial itinerary. I was flying multi-city, from Calgary to Frankfurt to Manchester to Dublin to Calgary. This is theoretically possible on Aeroplan, but I couldn’t ever find the connection dates I needed. So, I dropped out the middle flights and only bought two one-way reward flights: Calgary-Frankfurt and Dublin-Calgary. I paid for the other two flights in cash, including a RyanAir segment which was just fine.

Summary: I valued my itinerary dates, routings and seats over minimizing points and fees. I suggest that you figure out what you value most highly, and book accordingly. Your preferences will likely be different than mine. I also suggest that you really study up on your loyalty program's redemption rules and how to use their website effectively in advance of your need-to-buy timeframe. You'll need to move fast when the time comes to get what you want.

Hotel: I wanted a small family-run hotel, ideally with traditional half-timbered architecture. Not because large chain hotels are inherently evil, but because I wanted to scrub the rust off my German language skills and to get a feel for a neighbourhood outside the city centre. I care a lot about where I stay, because for me it’s a key driver to the pleasure I feel on a vacation, as well as a comfortable safe haven after a day’s activities. I read a lot of older posts and asked my own question on this forum, as well as doing a thorough web search. Ms. Jo gave me some great suggestions, but in the end I went with Hotel Schmärrnche, which no-one on the forum had ever mentioned. I really enjoyed it, due to the pretty half-timbered small buildings, the shaded and beflowered courtyard, the friendly proprietors and the great location. See my review here for more details.

Summary: I really enjoy the research to find just the right place. I value finding a pretty, comfortable, moderately-priced lodging in the right location. I try to claim this search for myself on all trips, as I’m typically less happy if others have chosen the lodging. You may prefer to leave this choice with your traveling partners, or you may use hotel points or hostels to keep the costs down. No wrong choices here except waiting too long; the early bird gets the worm, you know. This hunt is just one of my travel obsessions.

Ground Transportation: I’m familiar with German transportation efficiency, and it’s discussed often on this forum. I had no intention of taking a cab anywhere. I purchased three day passes for unlimited transportation: a 1-day Frankfurt Card for my arrival day, a 2-day RheinMain Card for two planned day trips outside metro Frankfurt, and a 2-day Frankfurt Card for my last two days inside the city. The 2-day cards must be used on consecutive days, so the two out of town trips had to be back to back, and the same with the Frankfurt Card.

The last morning, I had no active pass as I only needed a one-way ticket to the airport. I bought it at the U-Bahn station on my way out. You can’t buy one-ways in advance, they have a short validity period.

I purchased all these cards in one order from here. I had them snail-mailed to me just for the sheer pleasure of holding the pretty cards in my hands before the trip and keeping them for a trip memory. You can print at home if you prefer. Note that the cards also include discounts at events and museums. I only used one discount, but I still more than repaid the card cost with the transit I used.

Transit payment is on the honour system; you are expected to buy the right card for each trip and present it to inspectors when asked. Inspectors are fairly frequent. My cards were checked several times and at widely varying times of the day, not just work hours.

Then I downloaded the RMV phone app and started playing with transportation schedules to decide on my two day trips. As I was coming back to Hotel Schmärrnche each evening, I set a one-way trip duration of 90 minutes or less. I didn’t want to spend my whole day on a train going back and forth. I didn’t object to transfers en route; you might prefer to avoid those, but since I speak German, it’s not as difficult for me.

Summary: planning for ground transportation in advance saved me money and ensured I always had the correct ticket on me. It’s as true for short city and regional commutes as it is for long-distance trains, though I did calculate point-to-point fares before buying the cards to make sure I saved money. Plus, I had more planning pleasure playing with local and regional train schedules and routes. It made me more comfortable when I arrived to know which S-Bahn and U-Bahn route numbers to look for. Travel-obsessed? Well, yes. Aren’t all of us here?

Day 1 (Arrival Day): Ahhhh, business class. I arrived at the airport early, with my two large cardboard boxes of white cowboy hats (see the hat story here). Got to skip the long line and go straight to priority check-in to drop off the hat boxes and my definitely not carry-on sized suitcase. Then a quick trip through security and into the lounge for some pre-trip snacks, wine and relaxation. Early boarding, and off we went. After a delicious dinner of seafood salad, duck leg and a brown sugar tart, I got a reasonable amount of lie-flat sleep. (I will admit to some ungracious thoughts in the middle of the night about the seat seam digging into my hip, then remembered I was lying flat with a duvet and pillow while those behind me were enduring the dreaded neck flop every time they dozed off.)

I arrived on time and cleared immigration with no delays. My suitcase and one box of hats showed up promptly. I waited for the other one for a half hour, nothing. Eventually, I was told it was waiting in baggage claim in another terminal. I wrangled all my stuff over there, looked around fruitlessly, hung around another half hour, nothing. Went back to the original terminal and the guy who had "helped" me. He finally sent someone with me back to the other terminal, who promptly found my box behind the Turkish Airlines counter. It had been opened, the rope handle removed, and roughly resealed. I assumed that had happened on its way into Europe, but a closer look showed the tape on the box was from the Canadian Transport Security Agency. It was opened before it ever left Calgary! I don't know what path took it to Turkish Airlines from Air Canada, but I reclaimed it and promptly dropped both hat boxes at the left luggage counter for the next 5 days. 3 hours after arrival, I was on my way into Frankfurt!

I found the correct S-Bahn easily, rode it to Konstablerwache, changed to the U4 and got off at Bornheim Seckbacher Landstrasse, the closest stop to my hotel. Easy-peasy. Even better, the station had a working elevator from the station to the street, so I didn't even have to haul the big bag up the stairs. With the help of Google Maps, I walked the 500 metres to the hotel without a wrong turn and checked in. A quick shower and I was ready to start exploring.

I had intended to take the Frankfurt City tour in German, but the week before, they had changed the daily start time from 2:30 pm to 11:00 am, the time my flight arrived. So I went with Plan B, a tour with Frankfurter Stadtevents. They offer all sorts of quirky, off the beaten path tours, in German only. However, the only one that afternoon was Jews in Frankfurt - a Trip through Time. I quickly signed up, prepaid and took off for the meeting spot. There were only 4 of us on the tour. Sascha, the tour guide, promptly wound up and started telling stories. And more stories. And...well, there is a millennium of Jewish history in Frankfurt, it turns out. It was very interesting but after 3.5 hours, he was still going strong. I left for my pre-arranged meet up with Ms. Jo.

Jo was still waiting at the coffee shop, thankfully. After quick introductions, we did a short wander through the city centre to Leib und Seele (Body and Soul), a nice little restaurant with traditional German food. After a lively discussion of the ingredients of Frankfurt Green Sauce, I of course had to order schnitzel with the sauce. We had a great conversation about her life in Frankfurt and my trip plans, then planned another meet up and she sent me off for some needed sleep.

A quick trip back to Bornheim, and I did just that. Comfortable bed, quiet location, and I was out like a light.

Day 2: I selected Marburg as one of my two day trips outside Frankfurt, after a good deal of enjoyable research on this forum and elsewhere. It was at the outer limit of how far I was willing to travel for a day trip (90 minutes), so I got up early to maximize my time there.

I left the hotel too early for breakfast, so I wandered through the Saturday morning Bornheim farmers' market. It was lively and had a great variety of stands - fruits, vegetables, cheeses, olives, sausages and meats, flowers and luscious bakeries. I overbought, naturally. My first German pretzel of the trip, a generous slab of poppy seed crumble cake, cheese, and a 500 gram basket of fresh, juicy, scented strawberries. I had to laugh at the portable wine tasting stand at one end of the market. Our farmers' markets don't have those! And yes, they had customers at 8:30 am.

I hustled to make my planned train and watched the scenery avidly the whole way. I'm always surprised by how fast the countryside starts outside major European cities. The cities are generally much more dense than we prefer, but they don't have endless suburbs. Upon arriving at the main square, I found a bench and enjoyed my breakfast while people watching. The city is full of half-timbered houses, some plain and some highly ornamented. I wandered up, down and around the very hilly town for hours. On my way up to the castle, I passed the town's main church and noticed a sign for a free choir and organ concert that evening.

After climbing to the very top and wandering through the castle and its gardens, I walked all the way down again to meet the walking tour (in German, English tours once/month) at the St. Elizabeth pilgrimage church. Elizabeth, a noble woman who worked herself to death nursing poor people, was made a saint in record time (2 years). Turns out this was in good part so the resident order of monks and the pope could make a good living off the pilgrims that came in large numbers. The tour guide gave a brilliant tour, describing Elizabeth's life, death and post-sainthood economic impact; how half-timbered architecture changed over the centuries; how Marburg was one of the first towns to implement landmark preservation for the buildings and pedestrianization of its streets; how the Reformation affected the town and how its university was the first Protestant university in the world; details of the medieval Jewish synagogue found not long ago during utility installations; and...well...she ran out of time too. We never made it up to the castle. Lots of details but very well presented. We ended up at the church just in time for the concert. Which, it turns out, was unfortunate.

Germany has a tradition of adult social clubs, whether it's for music, gardening, bowling, or just beer drinking. The men's choir was such a group. They had 14 singers, of whom sadly 4 were counter-tenors. Their shrill and off-key singing overwhelmed the lovely tenors and basses. I had eagerly chosen a seat at the front, so I didn't feel I could get up and walk out. They ended with a disastrous cover of Hallelujah, the Leonard Cohen song that's practically a Canadian anthem.

My lovely day ended with dinner at the Weinlädele, a gorgeous restaurant with a huge German wine selection (and no beer). It had fantastic food, wine and service but was eerily empty that Saturday night. A quick look out the window showed why. The neighbouring beer garden had set up a giant screen and everyone else was out watching the World Cup!

I walked back to the train station, past many other pubs with TV screens and patio heaters set up outside. Every one was packed. I caught a train back around 10 pm and arrived back in Frankfurt to a PACKED U-Bahn station full of friendly football fans. No worries at all about being out alone!

Day 3: day trip to Eltville and the Eberbach monastery. Walking tours of the monastery and its vineyard. Dinner in the vineyard at a gorgeous wine tasting/snack bar. Back to the monastery for an incredible, unforgettable concert, the opening concert of this year's Rheingau music festival. Fascinating trip "home" to Frankfurt, chatting with a retired symphony violinist about the concert and everything else under the sun. Late night again, no issues on transit alone.

TO BE COMPLETED

Day 4: wandering through Frankfurt. Awesome tour with Frankfurt on Foot (review here), then another meet up with Ms. Jo, an unofficial and personal walk with her through Sachsenhausen, with dinner at Dauth-Schneider, a famous apple wine tavern in the Sachsenhausen neighbourhood. Talking about travel and all about life in general. 23,000 steps of sheer joy.

TO BE COMPLETED

Day 5: meander through Höchst (recommended by Ms. Jo, delightful), afternoon in the hotel courtyard communing with a bottle of Rheingau white wine, then dinner at an apple wine pub sharing a table and great conversation with a German family

TO BE COMPLETED

(wanted to get the placeholders in before any community replies. I promise to finish this report soon!)

One more placeholder for a wrap-up: lessons learned, things left undone (museums, Frankfurt Opera, Palmengarten, other day trips), last thoughts

Looking forward to your report!

I'm ready for all those gaps to be filled in. Ms Jo knows her stuff, doesn't she? I want to hear all your highlights.

Looking forward to the details! ;)

As someone else who likes Frankfurt, but hasn't been there in over 10 years, I'm really looking forward to your report. Thanks (in advance) for taking the time to post it!

I am excited about reading those future additions to your trip report. Love what I'm hearing so far. Lots of pertinent, valuable and interesting information!

This is such a fantastic trip report! Was so happy to have met you and that you enjoyed your visit here. Looking forward to reading the rest of this as you fill in the blanks.
Thanks for sharing!