T A B L E_T A L K

Swap tales and advice on visiting the new Russia in the Wanderlust area of Table Talk

BY BRENT GREGSTON | What German city has the highest percentage of foreigners, the most drugs and crime and the biggest budget for culture? Berlin? Guess again. It's Frankfurt, the headquarters of Germany's principal stock exchange, the all-powerful German Bundesbank (German Federal Reserve) and the new European Central Bank; the city that, on Jan. 1, 1999, will place its hands firmly on the levers of the Euro, Europe's new single currency.

Frankfurt has had to reinvent itself since wartime air raids destroyed most of its historical monuments and well-preserved medieval quarter -- so the city today does not proffer much in the way of Old World charm. This financial capital on the River Main (pronounced "Mine") is abrasive, hard-headed and rich; its glass and concrete skyscrapers are occupied by banks or insurance companies and its nickname is "Mainhattan." In addition to finance, wealth is generated by industry, particularly in engineering, chemicals and printing and publishing.

As a result, most travelers who venture to Frankfurt are actually bound not for the city itself but for a trade fair -- one of the 50,000 congresses, conferences and seminars held each year. The international fairs, in particular, are a Mecca to people in a given industry, whether it be cars, fashion, medical high-tech or consumer goods. The Congress Center Messe Frankfurt has recently completed a massive expansion, and now 2,300 participants can sleep under the same roof in the new Maritim hotel next door. Along with the new facilities there is a new marketing campaign launched by six leading conference hotels and the Congress Center, "Conventions Unlimited" -- known as C.U. in Frankfurt. (Event planners can find out more by calling 49/(0)69/7575 3000; "49" is the international calling code for Germany; drop the first "0" when dialing from outside the country.)

It's instructive to think of Frankfurt as a great port city that thrives off airborne rather than seaborne trade. It has the foreign babble, the international flair and the sleaze of a port city. Already the city's largest employer (52,000 people), the airport handles 39 million passengers a year -- and is expanding, spurred on by the deregulation of airline travel in Europe. Its facilities include a shopping mall with 100 shops, three movie theaters, 20 restaurants, a disco, a chapel and an exhibition gallery (tel. 069/690-1 for flight information, or see the Web page.)

A taxi from the airport to the main train station costs about 40 DM. But the subway is so fast and reliable -- it only takes 11 minutes to reach the city -- that it is usually not worth calling a taxi.

WHERE TO STAY
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No traveler in his or her right mind shows up without a hotel reservation during a major trade fair. Rooms are not only hard to find then, they cost up to 50 percent more, particularly during the Book Fair (early October) and the twice yearly International Fair for Consumer Goods (late February and late August). On the other hand, rooms often go begging when no trade fair is on; always test the waters by asking for a "corporate" or "weekend" rate.

The city's tourist offices (located in the main train station and the mail square of the old town at Römerberg 27, tel. 069/2123 8800) run a central reservation system for hotel rooms called Frankfurt Soft (069/2123 0808, fax 069/2124 0512). They also sell the useful Frankfurt Card -- a pass allowing unlimited travel on public transport in the city and to the airport, and a 50 percent reduction on admission to 15 museums (10 DM for one day, 15 DM for two days). If you are attending a conference, ask for a Congress Ticket (5 DM), a one-day ticket that is valid for unlimited use of public transport in the city (inner zone) and to the airport.

The Westend is the best neighborhood for the business traveler. It contains the sprawling Messe, or trade fair center, and borders on the main train station. There are many good restaurants and smaller hotels located in the quiet, residential side streets. Palmenhof is in a renovated Jugendstil (German art nouveau) villa. The alcoves of its seafood restaurant, Bastei, are perfect for private business meals (Bockenheimer Landstr. 89, tel. 069/753-0060, fax 069/7530-0666). Hotel Westend is a family-run establishment crowded with French antiques and media types (Westendstr. 15, tel. 069/746702, fax 069/745396). Each of the 11 rooms at Hotel Robert Mayer, located in another turn-of-the-century villa, has been decorated by a different Frankfurt artist. You might find yourself contemplating an abstract newspaper collage from the comfort of a replica Louis XIV armchair. Rooms are wired for modems and ISDN (Robert-Mayer-Strasse 44, tel. 069/970910, fax 069/9709-1010).

Hessischer Hof is a top choice in the multiple-dollar-sign class. The furnishings in both public and guest rooms are French 18th century antiques and reproductions and there are salons for private lunches and dinners for groups of six or more. The breakfast buffet is served in a room decorated with Napoleonic-era porcelain, gilt mirrors and chandeliers (Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 40, tel. 069/75400, fax 069/7540-2924).

Hotels facing the train station itself are a distant second choice, and the hotels in the adjoining red light district should be avoided altogether. However good the facilities inside the hotel, there is an intimidating gantlet of drug users and street people outside.

Frankfurt's transportation system links every neighborhood and suburb with such efficiency that it is no big disadvantage to stay on the fringes of the city, where many hotels are located, in Sachsenhausen, Niederrad or at the airport.

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