Frankfurt Airport to Frankfurt by Train - Directions














Airport Map




If you have arrived in Frankfurt by plane, and want to know how to get into the city to meet up with us to go on our 10:30 "Frankfurt on Foot" walking tour, here are some step by step instructions for taking the trains. It is quite fast, with a train only taking 11 min. (3 stops from the airport) to the Main Train Station - Hauptbahnhof. There is usually a train every 15 min. and they run from very early in the morning until quite late at night.

RMV Website 

How to find the train station in this huge airport? To start with, there are two train stations. If you are just coming into Frankfurt or going to Mainz or Wiesbaden, you should follow the signs for Regional Trains or S-Bahn. (look for the big green S) This station is under Terminal 1 by Arrival Hall B-1, and the signs will be in English. Just take the escalator downstairs and for Frankfurt, go to track #1. All trains leaving from this track will go to Frankfurt.
For Mainz or Wiesbaden, you would go to track #3. This is where the S-bahns 8 and 9 normally stop. Regional trains may also stop here and the ones that are on track #2 are usually going only to the Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof or Sudbahnhof. You can also ride these with your ticket.

If you are catching a long distance train like the ICE, it will depart or arrive at the Fernbahnhof - or Long Distance Train station. All you need to do is follow the signs, though this is located sort of across from Terminal 1. If you land at Terminal 2, simply take the Sky Train, which is a monorail that takes you to Terminal 1. It should only take about 5-6 minutes to go from Terminal 2 down to the Regional Train station.

Cost - a single ticket, one way (einzel fahrt) costs 4.90 €. This ticket will take you into Frankfurt city center by train, and is also valid to get to your final destination by tram, bus, S-bahn or U-bahn, as long as you keep traveling without a break. An all day ticket (Ganz Tag) for one person that includes travel to and from the airport  as well as all public transportation in the city, is 9.65 €. Going to Mainz or Wiesbaden from the airport, will cost the same amount as a ticket from the airport to Frankfurt. This is a better deal than buying 2 one-way tickets.

A group day ticket, called a "Collective Ticket" on the ticket machine (Gruppen karte) will cost 16.60 €. This ticket is good for up to 5 people and is valid all day long, getting to and from the airport and on all forms of transportation in Frankfurt. This is the best choice for 2 or more people. These are NOT 24 hour tickets, they are only good for the day of purchase until the trains, etc. stop running for the day, usually around 1 a.m. Going to Mainz or Wiesbaden from the airport costs the same amount as going to Frankfurt from the airport, but only in one direction. This ticket will not get you to all 3 cities for this price.
 The names of all people using a group ticket must be written on the ticket


Prices for 2019
* Single ticket adult - 4.95 €
* All day ticket for one adult including travel to and from the airport is:  9.65 € 
* All day ticket for a group of up to 5 including travel to and from the airport is:  16.60 €
 The names of all people using a group ticket must be written on the ticket 

The All Day Group ticket is best to buy even if it is only 2 people 

The RMV and DB share ticket machines and they are all touch screens. They switch into English and are fairly user friendly. The machines take coins, 5 and 10 euro bills for single tickets and if you are getting a group ticket it will take a 20 euro bill. It will NOT take a 50 euro bill. Change will be in coins.

RMV machines do not take American credit cards for local travel, but the DB does for longer distance tickets.

In Frankfurt you do not need to validate your ticket unlike some other cities in Germany. It is all on the honor system. If you do not have a valid ticket, you will be fined 60 euro immediately.

There is a DB Travel Center located right next to the escalators for the Regional Train Station. They can print your tickets for you (this will cost you 2 euro), take credit cards for payments and give you information about schedules.

If you need to store your luggage at the airport, cost per bag will be 5€ for 3 hours or less and 8 € per bag for more than 3 hours up to 24 hours. The better deal is to bring your carry-on into the city and store it in the lockers located along track 23 in the main train station. Cost is between 3-5 € and the 5 € lockers are big enough for about 4 carry-on back-packs or bags. You will need coins for the lockers.

We enjoy the trains here and hope you enjoy them too. We have several articles about using trains on this blog, so use our Search Function to find out more information about ticket specials or using the public transportation in Frankfurt.
All About Trains in Germany, Brian's Guide to Getting Around

Comments

Unknown said…
Brilliant thanks.
mouthbreather said…
Thank you so much!
Anonymous said…
Cristal clear description for a Frankfurt newbie. Highly appreciated!
Unknown said…
Many thanks
vj said…
Absolutely essential info, appreciatively...
Unknown said…
Good information
thank you