· · · · · ·

Short stay: Jumeirah Hotel, Frankfurt

Ninety-nine metres of aspirational floor-to-ceiling-plate glass windows and steel soars into Frankfurt’s sky. The Jumeirah is an opulent hotel power-dressing in a dynamic city which hosts both the German Stock Exchange and the European Central Bank. Centuries-old traditions of hospitality are celebrated by Jumeirah Hotels which originate from the sands of Arabia. Chilled juices are offered on arrival. Arabic hospitality coalesces harmoniously with Teutonic efficiency. In Germany’s most vertical city, nicknamed “Mainhattan am Main”, the Jumeirah’s service standards are stratospheric too. Five star service is merely the baseline. The Jumeirah is utterly Central. Originally the tower was destined for yet another financial institution until Jumeirah bid for a sublime location: just a three-minute walk from the Hauptwache station, though the Jumeirah’s busy clientele rarely walk. Conveniently the Jumeirah is a mere 15 minutes on the S8 or S9 from the airport. The hotel is literally very well connected. Linking to the still expanding MyZiel Mall – on Germany’s highest grossing retail street – and to the Fitness First Gym. Also the Jumeirah is within walking distance of Germany’s Stock Exchange, the Financial District, the New Old Town and a plethora of museums along the banks of the River Main. The style is Tomorrow’s World technology providing easy-living. In the Skyline Suites push the bedside button to open the curtains, then watch the sun climbing the skyscrapers. Charge your devices whilst they are locked away in the safe. Out on the deep-carpeted corridors use your key card and a touch screen to call a lift: rarely do you have to share a lift. But sometimes the technology can be creepy: “smart windows” closing the blinds on boiling sunshine is perturbing. Time is a scarce commodity in Frankfurt but the Jumeirah doesn’t buy into the “Lunch is for wimps” ethos. In the Ground Floor Ember Bar a one dish lightening three “course” lunch is on offer with the platter stylishly divided into starter, main and desert by the Jumeirah logo of The Beacon: culinary creative genius. But it is not all business nights and city lights as there is a midweek break for silky smooth soul and jazz in the Ember Bar at 9pm on Wednesdays. Remember Sade? She’d love the sophistication. One of the hotel’s housekeeping staff even pulls on his tux to share a talent for reinterpreting soul classics. On Saturday mornings the Jumeirah chills with breakfast through until 1 pm. Meanwhile weekenders flock in for all those museums, world-class opera and the “New” Old Town – finally recreated after saturation bombing in 1944. On the Sixth Floor The Talise Spa is an oasis of serenity with separate male and female saunas, as well as five treatment rooms. An hour-long honey massage, honey generously provided by the 40,000 roof-top bees is the signature treatment. The honey is then removed with a powder-of-olive-stones-exfoliating-rub. With complimentary membership guests can walk through to the cavernous pulsating Fitness First gym and pool at the apex of the neighbouring MyZiel for some serious workouts. Fortunately rooms are far less blingy than the crystal chandeliers and gold of the public areas. Soothing neutral decor of honey and nutmeg leading up from walnut floors but with a vibrant splosh of colour from Hartwig Ebersbach art works. An artist who likes thick layers of paint applied with various parts of his anatomy. And of course there are Nespresso machines. What else? “Max on One” should have been “Max on 25”. A restaurant with stunning views. Sadly, the tower was originally designed as an office block lacking the infrastructure for a roof-top restaurant. So the restaurant focuses on quality cuisine rather than living off the views. A spacious kitchen is open so that diners can watch the work in progress, giving the light oak-panelled dining area a homely feel. The kitchen is so big that the chefs run a “Cook the perfect Christmas Dinner Course” with twelve work stations. On the Winemaker’s Dinners, when a wine expert is invited to match wines with a four-course menu, Executive Chef Frank Hartung will come and chat with guests. The glass “Wine Cube” gives an a subtle hint that wine is taken seriously. Hartung likes to give traditional classics a twist: coq au vin with Guinea Fowl, Tarte Tatin with Lavender Ice Cream and he’s still developing the Parmesan Cheesecake… Look out for the honeycomb at breakfast. As the pesticide free Botanical Gardens, 2 miles away, are the bees’ favourite foraging ground, there’s a rare delicacy to the honey.

Michael Edwards

Michael Edwards is a travel writer from Oxfordshire, UK. Although Michael had his first travel pieces published nearly four decades ago, he is still finding new luxury destinations to visit and write on.

Did you enjoy this article?

Receive similar content direct to your inbox.

7 Comments

  1. Amazing features for a brand that’s known for luxury and five star services. The location sounds really central from everything you might want access to when visiting a city like the mall and airport. And the views are amazing! Also, I wouldn’t mind paying a bit more if I’m made to feel like royalty even for just a few days.

  2. 99 metres?! Wow, that is some height! And judging by the view, it’s not the only high rise in the city – I never realised Frankfurt had that many skyscrapers. And that’s so cool that they keep bees on the roof!!

  3. I can’t understand why more people don’t visit Frankfurt for a weekend break. It is so easy. Within half an hour of going through customs you can be checked into your hotel. We all know about the great Christmas Markets but Frankfurt’s good at Festivals. The Museum Festival in August is great time to visit and they even even a Green Sauce Festival in May which is far more fun than it sounds. They’ve just opened up the restored Old Town and in 2020 the Museum of Romanticism will open.

  4. Frankfurt is getting there! When I visited in September the New Old Town was buzzing and there were thousands by the museums along the river.

  5. I really do think Frankfurt is a great place to visit. Over the last few years it has I prokved dramatically too as it just used to be a place I passed through on my way to so,where else. I always try and find time to stop off there now. This hotel looks fantastic. The sixth floor spa sounds amazing and just what I need.

  6. 99 meters?! Stunning, that is some tallness! What’s more, according to the view, it’s by all account not the only skyscraper in the city – I never acknowledged Frankfurt had that numerous high rises. What’s more, that is cool to the point that they keep honey bees on the rooftop!!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *