My first trip to Frankfurt I stayed near the train station and rented a car for two days to visit Oase and Sharks. I will not do that again. Driving and especially parking in FRA is no fun at all. All the parking garages close at 8pm or so. What's with that! As disciplined as German drivers are the same cannot be said about their parking. People park everywhere!
Next time I will stay outside FRA in a town with train access into the city. Butzbach sounds like a good candidate.I finished my business in Dublin Thursday and came to play in the Frankfurt area. For the fifth time I'm staying in the village of Butzbach at the same family operated hotel. I've always been a walk-in before, but this time I reserved in advance on Booking.com. They recognize me now so the desk lady simply handed me my key - no need to show passport, credit card or even register. The hotel is spotless, free parking at the back door, twenty steps to the elevator and a big but simple breakfast in the morning.
Here's why I love Butzbach:
To Sharks 37 minutes/67 km (south)
To FRA Frankurt airport 27 minutes/47 km (south)
To World 17 minutes/22 km (northeast)
To Oase 20 minutes/24 km (southwest)
Plus, no city noise, good air, bank with ATM lobby directly across the street and a Disney-like town center with massive half-timber 15th century buildings, small cafes and bakeries along the way. A town you will want to walk around and take photos in the morning. Also, the drives are photo worthy, especially to World and Oase.
A note about renting a car and driving - it is amazingly simple. I bought a basic Garmin GPS years ago and programmed it with my fave Düsseldorf and Frankfurt area locations, FKKs and hotels. The roads are great and the motorists very disciplined. You will never round a curve and encounter a minivan in the left lane going 40mph with the driver on the phone. If you like cars and enjoy driving you will really enjoy your German auto adventure. I rented a Jaguar XF this time and had the pleasure of being part of a fleet last night going 180-200 kph, about 110-125 mph.
PM if I can answer questions....and I will do a Club report soon.
My first trip to Frankfurt I stayed near the train station and rented a car for two days to visit Oase and Sharks. I will not do that again. Driving and especially parking in FRA is no fun at all. All the parking garages close at 8pm or so. What's with that! As disciplined as German drivers are the same cannot be said about their parking. People park everywhere!
Next time I will stay outside FRA in a town with train access into the city. Butzbach sounds like a good candidate.