Hotel garni Djaran

The one real plus is being close to a train station. This felt more like a hostel than a hotel, with the toilet and bathroom shared by the whole floor. One “special room” had a bathroom with a sink but no toilet. They were already calling us at 16:30 to come check in because they wanted to leave the office. Parking means finding a spot several streets away, unless you want to pay €8.

The train station is across the street, so you can reach the Frankfurt area in minutes, and even with an open window on a summer night there was little train noise. The neighborhood is older and undeniably ethnic, but I found it quite safe at any hour. The building is unusual, like something out of colonial India, and the hotel has 18 rooms over three floors. There's no front desk, just a business office, but check-in went smoothly enough. After hours, language can be a bit of a problem, though with their varied clientele they manage to get things done. I saw guests from Asia, E. Europe, and Britain, including families. Some people may not like the shared bathrooms, but I took them as part of experiencing an older, bygone Europe. This place gets an undeservedly bad rap because it's unlike what many travelers, especially us Yanks and Brits, expect from hotels these days. It's spotlessly clean, very well maintained, and a real bargain, seriously under-priced. I've stayed for extended periods and found it quite commodious. Travelers looking for a uniquely European experience, especially younger people touring by bicycle or similar, might enjoy it. It's far cheaper than hostels and gives you more privacy. I love this place, enjoyed my stay, and warmly recommend it to visitors to Frankfurt.

We arrived around 9-10 am, and the first person we encountered was an unfriendly older woman with a really bad attitude, looking at us as if we were terrible customers. She immediately said check-in was at 2 pm and told us to come back then. We went into the office anyway. A large man with poor English was handling the confirmation and seemed annoyed about it. Then he spoke very rudely and dropped my passport on the desk. I tried to calm things down, saying they weren't giving us good service and should stay cool, but he got even angrier. We still couldn't check in, and I hoped things wouldn't get worse. Please don't stay here just because it's cheap. I've never felt this uncomfortable in a place before. This was a terrible experience.

It's inexpensive and clean, but that's pretty much all it has going for it. The rooms are modestly furnished, which is fair enough for the price. Wi-Fi depends on where your room is in relation to the modem. Mine was farther away, so it was nearly nonexistent, sometimes cutting out completely and sometimes barely letting me send or receive a Discord message. The owner-manager is a woman who speaks almost no English, so if your German isn't good, you'll struggle to communicate except with gestures. She can also come across as rude. If low cost and cleanliness are enough for you, go ahead and save the money. Otherwise, I'd look elsewhere.