Checking in at the outstanding Sheraton and Marriott Frankfurt Airport Hotels

The Editor of PA Life stayed at one address, but experienced two unique hotels; the Sheraton and Marriott – both located at Frankfurt International Airport. She shares her experience of the luxury properties, an extensive airport tour, and a visit to Frankfurt city centre with its charming Christmas markets, fascinating history and rebuilt ‘new old town’ in the heart of the city…

“Neither of the hotels were what I had envisaged an airport hotel to be like. Instead, I felt that I’ve arrived in a luxury hotel in a sophisticated city as soon as I stepped into the lobby area of Sheraton Frankfurt Airport Hotel, my first home during my two-night visit. It turned out to be exactly where I had arrived as the airport is much more than a transport hub, it’s a district of Frankfurt, just 15 minutes away from the bustling city centre by train.

The location gets top marks

The location of the hotels couldn’t be more convenient for travellers visiting Frankfurt, whether for business or leisure, or for ‘bleisure’ – Frankfurt makes it so easy to combine both. The location really is a great bonus. It’s a five-minute walk from Terminal 1, and the same from the train station, connected over a skywalk that takes you straight to a stunning atrium space shared by both hotels.  Other amenities, such as the breakfast at the Flavors restaurant, The Eatery in the atrium, the gym, sauna and spa also welcome guests from both hotels.

First stop Sheraton Frankfurt Airport Hotel and Conference Center

The Sheraton Frankfurt Airport Hotel and Conference Center is designed with business travellers in mind, offering everything you could want from your trip. Besides a stay at a one of the recently renovated bedrooms or suites – both hotels have been either renovated or newly opened between 2019 and 2021 – the use of the Club area offers great privacy in a sophisticated setting. And then there are the fantastic restaurants too, more about these later.

The Sheraton has 779 guest rooms, suites and even apartments in total and a choice of 58 meeting rooms, including the modern two-story SkyLoft with its open and bright venue concept. We had a pleasure of dining in the stunning space of the SkyLoft, enjoying a truly delicious three course meal, or more precisely two of the three courses as we stepped into the kitchen to witness the master pastry chef create our desserts for us.

The venue is one of the largest congress centres in the area and thanks to its excellent travel connections, including a major motorway, plus a regional and ICE train station, Frankfurt Messe and the Frankfurt International Airport of course, the hotel makes a perfect event location. You can book a meeting or event of any size, ranging from two people to 1,200 participants, a press conference, congress, fair, family celebration. Events with or without accommodation are all welcome and anything is possible, 365 days a year. Just get in touch with the helpful and experienced events team who’ll be very happy to help you.

There is also a new instant booking service for meetings. As simple as booking a hotel room, no deposit needed, just pay with your card.

Even if you have meetings in the city centre, this ‘hotel at the airport’ is a great choice for many reasons, not least for avoiding traffic delays when catching a train or flight back home. The hotels of course are a real attraction on their own too.

Popping over to Frankfurt city centre couldn’t be easier

It’s easy to build in a visit to see the buzzling city centre of Frankfurt from you hotel at the airport. We travelled during the busy afternoon rush hour but still got to the centre in around 20 minutes by train. It’s worth building a visit to the city into your event itinerary and advisable to book a walking tour with a guide as our hosts had done. The guide can fill you in on all interesting facts as you walk past old and modern building, pop into markets and churches, and marvel the ‘New Old Town’ which was built in 2017 as a replica with some buildings given the freedom to be a little more creative in their finishing resulting in very interesting looking facades.

Raking in the famous Christmas Market was a must as was a mulled wine or Gluhwein stop. The Germans really know how to make a town look festive and to make the most of the Christmas season.

Enjoy a quiet and comfortable night at Sheraton and Marriott Airport hotels

Neither hotel is what you’d expect from an airport hotel. They have so much to offer starting with excellent restaurants, luxury bedrooms and suites. I stayed at one of The Sheraton Club Rooms. A freshly renovated contemporary room, with a great walk-in shower, fast and free Wi-Fi and a convenient desk for catching up with work. The room came with a complimentary access to the Sheraton Club Lounge which is a pleasant and peaceful place to relax and recharge, and offers many extra services. You can enjoy breakfast away from the busy main restaurant, light lunch, coffee and other drinks and snacks throughout the day.

The amazing soundproofing of the windows deserves a special mention. They are still the original windows installed in the 1975 when the hotel was originally built. They are incredible, not letting any of the airport noise disturb your stay. Top sustainability marks for preserving these windows!

The excellent lightproof shutters also help to ensure an undisturbed rest, even during the day making , just what tired travellers stopping over need. The Sheraton Beds are designed to aid circulation whilst you sleep. The impressive gym, sauna and spa are great add-on opportunities for recharging between travel.

There are also spacious Junior and Sheraton Club Suites to book if you need more space for private meetings or for a longer stay. Both come with a separate bedroom and living area, comfortable sofa corners and large 55″ TV.  Additionally, the generous 120 m2 Sheraton Club Suite is equipped with a dining table and walk-in closet. This really is an ultimate executive suite offering an option to host private meetings or even dinners.

Family rooms are another added bonus – many rooms come with runway views too. Captivating watching even if you are not a plane spotter.

As a “LiYu” certified hotel, both properties provide amenities and services for Chinese guests to experience throughout their stay.

How did the Marriott bedroom compare to the Sheraton?

The rooms and suites of the new Frankfurt Airport Marriott Hotel have all been introduced in early 2020 and their sophisticated details remind of the famous Frankfurt Book Fair, the industry’s most important trade fair worldwide. The Marriott is smaller than the Sheraton, with 233 rooms with design elements represent the residential and locally inspired accents the brand is known for, which are being reflected in inspiring quotations or a cozy sofa corner for reading and relaxing.

The room design is a little more vibrant than at the Sheraton and I preferred the hardwood flooring to the carpet. Besides that, not huge differences as both hotels are air-conditioned and offer a work desk, a large 55” TV, a coffee or tea maker, and excellent soundproofed windows.

The Deluxe and Executive Rooms offer even more comfort with great size walk-in showers or a shower/tub combination and there are also GHD hairdryers in these rooms. Guests of the Executive Rooms have complimentary access to the M Club on the 9th floor. My preference as far as the Club lounges go is the M Club. It’s more homely and stylish with very nice areas for private conversations and even a cool dining room style space for your lunch time meetings.

The Marriott does cater very well for leisure and family travellers who often stay longer than visitors on business. The Family Rooms with king bed, two twin beds and an additional sofa bed accommodate up to five people and are ideal for families.

They haven’t ignored travellers with additional challenges either and are proud to show that tremendous focus has been invested on diversity and accessibility. The hotel offers ten accessible rooms in the Deluxe and Executive room category that provide sufficient space and two twin beds. The bathrooms come with a spacious and accessible shower, lowered sink, and the wardrobes come without doors for ease of access.

Eating and drinking at Sheraton and Marriott Frankfurt Airport Hotels

You’ll find a good variety of eating and drinking options here. There are two restaurants, Flavors and The Eatery kitchen and bar, and also a traditional German Taverna that can be booked for social events and makes a very charming evening during a conference or event.

Flavors – from breakfast buffet to fine dining

The Flavors serves a great spread for breakfast catering for an international clientele as you’d expect. In the evenings it transforms to a fine dining restaurant with an impressive dry-ager for perfecting their famous steaks. Guests can choose their own steaks according to their preference. And there is an open show-kitchen too, an added entertainment during your dinner. It’s not just steaks that are celebrated here as the team of chefs prepares a versatile and international menu that caters for a variety of tastes.

We enjoyed a fantastic dinner at the Flavors, savouring some of their 26-day aged steaks paired with well chosen Shiraz as recommended by the award-winning sommelier.

The restaurant can be divided into two parts with a total of 254 seats and can accommodate individual diners and groups alike.

Eatery Kitchen and Bar

The Eatery kitchen and bar with an open kitchen is a brand-new atrium area located in the heart of this dual-brand hotel directly connected to Terminal 1 of Frankfurt Airport. It’s an open space where you can either watch sport in the many comfortable seating areas around or have a quiet bite or a drink by the stylish retro-style bar.

The menu invites to discover the culinary diversity of America -from buddha bowls to delicious burgers, any time of the day and late into the evening.

The Bar & Davidoff Lounge hosted a whisky tasting

These two individual bars are located right next to each other on the main level (E2), next to the Sheraton Reception. The Bar convinces with its open light-flooded concept, modern design and comfortable lounge furniture. The bar team ensures a lively atmosphere and creates delicious drinks to the guest´s liking. The adjacent Davidoff Lounge is the only smokers bar at Frankfurt Airport and offers guests a selection of cigars from the humidor. The experienced staff makes sure to recommend the perfect drink to accompany the guest´s cigar of choice.

We had a fantastic whisky tasting session run by the resident Scot and whisky connoisseur James. It makes for a great team activity to add to your evening.

What are the conference and event spaces like?

The enormous Conference Center is being used by both hotels and is divided into different sections. There are 58 conference and convention rooms, of which most have been updated in 2021, are distributed over three floors and offer daylight along with all the conveniences of a modern conference centre. Generous break-out lounges offer room for creative breaks and productive group conversations. The different-sized rooms can accommodate small and large groups of people.

Congress Center

The divisible “Congress Center” with 1,130 square meters and an additional 700 square meter foyer has been modernized with a new look and feel and state-of-the-art ambience light concept in 2019 and is set up for up to 1,200 participants. It is ideally suited for gala events, large-scale conferences, trade fairs or general meetings as well as political or industrial summit conferences.

SkyLoft

The modern “SkyLoft” is outfitted with the finest design and state-of-the-art technical equipment on a total of 540 square meters. This meeting venue offers almost unlimited possibilities for all kind of events, be it gala functions, fashion shows, press conferences or product presentations. SkyLoft has two levels in an open room concept with a gallery that presents numerous options for exclusive events. Without having to leave the airport, top business executives are offered the best prerequisites for a neutral meeting place or negotiation venue in a hotel with rapid, international accessibility.

Studios

In the heart of the Sheraton Gathering place, amidst the spacious lobby area, we created two exclusive glass cubicles – our Studios. Unique and equipped with the latest technology, our studios are flexible and suitable for a variety of exclusive meeting purposes and small gatherings. Right next to the Sheraton Club, another two studios are available to host meetings and gatherings. With approximately 121 square meters and 42 square meters in size, they can be booked individually or can be combined to have plenty of space for larger groups. All studios come with access to the Sheraton Club, ideally suited to enjoy breaks with hot and cold snacks and drinks in an exclusive atmosphere.

Boardrooms

There are ten boardrooms on the 3rd floor and can host up to eight people each and provide everything that is needed during a busy meeting day. Book your boardroom for only half a day or hold a full-day meeting. You also have the possibility to include our boardroom package – LED screen 46”, internet, pads and pens and coffee station included.

You can even do an airport tour at Frankfurt International

After strict security and passport check we boarded an airport bus accompanied an experienced guide and set off on an extremely interesting tour around the vast airport area. We learned about the expansion and rebuilding plans, how the planes are looked after whilst they stay at the airport, the fire service, what keeps the area bird free – long grass is one thing – and much much more on this fascinating tour.

You can find out more and book a tour at here.

See more of PA Life’s hotel and restaurant reviews.