Frankfurt Christmas Market Day Trip: £51 Flights, One Big Catch

Frankfurt Hahn is not in Frankfurt. Remember that and this is a cracking day out. Forget it and you'll be stood at a small airport in Rhineland-Palatinate wondering where the Christmas market went.

Here's the deal. £51 return with Ryanair from Stansted on Saturday 28 November, which is what Google Flights showed us on 5 October. Then about 105 minutes on a bus, each way. Still worth it? Here's the whole day.

Frankfurt Christmas market day trip, hour by hour

05:55. Stansted

Yes, five to six in the morning. If you don't live near Stansted, that's the first cost nobody puts in the price. Be honest with yourself about it before you book.

08:15. Hahn

You land in the Hunsrück hills. The Flibco bus into Frankfurt takes about 105 minutes, and our cost data has it at £32 there and back. Sort it when you book the flight. It's the one bit of this day you can't wing.

About 10:30. Frankfurt, finally

Our trip page gives you 8.1 hours in the city. Even with that bus, that's more time than plenty of trips that fly into a proper city airport.

10:30. The market in daylight

The market's on from 23 November to 22 December, 10:00 to 21:00 on Saturdays. It's over 230 stalls spread across Römerberg, Mainkai, Paulsplatz, Friedrich-Stoltze-Platz, Hauptwache and Roßmarkt. Start at Römerberg, the old town square, and work outwards.

13:00. Lunch at the Kleinmarkthalle

The covered food hall near the Zeil. Free to wander round, warm, and stalls of everything. Lunch is about £15 on our cost data.

14:30. The bit that costs nothing

Römerberg and the rebuilt old town behind it, the Neue Altstadt. The cathedral. Then over the Eiserner Steg footbridge to Sachsenhausen, the old apple wine quarter. All free.

One paid thing? The Main Tower viewing platform is about £8 (€9). The Städel Museum is about £16 (€19), but you won't do it justice today. Save it.

16:36. Lights on

That's sunset on our trip page. Get back over the river for when the market lights up, because this is the part you came for. Dinner's about £21 on our data, before the mulled wine.

18:35. Leave

Earlier than you'd like, and that's the bus again. You're back at Hahn for about 20:20 and the flight's at 22:00. Missing a bus out there is a much bigger problem than missing a tram in town, so set an alarm.

The receipt

Flight £51. Bus £32. Lunch £15. Dinner £21. Getting about £5. That's £124. The flight's the cheap bit. The bus adds nearly two thirds of it again.

So, is it worth it?

If Frankfurt's the market you want, yes. Eight hours, a big market, and a city that's at its best after dark. If you just want Christmas markets and don't mind which country, there are cheaper days where the airport's actually near the city. Every Christmas market day trip under £100.

Frankfurt via Hahn on Sat 28 Nov: today's price and times

Want the dates where the bus maths works better? Founders see every Christmas market day six months out, for £19 a year.

Photo credits. Top and carousel: Dr. Thomas Liptak, CC BY-SA 4.0. Hahn: Raimond Spekking, CC BY-SA 4.0. Kleinmarkthalle: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0. Skyline: Ank Kumar, CC BY-SA 4.0.