Römerberg

When you get to this bustling cobblestoned main square, you lose sight for a few minutes of Frankfurt’s sleek skyscrapers. Here you’re surrounded only by the reconstructed, timber-framed buildings—with steeply sloped gable roofs and vertical windows—that resemble the original Gothic old town destroyed by bombing in 1944. On a sunny day, the colors of these gingerbread-looking houses—shades of pink, yellow, gray, blue, orange and red—come to life, as does the Fountain of Justice in the center. If you’re facing the City Hall, or Römer, you can head left to the Alte Nikolaikirche, or old Nikolai Church. Don’t miss the modern Schirn Kunsthalle musem, which feels like a best-kept secret in the most well-known part of the city. Internationally acclaimed artists are regularly exhibited here, including Basquiat and René Magritte.