Saint Bartholomeus' Cathedral building was built in the 15th century. Designed in Gothic style and with a height of 95 meter, the cathedral was the place where Holy Roman Emperors used to be coroneted in the 16th century. Though the original building was destroyed by fire in 1867; the cathedral was rebuilt keeping the old style intact.
Town hall is a major tourist catcher in Berlin. The city council in 1405 bought a total of 9 buildings from a wealthy businessman. The middle building was then converted to the town hall. This building served as the venue where the newly coroneted Roman Kings used to hold banquets.
Designed by Richard Lucae, Alte Oper was built in 1880. Though the original building was destroyed by allied bombing in the Second World War, Alte Oper was rebuilt again in 1981. at present concerts are held here. Another sightseeing place in Frankfurt tourism is Frankfurt Opera.
If your taste is more contemporary; then visit the Commerzbank Tower. Considered as the highest office building in Europe, the tower is tallest in Germany. Some other tourist attraction places in this busy metropolis are: Silver Tower; Messe Turm; Trianon and others.
History of Frankfurt
The history of the city of Frankfurt dates back to Roman times. Romans settled in the Römer area in the first century AD. Artifacts like coins and roman weapons have had been found in huge quantity. In fact these artifacts are still being discovered from this area. Likewise historians believe that the Bonames district near Frankfurt city got its name from Roman Bona me(n) sa.
Main is the lifeline of Frankfurt. This 524 kilometer long tributary of the Rhine River flows through the German state of Bavaria. Historians believe that the Main River got its name from the Franconofurt of the Germanic tribe of the Franks. The two Germanic tribes named Alemanni and Franks lived here. “Furt” in German language means a low point passage across a river. Besides, “Frank” in “Frankfurt” is a derivation of an old German term “Frei” which means free. So combined together the name of the city means free passage. Closely resembling to its modern name, the term “Franconofurd” was first coined in the assembly of Charles the Great in around 794 AD.
Frankfurt History suggests that this city played a pivotal role in the Holy Roman Empire. Though German emperors used to be elected from Frankfurt from 855 AD, the crowning ceremony however used to be held in Aachen. But all this changed from 1562 as the election and crowning ceremony of German Emperors were both started being held in Frankfurt.
In the beginning of the 19th century, Frankfurt was cannoned and occupied by the victorious army of Napoleon. Ending over thousand years of Roman rule; the Holy Roman Empire finally collapsed in 1805. The city of Frankfurt in 1866 was inducted into German Federation. This city was occupied by Prussia in 1866 after Germany had lost in the Astro-Prussian War. In 1914 this city was again occupied by the French Army and later on vacated. However Frankfurt suffered most damage during the Second World War. The allied bombers almost flattened this city with the medieval city centre bearing the maximum brunt. A massive renovation in post war years however has removed all the scars and modern times have seen this city getting transformed into a busy metropolis.
Sightseeing in Frankfurt
Frankfurt is the sixth largest city in Germany and is the largest city in the German state of Hesse. The city is at the center of the larger Frankfurt Rhine Main Area which has a population of 5 million and is Germany's second largest metropolitan area. The city offers a number of attractions which are certainly not to be missed if you are going there on a visit.
Bornheim is a town and a municipality in the Rhein-Sieg district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town is situated on the left bank of the Rhine River about 10 kms to the north-west of Bonn and 20kms to the south of Cologne.
The Frankfurt Zoo was almost totally destroyed during the Second World War and just 20 animals survived during the bombardment in 1944. Most of the buildings which exist in the zoo premises are built during the early fifties when the zoo was again rebuilt.
Another sightseeing option in Frankfurt is The Frankfurt Stock Exchange which is one of the biggest and most efficient places of exchange in the world. The exchange is owned and operated by Deutsche Börse. Deutsche Börse also owns the European futures exchange Eurex and Clearstream, the clearing company. The total turnover of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange is about 5.2 Trillion € per year which strengthens its position as the world's 3rd largest trade-place for stocks and the world's 6th largest by market capitalization.
Commerzbank, Frankfurt is one of the important landmarks in Frankfurt and is currently the tallest building in Europe. The striking exterior with its curving corner is topped by a mast which brings the building to nearly 300 metres tall. From the ground floor a triangular atrium rises through the entire building, divided by glass partitions. 9 large gardens are formed as the atrium opens to the exterior wall at different levels. The ground level plaza of the Commerzbank Tower unfortunately is only open to the public.Museums in Frankfurt
Frankfurt is a city, which is celebrated for its rich cultural and historical heritage. If are desirous of exploring the cultural heritage of the city, then you can visit the museums of the city. There are numerous museums in Frankfurt and different museums focus on different aspects of the city. Some of the popular museums in Frankfurt are Deutsches Architekturmuseum, Deutsches Filmmuseum and Naturmuseum Senckenberg.
Deutsches Architekturmuseum is one of the premier museums of Frankfurt. The museum is also known as the National Museum of Architecture and the museum records the history of architecture of the city as well as the country. The building was designed by celebrated architect Oswald Mathias Ungers. He hollowed out the old neo-classical building to create a 'house within a house'. All the exhibits of the museum are spread out over many different levels; exhibits in the building include of ancient and new building plans and models. During your visit to the museum do not forget to see the rotating exhibitions on classic architects like Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe or Walter Gropius.
Deutsches Filmmuseum is the premier film museum of the city as well as the country. It features a state of the art film library along with numerous exhibits that showcase the film history of the country. There is also an extensive archive and exhibition room in the museum. The Deutsches Filmmuseum also plays host to film premiers and other events related to films and it also houses seminars, forums and discussions on different film related topics.
Naturmuseum Senckenberg is one of the largest museums of the city as well as the country. The museum is dedicated to education and scientific research and therefore a large part of the collection include fossils and other objects from the Palaeozoic period to the Stone Age. The top exhibit of the Naturmuseum Senckenberg has to be the complete replica of a diplodocus skeleton, which is the only extant one in Europe. There are also other dinosaur skeletons in the museum that include skeletons of T Rex, stegosaurus, triceratops, iguanodon and many more.
Festivals and Events in Frankfurt
Frankfurt, the sixth largest city in Germany and is the largest city in the German state of Hesse. Frankfurt is located on the banks of the Main River and happens to be the financial and transportation center of Germany. A number of festivals are celebrated with great grandeur. There are a number of Festivals and Events which take place in Frankfurt throughout the year.
Frühlings Dippemess, Frankfurt is an annual spring festival. The festival is colourful and is full of rides, arts and crafts, wine and food. You could try one of the numerous carousels, the roller coaster, or, if you prefer, stick to the regional wine and food - Frankfurt boasts an unusual speciality in its apple wine, served in rustic earthenware jugs.
Fine Art Fair in Frankfurt is an important event in the city's calendar. It is the most important German Art Fair in during spring. The fair showcases up-to-date and youthful fashion. The fair organizers are flooded with applications and more than 700 are received on a regular basis. Out of the total applications about 190 international galleries get to participate in the event. A number of galleries participate in the event for the first time every year. Most of these galleries offer art work for sale by over 2,000 artists. The Fine Fair is organized on the most modern exhibition hall in the whole of Europe, namely Hall 3 on the Frankfurt Fairground.
Nacht der Museen is a festival in Berlin when all the museums in Berlin are thrown open till midnight so that people can enjoy themselves. Everything is possible during the long museum night. This festival was first started during 1997 where over 100 museums are open till late night twice a year. The museums present their regular exhibitions in conjunction with artistic performances.
Transportation in Frankfurt
The city of Frankfurt is well known world over for its versatility. The city's uniqueness lies in its ability to juggle business with leisure. One of the most mesmerizing cities located centrally in the map of the country of Germany, Frankfurt is located in Hesse. Aside of its business acumen and pleasure activities, the city of Frankfurt is also renowned for its tall buildings, for being Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's birthplace and finally and mostly for its exuberant style of life. As a result, all these aspects go a long way to multiply the number of visitors filtering into the city. It is obvious that even if people come to the city of Frankfurt on business, it is not likely that they will not take some time off to indulge in all that the city has to offer. The city leads in all aspects that might affect the progress of the country. Hence, Transportation in Frankfurt whether by air or by train or by car or by bus or by boat is not an issue at all. In fact, the city of Frankfurt is even the country's transportation hub.
When you are chalking out your plans of traveling to the city of Frankfurt Planning about Transportation in Frankfurt whether by taxi or by bus or by tram or by subway; rest assured, you will not have any hassles as the transportation in Frankfurt are very efficient and also frequent. The transportation in Frankfurt also connects the entire city very well. Taxis come dime a dozen and all you have to get one to halt. They will willingly oblige. The fares that the cabs charge are very reasonable too. There is another type of taxis in the city called 'bike taxi' which are very convenient on time management, availability and also rates. The bus service in the city is serviced by RMV or Rhein-Main Verkehrsverbund. Trams and subways are very convenient and frequent.
Hotels in Frankfurt
