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Day-trip/short-trip from Frankfurt using public transportation

Day-trip/short-trip from Frankfurt using public transportation

Old Jul 4th, 2014, 12:11 AM
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Day-trip/short-trip from Frankfurt using public transportation

Hi,

I am set to land in Frankfurt in mid-July & will make my way to Amsterdam, then Berlin, Prague, Vienna, etc finishing in Rome, in that order. I have 5 weeks with me.

Is there a small charming village / must-see town (in Germany, or then Belgium / Netherlands) that I can visit from Frankfurt for a day-trip or 1N halt? It would help if it is in general direction towards Amsterdam / has good connection to Amsterdam.

I would be traveling solo & always use public transportation.
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Old Jul 4th, 2014, 12:22 AM
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Not small towns but I think Köln is a must see (hello, Köln Dom!). Or Aachen (Aachener Dom -- for more than 600 years, every German emperor/king was coronated there).

Best to make either an overnight on your way to AMS.
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Old Jul 4th, 2014, 12:47 AM
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@sparkchaser, sounds like a good idea.

I can see trains from Frankfurt airport ("Frankfurt Flug Fe") to Cologne ("Koeln HBF" and "Koeln Deutz") at 8 PM / 9 PM. After landing at 6:40 PM, do you think I can catch the 8 PM train from airport train station to Cologne?

Which of the 2 Cologne train stations should I be looking for? HBF or Deutz?
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Old Jul 4th, 2014, 12:51 AM
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Further, are there any buses from Frankfurt airport to Cologne? Buses seem to be cheaper as against last minute train bookings. To pay ~85 euros for a 1 hr train journey seems brutal to me

Is 1D/N stay in Cologne ok to see major highlights? I need more time in my trip for other destinations.
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Old Jul 4th, 2014, 01:17 AM
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The Dom is right by the Köln Hbf. So you should go there.

There are buses you can take but their times may not be convenient for you.

You don't mention where you are flying in from but if you land at 18:40, trying to catch a 20:00 train might be a bit of a stretch. In my opinion, you should stay overnight at the airport (the Hilton Garden Inn is nice and not horribly expensive) then take an early-ish train to Köln. Stay overnight in Köln then move on the next day. In addition to the Dom, there is an excellent museum nearby called the Roman-Germanic Museum. There is a crazy amount of Roman ruins in Köln.
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Old Jul 4th, 2014, 01:29 AM
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I forgot to mention that Köln is a great visual aide in seeing how a city just build on top of itself. I was there over Easter and at one of the excavation sites (not far from the Dom and Roman-Germanic museum), you can see the Medieval buildings from the old Jewish Quarter that were discovered. http://www.jewish-heritage-europe.eu...very/%E2%80%9D
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Old Jul 4th, 2014, 05:37 AM
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@sparkchaser, you are v knowledgeable about this. Thanks. I am going with your idea in general. I shall do a night stay in Frankfurt followed with early morning direct bus to Cologne (managed to find 10-12E fares for 2:15 hrs travel time). I shall spend the day there and then make my way to Amsterdam.
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