OZU /GERMANY /FRANKFURT /GUIDE
From Frankfurt airport to the centre
4 stopsUpdated July 2026
Frankfurt is one of the very few airports in Europe with a high-speed station of its own underneath, which makes it a rail junction with a runway attached. The centre is thirteen kilometres and a long quarter-hour on the S-Bahn away. On paper there’s no easier transfer on this continent.
Which is exactly why there are two warnings to read. The first is permanent and is the classic mistake here: the airport has two different stations, in different places, and taking the wrong one costs you your train. The second is this year’s: through 2026 there are engineering works on stretches of the S8 and S9, with cancellations and replacement buses depending on the phase, so this needs checking on the day you fly.
The route, stop by stop
4 STOPS- 01
The two stations, and which one is yours
A mistake gets made here every day. The airport has two railway stations, their names look alike and they aren’t in the same place.
The regional one, the Regionalbahnhof, is at level 0 of Terminal 1 and it’s where the S-Bahn and regional trains leave from: it’s yours if you’re going into central Frankfurt. The other, the Fernbahnhof, is the long-distance one and it’s where the ICEs stop. It’s separate, across a walkway, and it’s yours if you’re heading straight to Cologne, Stuttgart or Basel.
If you’re in a hurry and follow signs that just say “Bahnhof”, you have a fifty-fifty chance of ending up at the wrong one. Check whether your train is an S or an ICE before you start walking.
- 02
The S8 and S9 into town, and the 2026 works
The S8 and S9 leave from the regional station under Terminal 1 and reach the centre in a long quarter-hour: they stop at the Hauptbahnhof and carry on to Hauptwache, the heart of the old town. It’s the normal way to do it and a plain RMV network ticket covers it.
This year’s warning: through 2026 there are engineering works on stretches of the S8 and S9, with cancellations, diversions and replacement buses depending on the phase. This is the airport’s main connection, so the disruption isn’t minor.
There’s no way to write it down here that will still help you in three months: check the line status with the operator on the day you fly, and if it’s cut, you already know the taxi is what’s left.
- 03
The ICE, and the city you can skip
What makes this airport special is what almost nobody uses: direct ICEs leave the Fernbahnhof for half of Germany without touching the city. Cologne in an hour, Stuttgart, Basel. If your final destination isn’t Frankfurt, you don’t have to enter Frankfurt: get off the plane, cross to the other station, leave. It works just as well in reverse, and that’s the real trick: if you spend the day out (in Cologne, in Heidelberg, on the Rhine) you can come straight back to the Fernbahnhof and check in without returning to the hotel or the centre. It’s why Frankfurt is Europe’s best long layover and why a six-hour wait here doesn’t have to be spent in the terminal.
- 04
The taxi, and when it makes sense
Thirteen kilometres of motorway separate the airport from town, between twenty and thirty minutes depending on traffic, which here is real: the A5 is one of Germany’s busiest motorways and at eight in the morning the taxi can take longer than the train. With the S-Bahn this frequent, the taxi is for two specific cases. One: antisocial hours, because the S-Bahn isn’t a twenty-four-hour service and there are gaps overnight. Two: the days when the 2026 works have the line cut and the replacement bus stretches the journey. Outside those two, it’s paying more to arrive later.
Frequently asked
How do you get from Frankfurt airport to the centre?
On the S8 or S9 from the regional station at level 0 of Terminal 1: a long quarter-hour to the Hauptbahnhof and Hauptwache. It’s thirteen kilometres. Careful in 2026: there are works on stretches of those lines and it’s worth checking status on the day.
How many train stations does Frankfurt airport have?
Two, and mixing them up is the classic mistake. The regional one, at level 0 of Terminal 1, is for the S-Bahn and regional trains: that’s the one into the centre. The Fernbahnhof, separate, is the long-distance one where ICEs to Cologne, Stuttgart or Basel leave from.
Can you catch an ICE directly at Frankfurt airport?
Yes, from the Fernbahnhof, one of the few high-speed stations in Europe inside an airport. Direct trains run to Cologne in an hour, to Stuttgart or Basel, without going through the city. It works in reverse too: you can spend the day away and come back to check in.