Western Germany has several airports ranging from the huge Frankfurt International (FRA) and Düsseldorf Airports (DUS) that are mostly used by traditional full-service carriers to Frankfurt-Hahn (HHN), Cologne-Bonn (CGN), and Weeze (NRN) Airports that are havens for low-cost airlines.
- It is worth using major reservation search engines to compare prices of flights available to different airports. Cheap tickets may turn out expensive if the time and price of bus and train fares are added to reach inconvenient airports. Transportation option especially early in the morning or late at night may be limited and cheap hotels near smaller airports can book out fast.
Frankfurt International (FRA) – Germany’s Largest Airport
Frankfurt International Airport (FRA) is by far the busiest and most important in Germany (and by most definitions on continental Europe). Landing slots are in high demand and come at a premium making Frankfurt Airport the preserve of full-service carriers. All major airlines fly here with a huge number of intercontinental flights available to all parts of the world.
- Lufthansa is the main airline based at Frankfurt Airport. It often has internet-only fares that can compete in price with low-cost airlines on European flights.
The convenience of Frankfurt Airport (FRA) adds to its appeal – downtown Frankfurt am Main is 15 minutes away by train. Many long-distance trains stop at the airport itself – Cologne (Köln) can be reached by Inter-City Express train in an hour.
Düsseldorf Airport (DUS) in the Ruhr Area
Düsseldorf Airport (DUS) offers after Frankfurt Airport the largest number of intercontinental flights from Western Germany. It is the base of German long-distance low-cost airline LTU and a major secondary base of Lufthansa and Condor. Most major European airlines fly to Düsseldorf including some low-cost carriers such as Air Berlin, TUIfly, and Flybe.
Düsseldorf’s downtown can be reached in 12 minutes by train while Ruhr towns such as Duisburg (12 minutes) and Essen (25 minutes) can also be reached by direct train.
- After years of court battles, it seems that Düsseldorf Airport (DUS) has finally received the green light for expansion and an increase in long-distance flights is expected in coming years.
Cheap Flights to Cologne-Bonn Airport (CGN)
Cologne-Bonn Airport (CGN) claims to serve more destinations on low-cost airlines than any other airport on continental Europe. Köln-Bonn Flughafen is the base of German low-cost airline Germanwings and a major hub for budget carriers Air Berlin and TUIfly. Many other European low-cost airlines fly here.
Ground transportation to Cologne-Bonn Airport is very convenient. Regular train services to Cologne Main Station (Köln Hauptbahnhof), a major railway hub, takes 15 minutes while buses reach Bonn in half an hour.
Cheap Flights to Frankfurt-Hahn Airport (HHN)
Frankfurt-Hahn Airport (HHN) is a misnomer for the small regional airport favored mostly by low-cost airlines Ryanair and Wizz Air. Buses from Hahn take around 90 minutes to Frankfurt am Main but reach Mainz in an hour. Buses to Koblenz, Trier, and Luxemburg take just over an hour each.
- Flights to Frankfurt-Hahn Airport (HHN) tend to be cheap but the airport’s location is rather inconvenient if traveling to cities such as Frankfurt, Cologne, or Düsseldorf.
Cheap Flights to Airport Weeze (NRN)
Airport Weeze (NRN), sometimes also known by its former name Niederrhein, is mostly used by low-cost airline Ryanair. Although Weeze is almost 80 km from Düsseldorf, Ryanair prefer to advertise the airport as Düsseldorf (Weeze).
Public transportation to Airport Weeze can be cumbersome. Regional Express trains from Düsseldorf to Cleve stops at Weeze station from where the Airport Shuttle Bus reaches the airport terminal in 10 minutes. Direct buses are available to several towns including Düsseldorf (90 minutes) and Duisburg (50 minutes). Weeze is convenient for travelers to several Dutch towns such as Nijmegen (45 minutes) and Arnhem (1h).
- The most important airport in other parts of Germany are Munich (MUC) in the south, Berlin (Tegel TXL and Schönefeld (SXF) in the east, and Hamburg (HAM) in the north. However, it is the large number of smaller German regional airports that often offers the best bargains and most convenient flights to especially European destinations.
Henk Bekker - Henk Bekker is a freelance travel writer currently living on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
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