Frankfurt am Main is a metropolis at the heart of Europe characterized by compelling contradictions. The traditional and the modern, business and culture, big-city bustle and tranquil havens all exist happily here side by side. Frankfurt is Germany's most cosmopolitan city, an important financial services centre and the venue for major international trade fairs including the International Motor Show (IAA) and the International Book Fair. Frankfurt also has a vibrant cultural scene and benefits from excellent transport connections.

Goethe House, birthplace of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, provides a fascinating insight into upper-middle class life in the mid-18th century. Of all Frankfurt's buildings, St. Paul's Church has perhaps played the greatest historical role: this is where Germany's first freely elected parliament met in 1848. Römerberg square and the old town hall, known as the "Römer", are the very heart of the old quarter.

On the Sachsenhausen stretch of the main embankment there are 16 museums that were renovated or built from scratch between 1980 and 1990 by acclaimed architects. The Städel Institute of Art, the German Film Museum, the Museum for Applied Arts, the Museum of Ethnology and the Communications Museum are particularly highly regarded. On Römerberg square there is also the Schirn Kunsthalle, one of Europe's leading art galleries.