In the Senckenberg Gardens in Frankfurt is the extensive range of buildings occupied by the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University (founded 1914) and the Senckenberg Natural History Museum, one of the most modern museums of natural history in Europe (fossils, minerals, large mammals, development of man; research collection). The Senckenberg Society has an institute of marine research (established 1928) in Wilhelmshaven.
Address: Senckenberg Museum, Senckenberanlage 25, D-60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Hours:
January 1 to December 31: 9am-5pm; Sun:9am-6pm; Wed:9am-8pm; Sat:9am-6pm
Always closed on: New Year's Day (January 1), Christmas Eve - Christian (December 24), New Year's Eve (December 31), Good Friday - Christian
A rich diversity of animals are housed within the Frankfurt Zoo. Other features of the Zoo include a theater, restaurant, visitor's center and conference rooms.
The red sandstone Goth Cathedral of Frankfurt, with its huge tower, is a prominent landmark. Built between the 13th and 15th C, it became the location of the coronation of the Emperor.
A little way north of the Stock Exchange in Frankfurt is the Eschenheimer Turm (1400-28), the finest relic of the old town walls, which are now replaced by the ring of gardens enclosing the old town.
To the south of the Rossmarkt in Frankfurt, at Grosser Hirschgraben 23, is the Goethe House (completely rebuilt on the basis of old plans in 1946-51), in which the great German writer was born on August 28, 1749, and lived until 1765. The interior (now a museum) has been restored to its original condition.
Adjoining is the Haus des Deutschen Buchhandels (Book Trade House), headquarters of the central organization of publishers and booksellers.
Beyond Frankfurt's Nikolaikirche, reaching down to the Mainkai, can be found the Historical Museum, completed in 1972 (history of Frankfurt, children's museum, communications center). Incorporated in the building are the Rententurm (1455) and the Saalhof (originally dating in part from ninth C.; altered in 18th and 19th C.).
At the old Bockenheimer Tor can be found the Old Opera House (originally built 1880), which was reopened in 1981, after rebuilding, as a congress and concert hall. The exterior of the Opera House is in the style of the Italian High Renaissance. Its main hall seats 2,500 people.
Address: Alte Oper Frankfurt, Opernplatz, D-60313 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Tips: The box office (tel. 25 62-3 34) opens an hour before the performance.
Advance booking office: Mon. - Fri. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (tel. 25 62-3 35).
To the south of Frankfurt's Hauptwache, in Paulsplatz, stands the Paulskirche (built 1790-1833, restored 1948), a plain neo-classical building on a centralized plan in which the first German National Assembly met in 1848-49. The presentation of the Frankfurt Goethe Prize and the annual Peace Prize of the German Book Trade takes place here.
To the north of the Rossmarkt in Frankfurt stands the Stock Exchange (built 1879, rebuilt 1957), the largest stock exchange in Germany, with an annual turnover of more than 40 billion DM.
Address: Frankfurt Börse, Börsenplatz, D-60313 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Hours:
9am-5pm; Closed: Sun, Sat
Tips: The VIP programme costs €125 per group of a maximum of 70 people.
Guides: Guided tour included with admission.
Transit: U-Bahn: U 1-3 (Hauptwache); S-Bahn: S 1-6, S14 (Hauptwache); Tram: 12 (Schillerstrasse).
1km/.75mi north of the Palmengarten in Frankfurt rises the 331 m/1,086ft high Telecommunications Tower (1977), with a viewing platform and a restaurant.
Sachsenhausen is the place to enjoy a Frankfurt specialty, the cider (ebbelwei) which is sold here, particularly in Grosse and Kleine Rittergasse, Rauschergasse, Textorgasse and Klappergasse. Visitors may take some time to get used to the sharp taste effect of ebbelwei. Favorite dishes to accompany it are Rippchen mit Kraut (pickled ribs of pork with sauerkraut) and Schwartenmagen mit Musik (onions with vinaigrette dressing).
On the south side of the Palmengarten in Frankfurt is the Deutsche Bibliothek (1957-59), which collects all German-language books published in Germany or abroad. Facing it, on the Bockenheimer Landstrasse, stands the Municipal and University Library (Stadt- und Universitätsbibliothek).
Address: German Library in Frankfurt am Main, Adickesallee 1, D-60322 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
To the south of the Palmengarten in Frankfurt, at Schubertstrasse 20, is the Heinrich Hoffmann Museum, devoted to the author of "Struwwelpeter" (also material on the history of medicine).
There is a Struwwelpeter Collection, with original drafts and rare editions of the book, at Hochstrasse 45-47, near the Old Opera House.
Address: Heinrich-Hoffmann-Museum, Schubertstrasse 20, D-60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Works from Andy Warhol, Liechtenstein and Beuys are on display in the Museum for Modern Art in Frankfurt am Main. There are more than 4,500 artworks in the modern and contemporary art collection.
Address: Museum of Modern Art, Domstrasse 10, D-60311 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Hours:
January 1 to December 31: 10am-5pm; Wed:10am-8pm; Closed: Mon
Tips: Guided tours: Wednesday at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. (2 hours); Sunday at 11 a.m. (1 hour).
The Parish Church of St Leonard (R.C.), situated directly on the Main ambankment, was founded in 1219 as a chapel dedicated ts SS. Mary and George, built on a site presented to the town by the Emperor Frederick II.
The first line of the Stadtwerke Frankfurt am Main was opened in 1968. It is made up of 7 lines with 56.2km of track. There are 82 stations. The system has a zonal fare structure.
The metro system serves almost 100 million people yearly with a rolling stock of 226 articulated cars. During peak hours trains run every two minutes.
Some 500 m/550yd south of the University in Frankfurt are the Trade Fair Grounds, with the Festhalle (built 1907-09; renovated 1986). With a total area of 40 hectares/100 acres, 10 exhibition halls and the Torhaus (1985), the Trade Fair Grounds offer facilities for numerous trade fairs and exhibitions, including the International Book Fair, the Frankfurt International Trade Fair, the International Motor Show, the Frankfurt Art Fair and the International Computer Fair. The Messeturm (by Helmut Jahn, 1990) is 256 m/840ft high.
Tower of Messegelande (Trade Fair grounds) in Frankfurt.