Applefan

I recently bought a roundtrip ticket to Frankfurt from DFW on Continentl (at a price I just couldn't pass up) for a long weekend in March. Having never been to Frankfurt, does anyone have hotel recomendations? Right now I'm looking at the Hilton, the Arabella Sheraton Grand, and Le Meridien Parkhotel. All of these hotels look nice and have great weekend rates (especially Le Meridien) and I'm a member of both Hilton and Starwood programs. What is the best location area in Frankfurt for a tourist and are there any must see attractions in the Greater Frankfurt area? Also how is Continental's international coach service?

Thanks for your time.
ps This is my first post. I have been reading this site for a few months and it has become one of my favorite places on the Web.

Counsellor

I'd certainly recommend the Hilton in Frankfurt very highly. It is located near the center of the city (a long block from the Hauptwache). See the following thread for more details:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum57/HTML/000268.html

In addition, if you can change to be there during the April 19 - 26 period, you may still be able to get a "point stretcher" award.

As to what to see, etc., be sure to eat at the Haus Werthym near the Römer. Depending on age and interests, you might want to visit a "lokal" in Sachsenhausen in the evening - apple wine and students.

Finally, if you can go during the run-up to Lent, be sure to check for Fasching (like Mardi Gras, only more so) parties in Frankfurt and near-by Mainz.

[This message has been edited by Counsellor (edited 01-15-2000).]

doc

Both the Grand and the Hilton are excellent and very likely as good as it gets in Frankfurt hotels, IMHO.

On my last trip a few weeks ago I accidentally "discovered" a great little place just outside the back entrance/exit of the Grand hotel. As you go through their bar out the rear, there's a small restaurant & bar in the covered walkway/hallway (the way back into the Grand if returning from the Zeil). It serves the SAME great food as the Grand at a fraction of the price and they have an excellent daily special like steak, salmon or pasta dish. They actually call your order in to the Grand's kitchen and it is then delivered to your table, ala room service. You can even charge your meal to the Grand for extra Starpoints! It's a warm friendly caual place for a good Pils!

Enjoy your stay in Frankfurt.

Applefan

Thanks for the advice. I originally picked the Hilton but now I'm leaning on spending the weekend in Berlin which seems to be the "in" place now. I'm going to cash in some UAL miles for a Luftansa roundtrip from FRA to TXL. I have booked the Grand Hyatt which sounds great. Anyone with Berlin advice???

Thanks again,
James

[This message has been edited by Applefan (edited 02-01-2000).]

essxjay

I had a great time at the Checkpoint Charlie museum. The whole place is about the size of a split-level house but packed to the gills with artifacts, displays and junky trinkets. When I visited '97 there was still a small slab of the wall and a guard tower remaining but I wouldn't be a bit surprised if it was gone now as the area was surrounded by construction sites for blocks on end.

If you want to make a nice walking tour of it after you visit the museum, continue north on Friedrichstrasse and hang a left onto Unter den Linden. It's a major boulevard perfect for strolling and gawking at famous sites and architecture. In short order you'll pass by the Brandenberg Gate, the Reichstag, the Russian Embassy with a fabulous war memorial in front and the Guggenheim Museum. Stay on the Unter den Linden as it bisects the pretty Tiergarten and you'll run into the winged Siegsaulle (sp?), the victory column that the angel Damiel perched upon in the movie Wings of Desire. Veer into the park, which is laced with multi-use paths for biking, running, and skating, and wind your way towards the Zoological Garten. Exit the garden south of the Zoo station and you'll be on the at the edge of the fashionable Charlottenburg district. Grab a seat at cool cafe and chill. I did this very excursion one afternoon and had a great time, really felt like I was immersed in the Berlin experience. I didn't realize it at the time, but I couldn't have done it better had I planned it that way.

A more sobering but no less fascinating trip I took was to the Sachsenhausen labor camp about an hour by S-bahn north of the city. As far as a Nazi camps go, it has one of the most interesting histories: it was the first to open and the last to close; fittingly, at the end, it housed Nazis sent there by Stalin!

Email me if you want more info.