- Lennox Morrison
- Journalist
Some call the German city of Frankfurt ‘Manhattan’, thanks to its skyline full of striking skyscrapers and its location on the river Main. It is indeed a fitting name for one of the world’s leading financial centers.
Unlike New York, however, the famous German city’s “museum key” houses 13 impressive museums all overlooking the Main River.
With a number of other museums located near the river, there is a convenient opportunity to explore the various collections of artifacts, ranging from fine art to cinematography, which are symbols of communication and exchange of opinions. All of these museums are just a short walk from the city center.
Emma Brady, who has lived in the city for 14 years and is a director of Euro London Points, which specializes in multilingual employment, says: “Frankfurt is a cosmopolitan city, it does not feel local. They do not speak the language. here. English is only widely used, but Germans have a sensitive sense of how English speakers approach business. “
Frankfurt is home to the headquarters of the European Central Bank and the German Federal Bank, in addition to nearly 470 other banks, including the Asian Development Bank and the Chinese Central Bank. In the city you will also find the headquarters of the “German Stock Exchange” and the “Eurex” institution for currency trading.
The insurance sector offers a range of potential career opportunities, as the headquarters of the European Insurance and Professional Pensions Agency and the Frankfurt Center for International Arbitration are located in Frankfurt. Add to this companies such as SPCA Winterthur, Arag, IMP General and R + V Versicherung.
But Frankfurt is not only important for trading stocks, shares and currencies. With a population of more than 708,000 people, the city is also the main hub of the province of “Frankfurt-Rhine-Main”, a region with a population of about 5.52 million people.
It is a country with a diverse mix of industries ranging from biotechnology to pharmaceuticals and pharmaceuticals, to automated manufacturing companies. Here you will find the headquarters of giant companies like Sanofi-Aventis, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis and Siemens, just to name a few. International companies also moved after that, including “Showa Corporation”, “China Unicom” and “Wipro Technologies”.
In addition to the city’s 800-year history of hosting trade shows, Frankfurt is now almost at the geographical heart of the European Union. The main venue here is Messe Frankfurt; It is the central location, covering an area of 578 000 square meters to display products and manufactures, in addition to the “Convention Center”.
Frankfurt Airport
One of the busiest airports in the world is Frankfurt Airport, which is very useful for Europeans when traveling on uninterrupted flights to Seoul and Shanghai. The airport is 13 km from the city center.
In both terminals you will find power sockets to charge the batteries and free Wi-Fi. Directly opposite Terminal 1 there is a conference room, with spaces that can be arranged on request, in addition to catering.
As for the “Sky Hall” in Terminal 2, a quiet location is provided for travelers in transit to do business or relax for 35 euros (40 US dollars) for three hours. There are also smoking rooms within the transit passenger area.
Taxis are available outside the two terminals, the journey to the city center takes about 20 to 30 minutes and costs about € 42 (US $ 47). Alternatively, the S-Bahn station is located directly below Terminal 1.
For € 4.55 (US $ 5) you can take a local train, “Line 8” or “Line 9”, to get you to Frankfurt Central Station “Hautbahnhof” within about 11 minutes.
To continue train travel, Deutsche Bahn operates more than 170 high-speed train journeys daily from its main train station opposite Terminal 1.
Financial issues
MasterCard and Visa cards are widely used there. Many stores also welcome American Express cardholders. For purchases of less than € 20, however, you may be required to pay cash.
Smart payment cards can also be used with some cash machines. Elsewhere, the signature request is still the norm. Traveler’s checks can be picked up at banks, but will probably not be accepted elsewhere.
Not all taxi owners accept bank card payments. So, when dealing with taxi and bus drivers, and buying coffee and snacks, you need to keep some cash. A portion of this cash must be in the form of coins for use in small purchases and cash machines.
cultural background
Germans are proud of punctuality. So do not miss out when you have an appointment with them. “If you’re late, they’ll think you’re being rude,” Brady says. “Organization and planning are German qualities. But also do not arrive too early. Maximum five or ten minutes before your appointment. The starting point for a competent person to arrive.” At the exact time. “
Integrity is also valued, but it is seen as an intrusion on personal matters when it comes to privacy. “With the Germans, you will know where you stand,” Brady says. “They are very honest. Meetings are business meetings and business and trade are discussed. If you go out for lunch, travel and weather, but especially sports – football is good common topics to discuss. Soccer, snowboarding and cycling.
Hotels
Frankfurt Marriott is a stylized skyscraper located directly opposite the Messe Frankfurt exhibition grounds and close to the financial district. It is a five star hotel, and its business center and fitness center are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The hotel also offers a car park, Wi-Fi internet service and a guide and directions service for guests, in addition to very spacious places to hold meetings and activities.
The VIP lounge on the 43rd floor serves breakfast and snacks, while at the same time getting a glimpse of large parts of the city. For some hotel guests, watching TV screens, in the American-style sports bar, is one of the hotel’s best features.
Opposite the main train station, and a short distance from the fairgrounds and the financial district, is the self-contained Manhattan Hotel. It offers a four-star service, and is well organized, with free Wi-Fi and some office services. The bar is not closed at all hours of the day.
Near it is a 3-star hotel, “Frankfurt Intercity”. The hotel has free Wi-Fi, a gym, sauna and meeting rooms with natural light. To get public transport for free, all you have to do is show your room booking card.
Meal for one
If you are touring, you can head to the 53rd floor of the Main Tower restaurant to see breathtaking views of the city in the afternoon. This location was recently chosen as one of the most favorite places for the locals.
A three-course meal costs about 79 euros (89 US dollars) or more, including the lift usage fee, plus a variety of wines.
For a more rural setting, head to the “Old Sachsenhausen” district with its cobbled streets. There you will find locally made alcoholic cider, which they call cider. Cooking in this region is mainly meat-based.
There is also green chutney, a creamy boiled herbs served with eggs and boiled potatoes, and ‘handkiza’ – a soft cheese marinated in oil, vinegar and chopped onions – served to music.
In traditional taverns, such as Aceh, founded in 1849, visitors sit on benches next to long wooden tables. And if the weather is nice, you can sit on the spacious garden bench. Certain old pubs, such as Vishtacreenzi, do not accept credit card payments.
save time
To immerse yourself in some of the best European art produced over the past 700 years, you must enter the Städel Museum. The museum celebrated its 200th anniversary this year. His possessions include notable works by great antique painters such as Vermeer, Rembrandt and Botticelli, modern artists such as Degas, Monet and Picasso, and paintings by contemporary artists such as Francis Bacon and Gerhard Richter and Yves Klan.
An evening at Oper Frankfurt, the city’s modern opera house, is highly recommended. Managed by Burgd Loeb, you will find a live program of classical and modern music. This fall will be a performance of the opera “The Match Girl” with a new artistic direction.
The artwork is based on a story by Hans Christian Andersen and will be sung in German. The opera “The Marriage of Figaro” by the famous artist “Mozart” will also be performed, and it will be sung as a matter of renewal in Italian.
special considerations
Hotel accommodation costs increase significantly during major trade shows: one solution is to book a Motel One hotel; It’s a cheap German hotel chain that is expanding and expanding rapidly, with two hotels in Frankfurt plus another at the airport.
A fourth hotel will open in 2016. The cost of accommodation in one of the city’s two hotel rooms starts at 69 euros (77 US dollars) or more. The maximum fee added during exhibitions and other activities is € 70 (US $ 79).
For more affordable options, and with the aim of finding an opportunity to practice German, the Tourism Board has compiled a list of rooms available in private homes. Accommodation in one of these rooms starts from € 60 per night (US $ 67), excluding breakfast.