Things to See in Frankfurt and Essential City Sightseeing

The Old Town: Frankfurt's Historic Core

Few city centres in Germany carry as much layered history as Frankfurt's Altstadt. Much of it was destroyed during the Second World War, and what stands today is the result of decades of reconstruction done with genuine care and ambition. Walking through it feels less like a heritage exercise and more like a city that has quietly insisted on remembering itself.

Römerberg Square and the Römer

The Römerberg is where Frankfurt's sense of its own history is most visibly concentrated. The Römer, a cluster of three Gothic townhouses that has served as the city's town hall for over 600 years, faces a row of reconstructed half-timbered buildings across the square, with the Fountain of Justice at its centre. Holy Roman Emperors were once celebrated here. Christmas markets have been held here since 1393. Come early in the morning before the crowds arrive, or in the evening when the warm light catches the façades and the square settles into a quieter version of itself.

The Neue Altstadt

Adjacent to the Römerberg, the Neue Altstadt is one of the most ambitious urban reconstruction projects in recent German history. Between 2012 and 2018, 35 buildings were rebuilt on the footprint of the medieval town lost in the war, many of them painstaking reproductions of originals that no longer existed. The result is a walkable quarter of narrow lanes, half-timbered houses, independent cafes, and small boutiques that gives a convincing sense of what pre-war Frankfurt looked like. It threads naturally between the Römerberg on one side and Frankfurt Cathedral on the other, making it an easy and rewarding hour on foot.

Frankfurt Cathedral and St Paul's Church

Frankfurt Cathedral, the Cathedral of St Bartholomew, is where Holy Roman Emperors were elected and crowned for three centuries. The tower is worth climbing for the elevated view over the Old Town, with the rooflines of the Neue Altstadt spread below. A short walk west, St Paul's Church carries a different kind of weight: it was the seat of the Frankfurt Parliament of 1848, the first freely elected German national assembly, and now functions as a civic memorial and exhibition space. Two buildings, close together, that between them account for a significant stretch of European history.

The Museumsufer: Frankfurt's Museum Embankment

If there is one stretch of Frankfurt that could occupy an entire day without effort, it is the south bank of the River Main. Fifteen museums sit within walking distance of each other along the riverfront, covering art, film, architecture, ethnology, and more. The walk between them is pleasant in its own right, with the Old Town roofline visible across the water throughout. The full breadth of what the district holds is covered in the guide to Frankfurt's best museums.

Suggested image: https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/museum-of-natural-history-senckenberg-frankfurt-hesse-germany-gm1384147802-443629721 

The Städel Museum

The Städel Museum is the anchor of the embankment and one of the most significant art institutions in Germany. More than 3,000 paintings span seven centuries of European art, with Botticelli, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Monet, and Picasso all represented alongside a substantial German collection. There is also a contemporary art wing built underground beneath the museum's garden, which is a quietly impressive piece of architecture in its own right. A half-day here is well spent. A full day is not unreasonable.

The Liebieghaus and the German Film Museum

The Liebieghaus sits next door to the Städel and holds one of Germany's finest sculpture collections, running from ancient Egypt and Greece through to the Renaissance and Baroque periods, all housed in a 19th-century riverside villa. A short walk further along the embankment, the German Film Museum covers the history and craft of cinema with a permanent collection and a regular programme of temporary exhibitions. Together with the Städel, the three make a coherent and unhurried day along the riverbank, with the view back across the Main to the Old Town available at every pause.

Senckenberg Natural History Museum

The Senckenberg Natural History Museum sits slightly away from the riverfront museum cluster, but it belongs in any serious Frankfurt sightseeing itinerary. One of Germany’s largest natural history museums, it is especially strong for families and anyone interested in dinosaurs, biodiversity, and natural history. It also broadens the city’s cultural offer beyond the Museumsufer’s art, film, and architecture focus.

The Main Tower and Frankfurt's Skyline

Frankfurt's skyline is Germany's most dramatic, and the difference between seeing it from street level and seeing it from above is considerable. The Main Tower on Neue Mainzer Strasse is the only Frankfurt skyscraper with a public observation deck, at 200 metres with a 360-degree view across the city, the River Main, and on clear days the Taunus hills to the north. Go at dusk if you can, when the glass towers around you begin catching the last of the light and the river below holds the reflection. It is one of those views that is difficult to plan badly. The top Instagram spots in Frankfurt guide covers the best vantage points across the wider city for those who want to keep shooting after dark.

The European Central Bank building in the east of the city adds another distinctive shape to that skyline. Its twin towers rise above the former Großmarkthalle, which was incorporated into the building’s design, making it one of Frankfurt’s most recognisable pieces of contemporary architecture as well as a symbol of the city’s financial role in Europe.

It is one of those views that is difficult to plan badly. The top Instagram spots in Frankfurt guide covers the best vantage points across the wider city for those who want to keep shooting after dark.

Sachsenhausen and the Eiserner Steg

Sachsenhausen sits on the south bank of the Main, directly across the river from the Old Town, and offers two of Frankfurt's most rewarding sightseeing experiences in a single neighbourhood. It is also the part of the city that tends to convert the sceptics: the visitors who arrived thinking Frankfurt was all business and leave with a note to return for an evening in an Apfelweinwirtschaft.

Alt-Sachsenhausen

Alt-Sachsenhausen is Frankfurt's traditional apple wine neighbourhood, and it feels deliberately removed from the financial district a short distance away. Cobblestone streets are lined with cider taverns where Ebbelwoi is served cold in ribbed stone jugs alongside dishes like Handkäse mit Musik and Grüne Soße, a Frankfurt speciality of seven herbs in a cream sauce that tastes exactly like the city wants you to slow down. The area is liveliest in the evenings, and for anyone wanting to understand what Frankfurt eats and drinks beyond the conference circuit, a few hours here is the most direct route in. The guide to Frankfurt's traditional dishes and markets covers the food culture in more depth.

The Eiserner Steg

The Eiserner Steg, or Iron Bridge, has been crossing the Main since 1869, linking the Old Town on the north bank to Sachsenhausen on the south. It is a pedestrian footbridge, which means the only way to use it is to walk, and the walk is worth taking for its own sake. The skyline opens up to the west, the Old Town roofline sits to the east, and the love locks that have accumulated on the railings over the years give the crossing a certain accumulated tenderness. At sunset, with the Mainhattan towers catching the last of the light from the west, it is one of those things that requires no planning and delivers regardless.

Goetheturm

For a higher, greener view of the city, the Goetheturm, or Goethe Tower, in the Sachsenhausen city forest is worth the detour. After 196 steps, the 43-metre tower opens onto a panorama of the Frankfurt skyline, the Taunus, the Spessart and the Odenwald, giving a very different perspective from the Main Tower’s city-centre observation deck.