The Taunus hills start where Frankfurt's suburbs end, and every trip here is under an hour's drive. Kids can climb the highest summit for the skyline view, walk through the gate of a rebuilt Roman fort, run along the walls of a ruined castle, or feed goats between rides at a park that grew out of a farm. Here's what we checked, from the Saalburg to Opel-Zoo.
Opel-Zoo spreads about 1,700 animals over 27 hectares of hillside between Kronberg and Königstein. Elephants, giraffes, zebras, cheetahs and red pandas live in large open enclosures, and glass panes let kids watch spectacled penguins swim and dive.
In the walk-in petting zoo kids can feed the animals, then head for the adventure playgrounds with a climbing forest, zip line, ball pool and trampoline.
Hessenpark is an open-air museum of more than a hundred old buildings rebuilt here from villages across Hesse: farmhouses, barns, craft workshops, a 15th-century church and a 1950s pub. About a hundred animals from rare old breeds live on the farms, and the museum theater runs tours that show how villagers lived and worked. The half-timbered market square has shops, inns and benches for a break.
The Saalburg is a Roman fort that guarded the Limes, the frontier wall now listed by UNESCO. Rebuilt around 1900 on Kaiser Wilhelm II's orders, it is the only fort on the Limes reconstructed almost completely, so kids walk through the gate and into the buildings.
The museum inside covers Roman life on the frontier with hands-on activities, and the Taberna café serves dishes from Roman recipes.
Burg Königstein is one of the largest fortress ruins in Germany, a castle that guarded the Frankfurt to Cologne road until French troops blew it up in 1796. Kids walk in through the Mainzer Tor, explore the walls, towers and vaulted rooms, and look out over the Rhine-Main plain and the Taunus forests.
The 3BurgenWeg trail links it to the castles at Falkenstein and Kronberg.
The Großer Feldberg is the highest peak in the Taunus at 881 meters, with an open, treeless summit plateau. One of its towers can be climbed for views over the Frankfurt skyline, and the Brunhildisfelsen rock at the north edge looks out over the Usinger Land.
Kids can watch eagles and owls at the Falkenhof, the oldest falconry in Hesse. In snowy winters, the slopes fill with sleds.
Taunus Wunderland is a family amusement park on a hillside in the Taunus hills, built for younger kids. Rides run from a baby carousel and bumper cars to the Wilde Maus coaster and splashy boat rides. Kids can dig for fossils among life-size models in the dinosaur valley, meet goats and ducks at the farm, visit the donkeys and ponies, and cool off at the water playground.
Freizeitpark Lochmühle grew out of a farm and pony stable in the Taunus hills and keeps that rural feel across 16 hectares. There are about 20 rides, from carousels and a western railway to the Wasserbob and the Taunus-Tower, plus a treehouse playground with a tube slide, water play and a petting zoo with goats, sheep and donkeys. Families bring picnics or book one of nearly 50 barbecue huts.
The Taunus hills start where Frankfurt's suburbs end, and every trip here is under an hour's drive. Kids can climb the highest summit for the skyline view, walk through the gate of a rebuilt Roman fort, run along the walls of a ruined castle, or feed goats between rides at a park that grew out of a farm. Here's what we checked, from the Saalburg to Opel-Zoo.
Opel-Zoo spreads about 1,700 animals over 27 hectares of hillside between Kronberg and Königstein. Elephants, giraffes, zebras, cheetahs and red pandas live in large open enclosures, and glass panes let kids watch spectacled penguins swim and dive.
In the walk-in petting zoo kids can feed the animals, then head for the adventure playgrounds with a climbing forest, zip line, ball pool and trampoline.
Hessenpark is an open-air museum of more than a hundred old buildings rebuilt here from villages across Hesse: farmhouses, barns, craft workshops, a 15th-century church and a 1950s pub. About a hundred animals from rare old breeds live on the farms, and the museum theater runs tours that show how villagers lived and worked. The half-timbered market square has shops, inns and benches for a break.
The Saalburg is a Roman fort that guarded the Limes, the frontier wall now listed by UNESCO. Rebuilt around 1900 on Kaiser Wilhelm II's orders, it is the only fort on the Limes reconstructed almost completely, so kids walk through the gate and into the buildings.
The museum inside covers Roman life on the frontier with hands-on activities, and the Taberna café serves dishes from Roman recipes.
Burg Königstein is one of the largest fortress ruins in Germany, a castle that guarded the Frankfurt to Cologne road until French troops blew it up in 1796. Kids walk in through the Mainzer Tor, explore the walls, towers and vaulted rooms, and look out over the Rhine-Main plain and the Taunus forests.
The 3BurgenWeg trail links it to the castles at Falkenstein and Kronberg.
The Großer Feldberg is the highest peak in the Taunus at 881 meters, with an open, treeless summit plateau. One of its towers can be climbed for views over the Frankfurt skyline, and the Brunhildisfelsen rock at the north edge looks out over the Usinger Land.
Kids can watch eagles and owls at the Falkenhof, the oldest falconry in Hesse. In snowy winters, the slopes fill with sleds.
Taunus Wunderland is a family amusement park on a hillside in the Taunus hills, built for younger kids. Rides run from a baby carousel and bumper cars to the Wilde Maus coaster and splashy boat rides. Kids can dig for fossils among life-size models in the dinosaur valley, meet goats and ducks at the farm, visit the donkeys and ponies, and cool off at the water playground.
Freizeitpark Lochmühle grew out of a farm and pony stable in the Taunus hills and keeps that rural feel across 16 hectares. There are about 20 rides, from carousels and a western railway to the Wasserbob and the Taunus-Tower, plus a treehouse playground with a tube slide, water play and a petting zoo with goats, sheep and donkeys. Families bring picnics or book one of nearly 50 barbecue huts.
