Guide to Parking in Frankfurt, Germany

Welcome to the gateway of Europe: Frankfurt, Germany!

You may have decided to rent a car in Frankfurt for easy travels on your holiday, so now your first concern should be planning out your parking in Frankfurt.

Like most aspects of planning a trip, it's best not to leave the details to the last minute, so you're wise to research the parking situation in Frankfurt, Germany now. On this page we'll cover the basic information you need to know to enjoy a hassle-free driving and parking experience when navigating Frankfurt in your rental vehicle.

What is Parking Like in Frankfurt? 

In general, Germany is one of the easiest countries in Europe for foreign drivers to navigate. Cities like Berlin, and even Munich offer excellent, accessible parking options.

That's not necessarily the case in Frankfurt. While many drivers report that driving in Frankfurt was easy, when it comes to parking you should prepare for some challenges. 

Free parking is not an option in the downtown areas of Frankfurt, and parking downtown during the daytime is quite expensive.

The parking rates do drop sometimes at night, but generally we advise travelers to plan to park their rental car outside of the downtown areas and enjoy another mode of transportation into the center of Frankfurt.

We'll explain the best way to do this later on this page. 

How to Use a Parking Disc in Germany

Germany has a policy in which you must obtain a blue plastic parking disk with an adjustable time dial in order to park on some of the streets of cities like Frankfurt. These can be obtained at any tobacco shop, police station and most gas stations.

Since you're renting a car, you shouldn’t need to worry about obtaining this. At the local pick-up counter, your rental car should come with one of these provided to you. Make sure to ask before leaving the lot just in case an attendant forgot to provide you with one.

Signs will clearly indicate where you need to use a parking disc in Frankfurt, and how long you are allowed to park in that zone. Use your parking disc by setting the time of your arrival in that parking space and placing the disc on your dashboard. You should round your arrival time up to the nearest half hour.

Make note of the parking time allowed and return in that window to avoid a parking ticket.

Parking Frankfurt Airport: An Overview

If you have decided to park at the airport in Frankfurt, there are a few things you should be aware of.

Booking a parking space ahead of time online is very common and definitely recommended, but you can also book at the airport terminal. There are a few ways to save money, first if you decide to book online in advance, you can save up to 60% (definitely worth the advanced planning, don't you think?). There are also special weekend and holiday rates to be aware of as well as a business section. 

To obtain the “early bird” online discounted rate, you can park your car anywhere from 7-29 days. Advanced booking can be completed within the 9 months prior to when you plan to leave your car at the airport. Advance payment is accepted from any major credit card and even PayPal.

For weekend parking, rates start as low as 29 euros for the entire weekend. Since one-way, city-to-city airfare is so cheap in Europe, this is a great option if you want to quickly visit another city for the weekend without hopping a train or driving across international borders. You are able to park for 2-4 days at this rate but they must be on the weekend meaning Friday until Monday.

Holiday parking is either short term or long term parking, you can park for only 1 day or up to 60 days. These spots can be booked as far as 3 months in advance of your trip, and up to 1 day before departure. An important thing to note regarding holiday parking is that these must be paid in advance and you may park your car at the airport anywhere from 1-29 days.

Whichever option you choose for parking at Frankfurt Airport, booking online ahead of time will usually be the most cost effective and convenient way to arrange parking for your rental car at the airport in Frankfurt. 

Is Parking Free or Paid in Frankfurt? 

There are many places to park in Frankfurt, but all parking options require payment in Frankfurt, Germany. Free parking is not usually something that exists.

On street parking is available in downtown Frankfurt, but you will pay at all hours of the day and it is quite expensive. The costs of 24 hour parking are 1 euro per 20 minutes which is 3 euro per hour. This means that for an entire 24 hour period you will be paying 72 euro, or 36 euro for 12 hours in the day. This is not a great deal, and it's something that can really eat into a vacation budget, so it's not something we recommend.

There are car parks within the city if you need long term parking. For short term parking the rates are 1-3 euros, but for long term, evening, overnight and weekend there are special rates, which tend to be reasonable.

The best option to park in Frankfurt is at one of the “park and ride,” (P+R) car parks. These are essentially lots that are on the outskirts of the city near public transportation. Some of these parks will cost 1.50-3 euro per day which is a huge improvement when compared to downtown street parking, and most travelers find this the best option for parking in Frankfurt. There are even some RMV trains that offer free parking!

Our advice is not to even try parking downtown. It can be challenging to find a space, and if you do find a space it's very expensive. Plan to drive to a train station with a P+R lot and then enjoy Frankfurt's excellent rail system to get to the destinations you hope to explore in the city center.

Best Parking Garages and Parking Lots in Frankfurt

There are a few garage and lots in Frankfurt to be aware of and plan your trip around using.

One garage near Galluspark only costs 1 EUR per hour, with a maximum charge of 10 EUR for an entire 24 hours. This is on the corner of Mainzer Landstrasse and Kleyerstrasse. There is also a tram stop and an S-Bahn station right there for easy access to other areas of the city. It's one of our recommended parking options in the city of Frankfurt.

One lot near the city center is Parkhaus Dom Römer, located at Domstraße 1. This is quite expensive and costs 2 euro per hour Monday-Saturday, and 1 euro per hour on Sundays. Between 7pm-7am the cost is 4 euro in total, so it's a decent option for overnight parking. With that said, there is a high chance of this lot being full so it's unlikely that you can arrive after 7pm and find a space for the night. If your budget allows this is a convenient option, but it is expensive.

Parkhaus Hauptwache located at Kornmarkt 10, is 2.50 euro per hour Monday-Saturday, and .50 euro cents on Sunday per 30 minutes. Again from 7pm-7am the cost is 4 euro which makes this more expensive than the other option, but this lot usually has more availability than Parkhaus Dom Römer.

Some lots offer a daily maximum such as Parkhaus Kaiserplatz, located at Bethmannstraße 50-54, which charges 2.50 euro per hour, but carries a maximum of 25 euro per day. A great guide to finding real-time parking lot availability is www.parkme.com.

Again, our suggestion is to park in a park and ride lot at a train station on the outskirts of Frankfurt, and take a train into the city.

Parking Signs and Symbols in Frankfurt, Germany

There are only a few road and parking signs to look out for while in Frankfurt, Germany. These include:

• No parking,
• Normal allowed parking,
• Parking disc parking, and
• Sidewalk parking.

The no parking sign is a blue circle with a red line through it. 

The normal parking sign is a blue square with a large P.

The parking disc parking is exactly the same as this sign, but it will have the number of hours or minutes allowed to park there.

Finally there are parking signs denoting sidewalk parking. This will look like a car that is half up on a step and half down off of a step, this is the sidewalk. Since the roads are small feel free to park your car halfway on the sidewalk if you see this sign. You will most likely have an example from other cars parked on that street.

Parking in Frankfurt, Germany should not be difficult as you will mainly be using lots and garages. Parking in the city center might be more challenging, but you could also get lucky and find a spot.

Whether or not you park in the city center, you won’t have any issue making it into Frankfurt, and you will enjoy your time in the gateway of Europe.