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What's it like to live and working? Any good nearby riding ?
It's got this - http://www.apfelwein-wagner.com
Which is ace!
Otherwise, not my favourite German city. Not much help, sorry.
I stayed near Frankfurt, place called Hoechst. Outdoorsy stuff to be had in the Main Taunus Kreis, a region nearby.
Fill yer boots.
https://www.outdooractive.com/mobile/en/mountain-bike-rides/main-taunus-kreis/mountain-bike-rides-in-the-main-taunus-kreis/1442173/
Frankfurt itself has become a ridiculously expensive place to live,but property prices drop quite reasonably in the nearby commuter towns. Train links are good so it is easy to get into.
The standard of living is high in the FFM area, and crime is low. I rarely go into Frankfurt myself, it isn't a particularly nice city and I wouldn't want to live there, but the wider area is quite pleasant. To check out property prices https://www.immobilienscout24.de/
The is good riding in the Tanus to the north,with some enduro trails around Konigstein. I am in Darmstadt about 30k south of Frankfurt and on the edge of the Odenwald which has some good riding.
Germany is quite forested, certainly compared to the UK, and the are bazillions of miles of gravel paths to do more leisurely riding.
What's it like to live and working?
Dull and expensive, according to friends in work's FF office. It's the finance centre of Germany, so typically clean and German in a rather dull way. I do know of a very cool speakeasy though, should you visit.
Not sure on surrounding area, although as you're on mainland Europe there's plenty of amazing riding within driving distance - for instance Vosges is two hours away.
Oh and every town and village has a sports club, who organise races running, cycling, triathlons and MTB marathons so through summer there is always something happening nearby and they seem to be supported by the locals instead of the hate campaign such events get back in the UK.
I rarely go into Frankfurt
Think I've been in to the centre about 3 times since 2003!
And 2 of those were when I had a train connection at the Hauptbahnhof and had a bit of time to kill.
for instance Vosges is two hours away
plenty closer.
Odenwald, Taunuswald, Spessartwald, Pfalzerwald
Although it does depend a bit on what you like to ride.
I ride direct from my door (also in Darmstadt).
I lived in Heidelberg about an hour south and my now wife lived in Frankfurt. Plenty of trails just outside the door. Great cycling culture. Great outdoor culture.
Frankfurt was nice enough, with everything you need and some nice restaurants and bars.
I'd go back tomorrow given the chance.
My least favourite German city of those I have visited and I have visited quite a few and spent quite a lot of time in the country on holiday. Munich is imo clearly the place to be, some of my German friends joke that it shows the importance of finance vs making cars that cars get Munich and bankers have to live in Frankfurt. FYI I am in in finance.
OT, but... Curious to know which of the following car making places are "Munich"...
Russelsheim (Frankfurt outskirts!), Stuttgart (porsche), Stuttgart again (Daimler Benz), Wolfsburg, and Ingolstadt.
Jambaliar in talking shit shocker!
BMW are in Munich. Banks aren't.
But, well done you.
Just north of the city is really nice but nothing too adventurous. One of my offices is in Bad Homburg and used to take a bike with me for midweek training.
BMW are in Munich. Banks aren't.
You're another one. Just not true is it.
plenty closer.
Odenwald, Taunuswald, Spessartwald, Pfalzerwald
Although it does depend a bit on what you like to ride.
I ride direct from my door (also in Darmstadt).
Good to know. I just looked at Google Maps, thinking 'there's got to be something within a few hours'!
BMW are in Munich. Banks aren't.
But, well done you.
Thanks. Sadly no longer so the Landesbank Baden-Wurtenberg trips, always used to sneak over to Porschepkatz 🙂
thinking 'there's got to be something within a few hours'!
live in one of the surrounding towns, and it's minutes not hours.
there's both totally flat rhine valley, which instantly borders hilly stuff (Unesco Geo Park thingy)
BMW are in Munich. Banks aren't
Home to 160 banks, savings banks and credit unions,[5] Munich has the second largest banking sector in Germany, the largest being at Frankfurt am Main. Munich’s 50 banks include Bayerische Hypo- und Vereinsbank AG, which merged with Unicredit to form a European-level banking group; and BayernLB. Stadtsparkasse München is one of Germany’s largest savings banks. Mortgage-related transactions are one of the sector’s specialties. Munich-based banks issue one third of all Germany’s mortgage bonds.
Well there' a few 🙂
I lived just outside Frankfurt for 10 years. I loved it personally. Provided your social and are prepared to intergrate with the locals it's lovely. Fantastic food, great beer gardens and some pretty cool spots outdoors, and despite what people say, Germans are well up for a laugh. Plus the roads are fantastic.
As with every city/country, there's placed to avoid, but I'll assume you wont end up in social housing in a high rise.
North, North West & West of Frankfurt are lovely and you can get pretty rural very quickly, if you don't mind commuting.
Riding wise- there's lots and lots about, but not much signposted, so worth joining local riding groups.
I lived there a few years. It's not my favorite city but once you find the more interersting corners its not that bad 😉
It does also have some fair riding in the surrounding areas.
There is a bike trailer-equipped bus up Altkönig in the taunus and in the other direction the Rinne by Burg Frankenstein\Darmstadt is good for a mess around.
Another thing with germany is the swimming pools, within 10km of my apartment there are 5 outdoor 50m pools 1 indoor 50m pool and 3 indoor 25m pools.
The indoor pools are only open autumn to spring and outdoor pools spring to autumn. The outdoor pools tend to have large grassy areas round them for sunbathing, and volleyball nets and table tennis tables.
Similarly it is quite common to find little playgrounds all over the place in residential areas with swings, climbing frames and table tennis. There are 2 such areas within 5 mins walking distance of my apartment, and there are probably a few more I just don't know about on streets I do not go down.
The German government in general does seem to think about the whole quality of life of it's citizens and not just about having the lowest tax (you will be taxed more in Germany than the UK).
WHats oberusel like!? I may be spending some time there for work soon.
Getting taxis from the airport is an experience...
Rachel
the Rinne by Burg Frankenstein\Darmstadt is good for a mess around.
Never really sussed out the legal status of Die Rinne.
Have always assumed it's not a legal trail, as it's certainly been shutdown in the past, but it's one of those cheeky downhills that's evolved so much with so many lines and so many users that it's beyond being shut down permanently.
The only walking trail I've seen with berms and 6ft gap jumps 😉
I typically take a different descent from Frankenstein's Castle.
Playgrounds in the forest too. And lots of Grillplatz too.
edit: oh and Airport Taxis... will never forget the time one August when the taxi showed 200km/h on the speedo (in 2nd to outside lane), and some biker came steaming past wearing jeans+tshirt!
The autobahn between Frankfurt+Darmstadt is where Autounion (?) used to do speed trials.
Less than 2km from my home to Die Rinne, although I didn't know it was called that, we usually call it "the tube" or "escape from Frankenstein"
Some people I loosely know riding it, terrified of the jumps myself much bigger in real life.
Never heard it called that before, but "escape from Frankenstein" is a good name for it. I think the German translates as "the gulley", which is kind of descriptive.
It's on openstreetmap / opencyclemap as "Die Rinne".
Nice berm bail in that vid.
Wiesbaden! About the only German city I walked around and thought, "I could live here".
WHats oberusel like!? I may be spending some time there for work soon.
Pretty nice. It's right at the foot of the Taunus area - very hilly with lots of decent trails.
Echoing above, I wouldn't want to live in Frankfurt. Although there are some cool spots the whole place felt pretty cold to me. Then again, sort of depends what lifestyle you like- there's plenty of good pubs/cafes etc.
I've only been to Wiesbaden once and didn't really like it, but some of the other surrounding areas are great.
Plenty of riding to be done - there's some really good stuff over Darmstadt direction, and out towards Alzenau.
I've been working between the uk and Germany for 3 years now. It was tough to get used to as there are some cultural differences, but once you get to grips with the language you'll realise we have a lot more in common than you think.
One thing that is really good, I find, is the german's approach to work/life balance. Family/free time is very important, and they tend (outside of the big cities anyway) to assign quite an importance to time outside/in nature. Really like that as I find it a much more balanced lifestyle than in the uk.
Overall I've found the people to be really friendly, especially in Hesse. Not like the Austrians - I'm on the road down there this week (sales rep) and have found a lot more people to be kinda cold/unfriendly. Not all, mind, there are some nice ones.
But yeah. **** it, move to Frankfurt (or nearby) you'll have a blast.
My brother lives in NW Frankfurt, Bockenheim area. He's been there 20 years - I've never visited! He doesn't ride much so might not know much about local trails but if you've anything specific you want to know about, I can ask him. I know he'd never come back to England to live - even if he didn't have family over there...