Frankfurt's Parks
One thing I've always missed about Europe was the way towns maximized the few green spaces they have. Green spaces in European cities are scarce, but the ones they do have are, for the most part, fully developed and ready for the public's wholehearted consummation. Better known as your tax Euros at work.
In 'Frankfurt Fit', a previous post, I already mentioned Grüneburg Park. Grüneburg Park is the perfect example of a German city park. Not that great in size, but with plenty of knick-knacks that will have you and your family coming back until they've become full-fledged regulars.
Grüneburg Park can be a haven for picnickers, for pet owners, students (since the Goethe Universität happens to be right next door), joggers, and kids, since there is so much to do. The central playground is half playground and half obstacle course. Think your kids need to get out of the house after their feeble attempts to hit the ceiling with their little heads while practicing their gymnastics routines on the living room furniture? Do you need that one place for your kids outside of the hotel room when everything else has failed? This is your place.
There are wide open spaces and remote, shaded places where you can rest for a while. Hard to believe that the A66, the Autobahn, runs right past it. There are also the Korean Gardens, although those are currently being renovated. There are memorial monuments and sculptures, and the park benches you can retire to once you've seen them all. There's a nice little beer garden next to the Korean Gardens. The park flawlessly merges with the college campus next door, where cars are also a no-go, for the most part.
And as impressive as Grüneburg Park is, I don't think it can even touch Niddapark, which is merely a few klicks away, easily accessible by foot or bike. From Grüneburgpark, simply take one of the northern exits that will lead you over autobahn bridges, either over the L3004 (Northwest) or over the A66, straight to the north. The latter takes you to another green area in the backyard of the Bundesbank, or the Central Bank. Pass the bank and eventually the Europaturm until you find yourself parallel with the A66 for a while. Eventually, you'll reach Niddapark on either side of the autobahn, so no panic, although I would suggest passing the bank and the Europaturm. Pass the garden grounds until you see an arrow pointing toward Niddapark. Easily accessible by bike or foot as well.
The Nidda, of course, is the second and lesser-known river flowing through Frankfurt. The Nidda isn't even the central feature of the Nidda Park itself, which is so large, you can and will lose yourself the first few times you visit. Heck, I trained for the Frankfurt Marathon there. In fact, you could make a case I actually ran an entire marathon just trying to navigate all of the park's paths and meadows.
The Nidda Park has big playgrounds that feature two zip lines, next to a skateboard park, where you can run your skateboard, bike, scooter, etc. There are ping-pong tables nearby, just in case the adults might want to enjoy a little exercise of their own. There are paths and bikeways that simply go on forever, and I still haven't explored them all. There are also a couple of exquisite restaurants that serve dinner after a long day outside. There's a dog park that would put most human parks in Germany to shame, alone due to its sheer size.
That's another day in Frankfurt, if you decide to forego the city and its museums for the day. For a simple green park day, rent a bike (or a subway if you must, all the way to the U-Bahn stop of Hausen) and ride into both of these parks. They are one of the main reasons that Frankfurt ranks so highly in the quality of life index. Great parks and easy access to them. It's as European as castle ruins.
In 'Frankfurt Fit', a previous post, I already mentioned Grüneburg Park. Grüneburg Park is the perfect example of a German city park. Not that great in size, but with plenty of knick-knacks that will have you and your family coming back until they've become full-fledged regulars.
Grüneburg Park can be a haven for picnickers, for pet owners, students (since the Goethe Universität happens to be right next door), joggers, and kids, since there is so much to do. The central playground is half playground and half obstacle course. Think your kids need to get out of the house after their feeble attempts to hit the ceiling with their little heads while practicing their gymnastics routines on the living room furniture? Do you need that one place for your kids outside of the hotel room when everything else has failed? This is your place.
There are wide open spaces and remote, shaded places where you can rest for a while. Hard to believe that the A66, the Autobahn, runs right past it. There are also the Korean Gardens, although those are currently being renovated. There are memorial monuments and sculptures, and the park benches you can retire to once you've seen them all. There's a nice little beer garden next to the Korean Gardens. The park flawlessly merges with the college campus next door, where cars are also a no-go, for the most part.
And as impressive as Grüneburg Park is, I don't think it can even touch Niddapark, which is merely a few klicks away, easily accessible by foot or bike. From Grüneburgpark, simply take one of the northern exits that will lead you over autobahn bridges, either over the L3004 (Northwest) or over the A66, straight to the north. The latter takes you to another green area in the backyard of the Bundesbank, or the Central Bank. Pass the bank and eventually the Europaturm until you find yourself parallel with the A66 for a while. Eventually, you'll reach Niddapark on either side of the autobahn, so no panic, although I would suggest passing the bank and the Europaturm. Pass the garden grounds until you see an arrow pointing toward Niddapark. Easily accessible by bike or foot as well.
The Nidda, of course, is the second and lesser-known river flowing through Frankfurt. The Nidda isn't even the central feature of the Nidda Park itself, which is so large, you can and will lose yourself the first few times you visit. Heck, I trained for the Frankfurt Marathon there. In fact, you could make a case I actually ran an entire marathon just trying to navigate all of the park's paths and meadows.
The Nidda Park has big playgrounds that feature two zip lines, next to a skateboard park, where you can run your skateboard, bike, scooter, etc. There are ping-pong tables nearby, just in case the adults might want to enjoy a little exercise of their own. There are paths and bikeways that simply go on forever, and I still haven't explored them all. There are also a couple of exquisite restaurants that serve dinner after a long day outside. There's a dog park that would put most human parks in Germany to shame, alone due to its sheer size.
That's another day in Frankfurt, if you decide to forego the city and its museums for the day. For a simple green park day, rent a bike (or a subway if you must, all the way to the U-Bahn stop of Hausen) and ride into both of these parks. They are one of the main reasons that Frankfurt ranks so highly in the quality of life index. Great parks and easy access to them. It's as European as castle ruins.
0 comments