Hesse - Hessen

The state Hesse is in the middle Germany, surrounded by the federal states Thuringia in the East, Bavaria in the south East, Baden-Wuerttemberg in the south, Rhineland-Palatinate in the southwest, North Rhine-Westphalia in the northwest and Lower Saxony in the North. The landscape is largely hilly and forested south of the metropolis Frankfurt am Main on the other hand flat. The capitalcity Wiesbaden lies on the north side of the Rhine across from Mainz.

See also: Portal Hessen

Regions

From north to south:

• North Hesse - also called "Kurhessen".
  • Rothaar Mountains – Kaufunger Forest – Habichtswald – Reinhardswald − Kellerwald - High Meissner – Crunch – Waldecker Land – Waldhessen – Werra-Meißner-Land

• East Hesse with the Fulda area and the Hessian one Rhön.
  • Rhön – Spessart

• Central Hessen With to water and Marburg, as
  • Hessian Westerwald – Burgwald – Lahn-Dill-Bergland – Vogelsberg

• South Hesse
  • Rhine Main Area
  • Wetterau – Taunus – Rheingau – Hessian Ried – Mountain road – Odenwald (Hessian parts).

Rivers

A characteristic landscape feature of Hesse are the numerous beautiful river valleys. As transport routes, they were of great economic importance for the country over the centuries. Today this has changed a lot. Shipping on the Lahn, Fulda, Werra and also the Weser only takes place in the tourist area. But more and more visitors are discovering the charm of these river landscapes. Whether by bike or canoe, there is a lot to discover: half-timbered towns, castles and palaces, ship tunnels and locks on the Lahn that you can operate yourself, and even a bicycle cable car on the Fulda.

Information on water hiking on the Lahn, Fulda, Werra and Weser can be found in the topic article Water hiking in Germany to find.

The river landscapes in Hessen (indented rivers are tributaries):

• Weser (Is only striped)
  • Werra – see also: Werra valley cycle path
  • Fulda – see also: Fulda cycle path
    • Eder with the Edersee - Schwalm - Haune
  • Diemel

• Rhine - Hessen also has something to do with the famous Middle Rhine Valley
  • Neckar - the places worth seeing Staghorn and Neckarsteinach belong to Hessen
  • Main - Kinzig - Nidda
  • Lahn - Ohm - Dill - Weil - Aar (Taunus) - see also: Weiltalweg, Aartal cycle path

Cities

The five largest cities

1. Frankfurt am Main - the "Mainhattan", banking metropolis and transport hub with the airport Frankfurt and the train stations, annual book fair.
2. Wiesbaden - State capital and former world spa town with 14 hot thermal springs.
3. kassel - In the north Hessian city kassel there are a number of tourist destinations such as the one awarded by UNESCO Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe with the great statue of Hercules, the documenta as the world-famous and largest exhibition for modern art, which every 5 years attracts a few million visitors from all over the world to Kassel, as well as the Grimmwelt Kassel, in which, among other things, exhibits on children's and house fairy tales are shown.^[1]
4. Darmstadt - Science city and the Mathildenhöhe artists' colony.
5. Offenbach am Main - historical origin of many leather goods.

Other notable cities

• Büdingen - historic old town with the best preserved medieval city complexes in Europe.
• Friedberg - Old town with half-timbered buildings and fortress
• Fulda - Bishopric between Vogelsberg and Rhön. The baroque cathedral of St. Salvator and Bonifatius is one of the most interesting buildings.
• Gelnhausen - Barbarossastadt, district town of Main-Kinzig district
• to water in Central Hesse - The city, which was appropriately rebuilt after World War II, has a beautiful botanical garden.
• Marburg - University town on the Lahn. The pretty old town and the Landgrave Castle above the city are well worth seeing.
• Hanau - Goldsmith town
• Wetzlar - very well preserved half-timbered old town with cathedral

Fachwerkkleinode

Many half-timbered towns and villages lie hidden between the Hessian low mountain ranges. The most worth seeing can be found in the following list:

• Alsfeld - Well-known half-timbered institution in Upper Hesse with a well-known half-timbered town hall
• Bad Sooden-Allendorf - one of the most beautiful Hessian half-timbered pearls on the Werra
• Eschwege - Half-timbered town in the Werra valley
• Fritzlar - Old town with half-timbered marketplace and largely preserved city wall
• Heppenheim - one of the most beautiful half-timbered marketplaces in Hesse, in a picturesque location in the Bergstrasse wine region
• Herborn - Pearl in Central Hesse on the Dill
• Idstein - Half-timbered idyll in the Taunus
• Limburg on the Lahn - Half-timbered old town and imposing cathedral
• Naumburg (Hesse) - nice, little half-timbered town in the Habichtswald Nature Park (rather unknown).
• Melsungen - Half-timbered town on the Fulda with an imposing half-timbered town hall
• Michelstadt - Half-timbered town in the Odenwald
• Rotenburg on the Fulda - pretty half-timbered town on the middle Fulda
• Wanfried - Small half-timbered town in the Werra valley towards Thuringia
• Zwingenberg - Small residential town with half-timbered houses on Bergstrasse

Health resorts

The largest and most famous health resorts:

• Bad Hersfeld - Festival city, Lullusfest (oldest folk festival in Germany)
• Bad Homburg v. d. height
• Bad Nauheim - beautiful spa park with graduation towers (salt extraction systems)
• Bad Wildungen

Other goals

Hessen is rich in places of interest. Here is a small selection of nationally significant destinations:

• Wasserkuppe in the Rhön - The mountain of aviators attracts many visitors. Anyone who has climbed the viewing platform at 960 m above sea level on the Radom has arrived at the highest publicly accessible point in Hesse.
• Kellerwald-Edersee National Park - Hesse's only national park was founded in 2004. The park is south of the Edersee and protects valuable beech forest stands.
• Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe on the outskirts of kassel - One of the main attractions in this landscape park are the water features in summer on Wednesdays and Sundays.
• Messel Pit - Famous fossil site close by Messel east of Darmstadt, UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Great Feldberg - The highest mountain in the Taunus (878.5 meters) has a 40 meter high observation tower. The television tower there is even more eye-catching, but it cannot be visited.
• Hessenpark - Large open-air museum in the Taunus with half-timbered houses from all parts of Hesse
• Saalburg Castle - well-known rebuilt Roman fort in the Taunus
• Neroberg on the outskirts of Wiesbaden with a beautiful view of the city, Nerobergbahn, excursion gastronomy, Opelbad (outdoor pool), excursion gastronomy and Russian Orthodox Church.
• Rheingau with its vineyards below the Taunus facing the Rhine, its cozy wine towns like Rudesheim am Rhein and Eltville on the Rhine, the Johannisberg Castle, Vollrads Castle and Schloss Biebrich and the outstanding locations:
  • Eberbach Monastery in the Rheingau - impressive, medieval Cistercian monastery.
  • Niederwald Monument near Rüdesheim, a place from which one has a wonderful view of Rheinhessen and the Middle Rhine Valley Has.
• This is located on the former German-German border near Asbach-Sickenberg Border Museum Schifflersgrund.
• For the fishing enthusiast tourists Vogelsbergfishing a unique opportunity to rent a beautiful pond plot including a log cabin for 4-5 people on a daily basis.

background

A checkered history has given the country a cultural heritage, from Roman garrisons, Carolingian castles, Romanesque churches to Gothic cathedrals.

Hesse was brought into being by the American armed forces in September 1945 after the war. It emerged from the formerly Prussian provinces of Kurhessen and the greater part of Nassau, as well as the right bank of the Rhine of the former People's State of Hesse (Starkenburg and Upper Hesse). Since Rheinhessen was occupied by the French, this part of the country was assigned to Rhineland-Palatinate. The districts of Mainz on the right bank of the Rhine were separated and assigned to the state capital Wiesbaden and the district of Groß-Gerau.

Today's Hesse has become the leading economic center, especially the financial center and the transport hub in Frankfurt am Main developed.

getting there

By plane

International passengers usually land on the 50.0333333333338.5705555555556airport Frankfurt(IATA: FRA), the second largest airport Europe and the hub of Deutsche Lufthansa. From this airport you can reach downtown Frankfurt with the S-Bahn from the regional train station every 15 minutes in 11-12 minutes. Many ICE's and IC's stop at the airport long-distance train station as well as or instead of at Frankfurt Hbf.

The former military airport 49.9483333333337.2641666666667Hahn Airport(IATA: HHN), often referred to in a misleading way as Frankfurt-Hahn, is in spite of this name Hunsrück in Rhineland-Palatinate and is served by low-cost airlines. The bus ride to Frankfurt am Main takes at least 90 minutes from there.

By train

Central long-distance traffic hubs are the two train stations Frankfurt Hbf and Frankfurt Airport long-distance train station. There are hourly or 2-hour direct ICE connections to almost all major German cities. ICE's also go to Vienna, Zurich, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. Other ICE stops are Frankfurt-Süd, Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, Fulda, Hanau, Darmstadt and the state capital Wiesbaden. A TGV runs over every day Strasbourg and Lyon to Marseille.

InterCitys run every 2 hours from Hamburg via Kassel-Wilhelmshöhe, Marburg, Gießen, Friedberg, Frankfurt am Main and Darmstadt to Baden-Württemberg. Intercity trains come every hour on the left bank of the Rhine from Cologne via Koblenz and Mainz to Frankfurt am Main.

Regional express trains run in a star shape from Frankfurt main station to Limburg, Gießen, Siegen, Marburg and Kassel, to Fulda, Aschaffenburg, Darmstadt, Heidelberg, Mannheim, Saarbrücken via Mainz, as well as to Koblenz via Mainz and Bingen as well as via Wiesbaden (StadtExpress) and Rüdesheim.

You can do this on all local buses and trains within Hesse and Mainz Hessen ticket use. For up to 5 people it costs € 36 (2020), Bicycles can be taken along free of charge. It is valid Mon - Fri from 9 a.m., on Saturdays and Sundays all day. There is no single version.

The taking of Bicycles is free in Hesse with RMV and NVV tickets, in the VRN area Mon - Fri only from 9 a.m. With the Hessenticket, you can also take your bike with you for free. With other train tickets it costs an additional 6.50 €. (2020)

By bus

The development of the long-distance bus market is currently subject to rapid change, both in terms of providers and routes.

In the street

There are many in Hessen Park ride Parking spaces that allow you to change from your car to local public transport. The website provides an overview of the parking spaces and the current tariffs pundr.hessen.de.

By boat

The Rhine and Main are navigable in the area of ​​Hesse. Federal waterways, which are almost exclusively used by recreational shipping, are the Lahn, Fulda and Weser.

mobility

With the exception of the southern tip, Hessen is divided into two large areas Transport associations divided up:

• North Hessian Transport Association (NVV) - North Hesse north of Marburg and Fulda
• Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV) - Central and South Hesse to Darmstadt and Odenwald, including Mainz
• Rhein-Neckar transport association (VRN) - Area of ​​the Bergstrasse district south of Darmstadt, offers transition tariffs to the RMV area.

With the Hessenticket of the three Hessian transport associations can travel up to five people for 35 euros for a day within Hesse and Mainz with local trains, S-Bahn and U-Bahn, as well as trams and buses as often and as far as they want.

Numerous well-developed and signposted Bike paths and long-distance cycle routes like the Lahn valley cycle path or the Volcano cycle path traverse the country. The article provides an overview of this Cycle routes in Hessen.

Tourist Attractions

The remains of the Upper German-Raetian Limes from Roman times, e.g. B. the reconstructed Saalburg Castle. You can also see the individual sites on a tour along the Limes cycle path discover. Other world heritage sites in Hesse are the medieval abbey and the Altenmünster Monastery Lorsch as well as the Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe near Kassel - an extensive landscape park with its water features, the classicistic Wilhelmshöhe Castle and the Hercules statue that can be seen from afar.

The Messel Pit, an important site of fossils from the Eocene and the Kellerwald-Edersee National Park with its old beech forests.

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  Saalburg Castle

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  Lorsch Monastery

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  Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe

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  Kellerwald

One of the most famous sights in the country is also the old town of Fritzlar with its walled towers and the Romanesque cathedral; the Marburg Upper town including the Old University, Gothic Elisabeth Church and Landgrave Castle; Fulda with its cathedral, Michaelskirche and the Fasanerie Castle. Limburg on the Lahn impresses with its unusual, seven-towered cathedral, the medieval castle and an overall well-preserved old town with numerous half-timbered houses. Büdingen has an exceptionally well-preserved old town along with a castle and medieval fortifications and is therefore also referred to as "the Rothenburg of Hesse".

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  Market place Fritzlar

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  Old University of Marburg

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  Fulda Cathedral

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  Limburg Cathedral

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  Old town of Büdingen

Frankfurt am Main stands out with its skyscraper skyline, which is unique in Germany. Here you can also find important places of history such as the Römer (old town hall), where the Roman-German kings were elected, and the Paulskirche, where the first German parliament met. The city also offers several museums of national importance: the Senckenberg Natural History Museum (Germany's largest natural history museum), the art collection of the Städel Museum and the Goethe House. In the state capital Wiesbaden The Baroque Biebrich Castle, the Neroberg with the Russian Orthodox Church, the Kurhaus with its casino and the State Theater are particularly noteworthy. The Wiesbaden Museum is dedicated to both art and natural history. Not far from Wiesbaden is located in the Rheingau Eberbach Monastery. A highlight in Darmstadt is the Mathildenhöhe Landscape Park, to which the striking wedding tower and the Darmstadt artists' colony belong.

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  Frankfurt Romans

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  Kurhaus Wiesbaden

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  Eberbach Monastery

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  Darmstadt Mathildenhöhe

The history of village life in the various Hessian regions takes place in the open-air museum Hessenpark near Neu-Anspach im Taunus. Places with many half-timbered houses, often even with a largely closed half-timbered townscape, connect the German half-timbered street. Most of the stages are in Hesse.

It is the most attractive landscape Lahn valley and the Rheingau.

language

The Hessian dialects are spoken in large parts of Hesse and partly beyond. In the south (Bergstrasse and Odenwald), Kurpfälzisch is spoken, in the Westerwald Mosel-Franconian, in northern Hesse partly also Low German (in the Korbach / Edersee area and in the Werra valley). Due to the close relationship, the Hessian is usually understood quickly by the Palatinate and Franconian, others will get into serious problems. However, due to the strong immigration to Hesse, but also due to the current mobility of the inhabitants, the Hessian is almost threatened with extinction. True Hessian can hardly be found in southern Hesse and only in smaller communities in northern Hesse. The "Hessian" propagated on radio and television is only a regional dialect that is only spoken in the greater Frankfurt area. In terms of sound, it has no relationship to the dialects in the north of Hesse, the historical core area of ​​Hesse. In Hessian there is no difference between ch and sch. The words church and cherry sound the same.

kitchen

More about food and drink in Hessen can be found on the page: Eating and drinking in Hessen

Learn

Universities are available in Frankfurt am Main, Darmstadt, Marburg, Gießen and Kassel. There are universities (formerly technical colleges) in Wiesbaden (with branch offices in Rüsselsheim and Geisenheim), Frankfurt am Main, Darmstadt, Gießen (with branch offices in Friedberg and Wetzlar) and Fulda.

public holidays

Next appointment	Surname	importance
Saturday 1st January 2022	New Year	New Years Day
Friday April 15, 2022	Good Friday	highest Christian holiday, commemoration of the crucifixion of Christ
Sunday April 17th 2022	Easter Sunday	Easter, commemoration of the resurrection of Christ
Monday April 18, 2022	Easter Monday	Easter, commemoration of the resurrection of Christ
Saturday 1st May 2021	May Day	International Labor Day
Thursday May 13th 2021	Ascension of Christ	40 days after Easter, commemoration of the Ascension of Christ
Sunday 23 May 2021	Pentecost Sunday	7 weeks after Easter, commemoration of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit
Monday, May 24, 2021	Whit Monday	1 day after Pentecost Sunday, commemoration of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit
Thursday 3rd June 2021	Corpus Christi	Catholic solemnity of the bodily presence of Christ in the Eucharist
Sunday 3rd October 2021	Day of German unity	National holiday
Saturday 25 December 2021	1st Christmas Day	Christmas, commemoration of the birth of Christ
Sunday 26 December 2021	2nd Christmas Day	Christmas, commemoration of the birth of Christ

Christmas Eve (December 24th) and New Year's Eve (December 31st) are not public holidays. Nevertheless, many businesses are closed all day and many shops and leisure facilities are closed from midday on these days. Depending on the city, local public transport can be severely restricted or even stopped from the afternoon onwards. Most of the restaurants are also closed on Christmas Eve.

School holidays

School holidays in Hessen

vacation	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Easter	06.04.-18.04.	06.04.-16.04.	11.04.-23.04.	03.04.–22.04.	25.03.–13.04.
summer	06.07.-14.08.	19.07.-27.08.	25.07.-02.09.	24.07.–01.09.	15.07.–23.08.
autumn	05.10.-17.10.	11.10.-23.10.	24.10.-29.10.	23.10.–28.10.
Christmas	21.12.-09.01.	23.12.-08.01.	22.12.-07.01.	27.12.–13.01.

Furthermore, there are three to five flexible vacation days in Hesse, which are determined locally. The long-term summer vacation dates can be found at the Conference of Ministers of Education can be read.

security

In large parts of Hesse, the security situation corresponds to that in the whole of Germany with the exception of a few surrounding communities around Frankfurt, especially in Dietzenbach, which has developed into a focal point.

health

The areas between Spessart and Rhine are as TBE risk areas classified, i.e. areas in which between 1985 and 2004 at least five diseases caused by early summer meningoencephalitis or at least two TBE diseases were registered within one year. There is another affected region between Bad Nauheim and Bad Wildungen.

climate

Hessen has a pronounced north-south divide: while the south is traditionally very mild with hot, humid summers, the north is significantly cooler. It is downright frosty on the Rhön.

respect

literature

• The large Hessen Lexicon from A to Z, G. Bauer, H. Boehncke, H. Sarkowicz, 360 bound pages, ISBN 978-3-7973-1093-4 , published for € 24.90 by Societäts-Verlag

Web links

• Hessen Tourism - officially
• Official website of the state of Hesse
• Arrival times at Frankfurt Airport
• Departure times from Frankfurt am Main airport
• Webcams around Frankfurt Airport Fraport FRA EDDF