organized tours Must be booked during registration
A selection of organized tours for the Wednesday afternoon trips are offered, and complemented by suggestions for self-guided tours. If you wish to join one of the organized tours, you need to book this during your registration process. For further details please email [email protected].
Wine-tasting at Castle Johannisberg
The magnificent castle vineyard “Schloss Johannisberg” sits high on the slopes of the Rhine valley and offers magnificent views across its vinefields and over the Rhine river. It is the home of the first ever Riesling wine. We enjoy a wine-tasting guided tour through the Castle, its historic wine cellar, and the castle grounds.
65 €
Included in Price
Program
|
12:30 |
depart by coach from Frankfurt (University Campus Westend) |
|
13:30 |
arrive at Schloss Johannisberg |
|
13:45 |
enjoy a sparkling wine welcome drink at the “Spätlese” monument |
|
14:00 |
start of the guided wine-tasting tour in groups
|
|
16:15 |
return journey by coach |
|
17:30 |
arrive in Frankfurt (University Campus Westend) |
Messel Pit Fossil Site
The UNESCO World Heritage Site is an abandoned oil shale open-cast quarry, exposing bituminous clay stones deposited at the bottom of a volcanic lake during the middle Eocene. The Messel Pit Fossil Site is the richest site in the world for understanding the living environment of the Eocene, between 57 million and 36 million years ago. It provides unique information about the early stages of the evolution of mammals and is exceptional in the quality of preservation, quantity and diversity of fossils of over 1000 species of plants and animals.
35 €
We recommend sturdy footwear, rain/sun protection and a drinking bottle.
Included in Price
Program
|
12:30 |
depart by coach from Frankfurt (University Campus Westend) |
|
13:30 |
arrive at the Messel Pit Fossile Site
|
|
16:15 |
return journey by coach |
|
17:30 |
arrive in Frankfurt (University Campus Westend) |
Mathildenhöhe – The Cradle of Modernism
The UNESCO World Heritage Site Mathildenhöhe is an ensemble of experimental exhibition buildings and exceptional progressive architectural elements in a designed urban landscape. It is a prototype of Modernism documenting 20th-century modernist architecture with contemporary spatial art and a colony of innovative artists’ houses and studio buildings.
We recommend comfortable walking shoes, rain/sun protection, a drinking bottle.
50 €
The tour we offer is not your regular run-of-the-mill tour. We take an exclusive, quirky, amusing, journey with “Aurora,” a tour guide with a twist, who feels at home on a drag stage and guides us around this modernist landscape with facts, anecdotes and humor.
Included in Price
Program
|
13:10 |
Meet at the entrance hall of Frankfurt central railway station (Hbf) |
|
13:24 |
Depart from the central railway station by train to Darmstadt East station |
|
13:48 |
Arrive in Darmstadt East Station, short walk (10-15 mins) to Mathildenhöhe |
|
14:30 |
Guided tour of the Mathildenhöhe with “Aurora” |
|
16:30 |
End of tour |
European Space Operations Centre (ESOC)
The European Space Operations Centre is the main mission control centre for the European Space Agency (ESA). Its activities include the operation of uncrewed spacecraft on behalf of ESA, the launch and early orbit phases (LEOP) of ESA and third-party missions, the operation of planetary and solar missions (e.g. Mars Express, Trace Gas Orbiter), astronomy & fundamental physics missions (e.g. Gaia, XMM Newton) and Earth observation missions (e.g. CryoSat2 and Swarm).
Essential Requirement Passport or national ID card.
40 €
There will be two groups, each will have a separate guided tour of the ESOC.
Visit Itinerary
Included in Price
Program
Group 1:
|
12:45 |
Meet at the entrance hall of Frankfurt central railway station (Hbf) |
|
13:25 |
Arrive in Darmstadt Central Station, short walk (10-15 mins) to ESOC |
|
13:45 |
ID-control at ESOC |
|
14:00 |
Tour of the satellite control centre site, including the main control room and various satellite models viewed during ongoing operations. |
|
15:00 |
End of tour |
Group 2:
|
13:45 |
Meet at the entrance hall of Frankfurt central railway station (Hbf) |
|
14:25 |
Arrive in Darmstadt Central Station, short walk (10-15 mins) to ESOC |
|
14:45 |
ID-control at ESOC |
|
15:00 |
Tour of the satellite control centre site, including the main control room and various satellite models viewed during ongoing operations. |
|
16:00 |
End of tour |
Frankfurt City Sightseeing Boat Cruise
We enjoy a sightseeing tour of Frankfurt by boat along the Main River and discover the city of Frankfurt in all its variety. Historic, charming, fun, lively and worth seeing – all at once. A river cruise on the Main is a great way to discover Frankfurt with accompanying commentaries in German and English about the most important sights along the river.
20 €
The boat departs from the landing stage “Eiserner Steg“ (The Old Iron Bridge) down town Frankfurt and cruises for 100 minutes to both the eastern and western flanks of the city. Refreshments are available for purchase on board.
Included in Price
Program
First option
|
13:30 |
We meet at the “Primus Line” Boat at the Eiserner Steg (Old Iron Footbridge) |
|
14:00 |
Begin the sightseeing boat cruise along the river Main |
|
15:40 |
End of the sightseeing boat cruise along the river Main |
Second option
|
14:30 |
We meet at the “Primus Line” Boat at the Eiserner Steg (Old Iron Footbridge) |
|
15:00 |
Begin the sightseeing boat cruise along the river Main |
|
16:40 |
End of the sightseeing boat cruise along the river Main |
Guided Frankfurt Walking Tours
All tours are run by Tourismus- und Congress GmbH Frankfurt am Main.
Meeting point is in front of the main entrance of Paulskirche, Paulsplatz in Frankfurt. The Location can be found in the interactive map here.
10 €
Tour Information
Tours
Three walking tours are available. Click each section below to view the detailed itinerary.
The Taunus
The Taunus is a beautiful mountain range northeast of Frankfurt. It is part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains (Rheinisches Schiefergebirge), and stretches for about 75 km from southwest to northeast. It has a network of great hiking trails for all levels, all distances with mostly gentle slopes, easy to walk paths, and great views. Regular hiking gear is more than sufficient. The tallest peak is the Großer Feldberg (878 m) with a plateau and restaurant on top, which you can either walk to or take a bus.
The Taunus Information centre provides information about hiking trails.
How to get to Taunus
Selected Tram/Bus Times
|
U3 |
Leaves Holzhausenstraße: 12:52, Arrives at Hohemark: 13:27 |
|
Bus 57 |
Leaves Hohemark: 13:32, Arrives at Große Kurve: 13:38 |
|
U3 |
Leaves Holzhausenstraße: 13:22, Arrives at Hohemark: 13:57 |
|
Bus 51 |
Leaves Hohemark: 14:02, Arrives at Große Kurve: 14:08 |
How to get back from the Taunus
Selected Tram/Bus Times
|
Bus 51 |
Leaves Große Kurve : 16:36, Arrives at Hohemark: 16:41 |
|
U3 |
Leaves Hohemark: 16:50, Arrives at Holzhausenstraße: 17:25 |
|
Bus 57 |
Leaves Große Kurve : 17:26, Arrives at Hohemark: 17:31 |
|
U3 |
Leaves Hohemark: 16:35, Arrives at Holzhausenstraße: 18:10 |
Alternative: Start in Kronberg
Selected Train Times
|
Selected train to Kronberg (S4) |
Leaves Frankfurt main station: 12:54, Arrives at Kronberg: 13:16 |
|
Selected train from Kronberg (S4) |
Leaves Kronberg at 16:59, Arrives at Frankfurt main station: 17:21 |
Palmengarten
Palmengarten is one of Frankfurt’s most distinctive, year-round, visitor attractions, both for locals and visitors. It represents a signature green space in the city’s landscape, a city that integrates nature through parks within the living areas.
Palmengarten is a botanical garden in the heart of the city that consists of 22 hectares with 13,000+ plant species from around the world, combining outdoor gardens, historic greenhouses, and seasonal cultural on-site events (i.e., concerts, flower shows, lights festivals). Palmengarten is a great choice if you are looking for a calm break from the conference with an inspiring visit that combines nature, relaxation, art, and culture.
What to expect
The Palmengarten contains several glasshouses with diverse plant collections, tropical and subtropical, seasonal flower displays, and thematic gardens. There is also a butterfly life cycle exhibit and flower ecology themes. The outdoors part is also very important; combines areas with walking paths, sitting long chairs, lakes where you can take a boat, a café, and games like mini-golf. It is perfect for families.
Practical visitor information
Location: Frankfurt Westend-Süd (very close to the Conference).
Address: Siesmayerstraße 63, 60323 Frankfurt am Main
Getting there
Walking distance from Westend campus (12 minutes). Also reachable by U-bahn (U4, U6, U7, U8) and buses (M36 / 50 / 75).
Opening times
Open daily, from 9 am to 7 pm. The Palmengarten must be left by 11 p.m. at the latest.
Admission fee (General): 9.00€, after 6:30pm: 5.00€, under 17 (included): free.
Plan your visit at palmengarten.de
Add to your visit
Right in front of Palmengarten there is another park: Grüneburgpark, and several cafés, including Café Grün and Café Liebe.
Museum Embankment along the Main river
The Museum Embankment (Museumsufer) in the heart of Frankfurt stretches along the Main River with a total of 39 museums. It is one of the best cultural conglomerate in Europe. Some of the highlights are the the world-renowned Städel Museum, the die Schirn Kunsthalle, and the Naturmuseum Senckenberg. Their central location allows enjoying their exhibitons together with the city center of Frankfurt am Main.
You can get a MuseumsuferTicket, a 2-day pass for at the moment 21 €, which grants admission to nearly 40 museums across the city. Check the Museum Embankment for detailed information on the musuems and tickets.
Senckenberg Naturmuseum
The Senckenberg Naturmuseum Frankfurt will be open to MetSoc meeting participants from August 9th through August 15th. Please show your badge for free entry.
Opening hours
Monday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Tuesday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Wednesday 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Thursday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, Sunday, and public holidays 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Address
Senckenberg Naturmuseum Frankfurt
Senckenberganlage 25
60325 Frankfurt