Business Traveller (Middle East)
BEYOND THE BANKS
Away from Frankfurt’s financial core, there’s plenty of fun to be had, says Marisa Cannon
Marisa Cannon finds plenty of entertainment beyond Frankfurt’s financial core
While Frankfurt’s high-rolling hedgefunders and FTSE financiers keep the markets ticking over, its reputation as a commercial powerhouse may not tempt those looking for a weekend away. Still, the city’s entrepreneurial spirit has begun to take root outside of the financial district in the form of edgy bars and restaurants, while those after more cultural nourishment can wander the banks of the Main River, home to some of Germany’s best museums. If you have some time between meetings or fancy extending your trip by a day or two, Frankfurt has a host of creative districts worth exploring.
BAHNHOFSVIERTEL
The area around the central station, Bahnhofsviertel is one of the city’s grittier parts, where scantily clad mannequins in shop windows co-exist with seedier activities. Not unlike the gentrification in London’s King’s Cross, however (see our Four-Hour Guide online), the area has undergone a renaissance, with new businesses breathing life into its dingier quarters, cleverly capitalising on the cheaper rents.
Directly in front of the station is Kaiserstrasse, and the best thoroughfare on which to orient yourself if you’re walking into the CBD from the station. Peppered with nail parlours and falafel takeaways,
the cobbled avenue leads on to Elbestrasse, where the atmosphere lifts to reveal a cluster of hipster bars and minimalist cafés.
Plank (barplank.de) is one of these – blackpainted walls loom over a large wooden bar, creating a sleek, understated setting for peoplewatching over a local craft beer (Tegernsee, brewed near Munich, comes highly recommended). The elusive Kinly Bar (kinlybar.com) is tucked away on the same street. Patrons ring a doorbell to gain entry, before descending into a Gothic-styled speakeasy decked out with mounted deer skulls, vintage oil lamps and huge silver cauldrons for sharing cocktails.
Further down Elbestrasse is the charming fiftiesstyled Hotel Nizza (hotelnizza.de), which serves the area’s bohemian locals as well as in-the-know tourists, offering a haven away from the gaudier bars in the city centre. High-backed dining booths, rattan chairs and potted ferns welcome guests into the lobby, where a stylish, antique bicycle is lodged next to reception. But Nizza’s real selling point is its fifth-floor roof terrace, a secluded, foliage-filled enclave open-year round, offering views that graze the middle floors of the skyscrapers nearby.
ALTSTADT
Continuing eastward on Kaiserstrasse will lead you to the home of the city’s lively operatic scene – Oper Frankfurt (oper-frankfurt.de), housed in a modern building on the fringes of Altstadt, the historic centre. It will host Verdi’s Falstaff and Wagner’s Lohengrin in the autumn.
More beautiful to look at is Alte Opera (alteoper.de), the old opera house in nearby Opernplatz. Built in 1880, its commanding façade remains one of the city’s architectural highlights. Wartime destruction forced performances into the new building in 1951 while the old one underwent repairs, reopening in 1981 as a concert hall.
Heading east on Munzgasse from Oper Frankfurt will take you to the historic centre of Romerberg, where a quaint row of half-timbered gabled houses overlooks a buzzing piazza. Plastered across the city’s postcards, this is Frankfurt’s most photographed location, where tourists snack on pretzels and ice cream while newlyweds perch in front of the city hall for photos. A municipal building since 1405, it has been the site of historic moments such as the Nazi book burnings of 1933 and John F Kennedy’s address during his 1963 presidential visit.
SACHSENHAUSEN
On the southern bank of the Main River is Sachsenhausen, a leafy precinct where the city’s stern exterior falls away to embrace a more relaxed pace of life. Here, traditional apfelwein (apple wine) taverns reside a few blocks from the main embankment on Klein Rittergasse and Paradiesgasse. This cul-de-sac of cider houses is one of Frankfurt’s prime destinations for locals looking to blow off steam, so be prepared for crowds in the evenings, especially when there’s a match on.
There’s a much more suburban feel to this side of the river, and when the weather’s behaving, families picnic on the grassy bank while paddle boarders and rowers dodge the waterway’s touristclogged cruises. The embankment is a destination for art and design lovers – named the Museumsufer (Museum Riverbank), after the ten museums lined along the river.
One not to miss is the Staedel Museum (staedelmuseum.de), established in 1815. An underground wing showcases works from 1945 onwards, including Andy Warhol’s 1982 silkscreen of Goethe – a fitting addition given Frankfurt was the German writer’s birthplace. Monet, Chagall, Van Gogh and Beckmann are some of the other esteemed names you’ll find here.
Elsewhere on the Museumsufer, the Museum of Communication (mfk-frankfurt.de) has an exhibit by Cologne-based artist Joachim Romans, who spent 18 years collecting messages in bottles found on the banks of the Rhine (until October 16). Along from the Staedel, the Liebieghaus Museum of Ancient Sculpture (liebieghaus.de) has an impressive collection of sculptures dating from Ancient Egypt to the Neoclassical era.