Frankfurt Airport is a large international airport located 12 km southwest of downtown Frankfurt am Main. The airport is the main hub for Lufthansa and serves over 60 million passengers a year, making it the fourth largest airport in Europe.
The airport was opened in 1936 and was used by airplanes and airships (Zeppelins) initially but after the Hindenberg disaster the next year the airship era was quickly over. Shortly after the start of World War II the airport was taken over by the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) and was used for bombing raids to France and Britain. After the war it took many years for the airport to recover and only in the 1950s passenger numbers began to grow again. Ten years later, in 1961, the airport already had over 2 million passengers a year, making it the second busiest airport in Europe. Since then it has always been in the top 5 of busiest European airports.
Most flights from Frankfurt Airport are to Amsterdam and to Paris but there are many more flights to other destinations as well, most of them by Lufthansa. Every day there are flights to 20 destinations from Frankfurt Airport. Here are the most popular destinations:
Frankfurt Airport has 4 runways and 3 Terminals, although most mortals will only use two of these as the third terminal is the Lufthansa First Class Terminal. Of the two main terminals, Terminal 1 is the older and larger one with three levels: departures on the upper floor, arrivals on the ground floor and transport and parking in the basement. This terminal is primarily used by Lufthansa and its subsidiaries (Brussels Airlines, Swiss Int. etc) and Star Alliance partner. The smaller Terminal 2 is used by all other airlines and is a lot smaller. A SkyLine train connects the two terminals.
Frankfurt Airport is located 12 km southwest of downtown Frankfurt.
Although buses to the city and long-distance coached depart from the airport, the most convenient and quickest way to your destination is by train. Frankfurt Airport has two railway stations. The Frankfurt Airport Regional station at Terminal 1B where local trains and S-Bahn commuter lines depart for destinations in Frankfurt (S8 or S9, 12 minute ride, one-way ticket € 4.65) and surrounding region. The Frankfurt Airport long-distance station is located on the other side of the A3 highway and can be reached by a pedestrian bridge from Terminal 1. From here high-speed trains (up to 300 km/h) depart for destinations in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium via Cologne.
Taxis are available outside the arrival hall at each terminal. A ride into the city should take no more than 20 to 30 minutes and cost about € 30.
All prices quoted here were found in June 2017
