Frankfurt’s New Old Town, or Neue Altstadt, is a reconstructed neighbourhood between Römerberg square and St Bartholomew’s Cathedral. Completed in 2018, the Dom-Römer project filled a historic quarter largely destroyed by bombing in 1944. Its 35 buildings mix reconstructions based on historical records with contemporary designs that take their cues from Frankfurt’s older architecture.
The pleasure here is in the details: half-timbered façades, narrow lanes and small courtyards reveal themselves as you walk. Look for the reconstructed Goldene Waage, an ornate Renaissance house near the cathedral, and the Stadthaus, a modern building sheltering an archaeological garden with traces of Roman and medieval Frankfurt. Together, they make the neighbourhood an intriguing study in how a city chooses to remember its past.
The Neue Altstadt is compact enough to explore on foot and makes a natural starting point for a walk through Römerberg and down to the River Main. Visit on a weekday morning for quieter streets, and allow time to pause at one of the cafés tucked among the buildings. The U-Bahn stops at Dom/Römer, right by the neighbourhood; wear comfortable shoes, as some of the paving is uneven.