I am reconsidering my vacation destination because we just found a fantastic price on airfare to Frankfurt Germany ($440) and I am wondering if anyone can give me any advice about this area of the world?
Here are some questions I have: -Can you recommend your favorite hotels here? -How safe is it here? -How is the shopping (and of course this is highly important to me)? -Where else in Europe could we go easily from this destination (daytrip or overnight)?
I love, love, love Germany! Is the airfare you found on Lufthansa? They have some awesome deals.
The times I've been there, I've flown into Frankfurt as well. It's a great starting point for exploring Germany because it's really central. Although I don't think the new part of Frankfurt is that great, the old part is so beautiful.... very old-Germany with the gingerbread looking buildings, cobblestone streets, etc.
The other thing about flying into Frankfurt is that from there you can easily get to the main cities like Berlin and Munich by train. I'd recommend exploring the smaller towns around Frankfurt too... namely Wurzburg, Rottenberg, and Heidelberg. They're beautiful! And since you asked, Germany in general is an amazing starting point for getting around other countries in Western Europe. From Munich you can easily get to Austria (Innsbruck isn't far at all), and from Austria you can get to Switzerland and northern Italy if you have time. Whenever students come to me for advise on where to begin their European adventures, Germany is always one of my first picks because of it's central location and cheaper flights than places like Paris, Italy, etc.
As far as shopping goes, Berlin and Munich both have great shopping cultures! I love their artsy boutiques so much... they're so fun and the things they have are so unique that you could never get here in the States. Oh, and Germany is very safe... no worries there!
I love Germany! I went to Munich 2 years ago. Hubby and I rented a car and drove all over Bavaria! We did a loop starting and ending in Munich. We saw Augsberg, Berchtesgaden, Garmisch-Partenkirken, Passau, and a bunch of smaller towns. We also saw Neuschwanstein, the castle that inspired the Cinderella Castle at Disneyworld, as well as other palaces, cathedrals, and casstles. The hotels we stayed in were very nice and extremely clean. And it's definitely safe there. Munich is beautifu and the mountains are breathtaking. If you have any questions about Bavaria, feel free to shoot me a PM.
My DH and I went to frankfurt last year and stayed for a week. Fantastic city and a amazing country!!!
-The people are super friendly - Best Ice cream in the world (gelato, and it totally kicks paris gelato's ass) -city is safe. There are some areas known for hard core bondage homosexual bars, and at night they seem a tad scary. - beautiful buildings. - We stayed at the meridian, and it was amazing. Flat screen tvs, huge rooms, nice bathrooms, super modern furnishings in a really old building. - Shopping was great. We walked everywhere. They have a shopping area equivilant to NY 5th avenue with all the big designers. - Fantastic holocaust memorial muesem. I spent 6 hours there, it was very moving. -The older part of the city has tons of boutiques. - Down by the river each night tons of locals gather and hang out and drink. You meet a ton of people and so many speak english.
We also took the train and traveled to luxomberg (about a 5 hour train ride) and it was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. We stayed there for a few days also. This is considered a country and they mainly speak french here. It is built with so many castles and they still have royal family.
Those pictures are amazing. The closest I have been to Germany is the Germany in Epcot in Disney World. It is my favorite country in the showcase. Sad, I know! I would love to go to Frankfurt! Travelgirl, did you book the flight? Was it on Lufthansa? I know they have a sale right now and the pricing is great. Let us know if or when you are going, I would love to hear all about it!