GETTING AROUND

Overview: Frankfurt’s a flat, modern and metropolitan city. Still, Frankfurt is mixed with history and old buildings. Getting around is a handicapped person's dream. Wheeling from point A to point B is easy because the streets are flat and curbs are manageable. Most curbs on main streets and even the side streets have ramps. Plus, the metro, though initially difficult to figure out, makes everything close by. Also, the city center of Frankfurt is fairly compact so you never have to go far, especially the tourist attractions.

Streets, Sidewalks, Curbs, Buildings
Streets: Very easy to get around. Flat, wide, even sidewalks and signals. A lot of the streets do have tracks for trams, and pairs of tracks at that. But, these tracks are embedded with concrete and not cobblestone. There are no real cobblestones to hurdle over.

Curbs: Curbs in Frankfurt generally dip down low enough to negotiate them without problems. Some are higher than others, which is to be expected. They are usually at or near the corners of sidewalks with crosswalks and signals. Sometimes you’ll find an occasional curb that’s higher than normal – about 3 to 4 inches.

Steps: A lot of buildings still have tons of steps in Frankfurt without elevators or at the entrance, though the city itself has a great transit system and accessible sidewalks.

Elevators, Lifts: Elevators or lifts in German are called aufzug. It appears that most hotels (newer ones anyway) and tourist destinations have them and the train and metro stations have lifts. A lot of buildings don’t have them such as the famous marketplace, Kleinmarkthalle, a building just north of the Old Town which has a marketplace on the ground floor with meat vendors. Try to go up this building and you'll find there is no elevator.