Flying from Frankfurt: what you need to know
Frankfurt is Lufthansa's primary hub and Germany's busiest airport. The Star Alliance connection network here is extensive — FRA handles more connecting passengers than any other European airport, which means deep route coverage to every continent.
Lufthansa's pricing from Frankfurt follows a predictable pattern: premium positioning but regular sales. January and September are the two big sale months. Transatlantic roundtrips to New York, Chicago, and San Francisco regularly drop below €400 during these windows. The A380 service to select routes adds a premium cabin upgrade lottery — sometimes business class drops to economy-plus pricing.
Budget long-haul from Frankfurt has improved. Condor (now backed by Polish investors) runs low-cost service to Caribbean, East Africa, and Southeast Asian destinations. Singapore Airlines' subsidiary Scoot has added Frankfurt connections. These budget options can undercut Lufthansa by 30-50%.
Intra-Europe from Frankfurt is competitively priced. Ryanair has expanded at FRA (previously they avoided it), and EasyJet, Wizz Air, and Vueling all serve the airport. Budget European fares of €30-60 are increasingly common.
Frankfurt's second airport, Frankfurt-Hahn (HHN), is 120km away and primarily a Ryanair base. It's called "Frankfurt" in marketing only — factor in the €16 bus ride (90 minutes each way) when comparing fares.
The business travel corridor between Frankfurt and Asian financial centers (Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo) is one of the strongest in Europe. Premium cabin deals on these routes appear during Chinese New Year and August European holiday season.
Cheapest windows: January and September for long-haul, November and February for intra-Europe.