# Is Berlin the only megacity in germany ?



## Klas (May 16, 2005)

when Berlin comes in my mind i think about 3,4 million inhabitans in the city proper and 4,2 million inhabitans in the suburban rail (s Bahn area) you can take the S7 from Potsdam then you can travel to strausberg in the east via charlottenburg its a distance from 60 km !

or you can take the S43 in Königs wusterhausen (an southeastern suburb of berlin and ride to Oranienburg in the far north of berlin , it is also an distance from 55-60 km to ride the S Train ! 

Berlin is the politcal capital of Germany 
Berlin has MTV , Siemens and other big companies
Berlin has a big cultural scene with his Cinemas off and off off scene theatres 

Berlin have young districts with large urban life (Kreuzberg 36; Prenzlauer Berg and Friedrichshain )with its restaurants, bars , and coffee shops 

So are you agree with me that germanys only Megacity is Berlin !?

Your comments please:banana: :cheers:


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## Klas (May 16, 2005)

*^^*

aah i have forgotten :berlin is the only bigger city in eastern german ,with a gay mayor (Klaus Wowereit ;SPD)


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## Ning (Jul 18, 2004)

Stuttgart has Mercedes Benz, IBM, Philips and HP.


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## christoph (Jul 4, 2005)

Berlin is not a Megacity. But, definitely, the only German city in which you can experience metropolian feeling. Hamburg might be a bit alike but maybe too small. Frankfurt, Munich, Cologne, Dusseldorf are nice cities but can't compare.


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## polako (Apr 7, 2005)

Klas said:


> aah i have forgotten :berlin is the only bigger city in eastern german ,with a gay mayor (Klaus Wowereit ;SPD)


A gay mayor, that is a new one.


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## tablemtn (May 2, 2006)

Some people consider the Rhine-Ruhr region (Dortmund, Duisburg, Essen, Cologne, Düsseldorf, etc.) to be one single metro area. If you look at it this way, the area is home to about 12 million people. Frankfurt's urban area is often estimated at 5.2 million people (Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region).


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## LuckyLuke (Mar 29, 2005)

I wouldn't call Berlin a Megacity but a Worldcity which is known for culture, history, Media industry and politics. Berlin's economy is rather unimportant.
*
GaWC Inventory of World Cities*

Alpha world cities (full service world cities)

* 12 points: London, New York, Paris, Tokyo
* 10 points: Chicago, *Frankfurt*, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, Milan, Singapore


Beta world cities (major world cities)

* 9 points: San Francisco, Sydney, Toronto, Zürich
* 8 points: Brussels, Madrid, Mexico City, São Paulo
* 7 points: Moscow, Seoul

Gamma world cities (minor world cities)

* 6 points: Amsterdam, Boston, Caracas, Dallas, *Düsseldorf*, Geneva, Houston, Jakarta, Johannesburg, Melbourne, Osaka, Prague, Santiago, Taipei, Washington
* 5 points: Bangkok, Beijing, Montreal, Rome, Stockholm, Warsaw
* 4 points: Atlanta, Barcelona, *Berlin*, Budapest, Buenos Aires, Copenhagen, *Hamburg*, Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Miami, Minneapolis, *Munich*, Shanghai

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_city


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## futureproof (Nov 2, 2006)

i only hear about Berlin and Frankfurt all the time. mostly Frankfurt, since is the economic capital of Germany


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## Harkeb (Oct 12, 2004)

Berlin might perhaps grow into a megacity in the near future . However with Frankfurt being the financial capital and major airport hub, Berlin would never become the great city like London, New York or Paris. It also already lacks a port.


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## libero (Jun 22, 2006)

*Metropolitan Regions in Germany*

there are the big 4 (of 11) metropolitan areas in germany:

RhineRuhr-Ara ("Ruhrgebiet") with 10.2 Million habitants, but without landmark-centre (Düsseldorf, Essen, Cologne, Bochum, Gelsenkirchen, Dortmund, etc. - If you take a look on the map, you can take Essen (with aprox. 5 M habitants in 20 km circle as the really heart of the agglomeration/non-switched area and perhaps düsseldorf and/or dortmund, but espacially cologne as stand-alone-cities)

Frankfurt/Rhein-Main with 5.2 M (in one really agglomeration and with a viewable Downtown Hub-Function of Frankfurt City in 60 km circle)

Berlin-Area 4.2 M (in 50 km circle)

Hamburg-Area 4.2 M (This is a realy benevolently view, in fact the Hamburg City-Area has 2.4 in 40 km circle and 1.8 in inner city area)


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

libero said:


> Hamburg-Area 4.2 M (This is a realy benevolently view, in fact the Hamburg City-Area has 2.4 in 40 km circle and 1.8 in inner city area)


You know that metropolitan areas are not defined by circles of certain sizes, but by commuter numbers and in case of german metropolregions additionally by politics?

To those who say that Berlin will become a megacity in the near future: The city of Berlin is slightly losing population, while the surrounding communities are gaining population. This sums up to a stagnant (or at most a slightly increasing) population number in the Berlin region. In fact only few cities in Germany are growing in population, and then even very slowly. Also what is the minimum population for a Megacity? I thought it is 10 million? If yes, then something very dramatic must happen to make Berlin a Megacity even in the distant future (like a heavy influx of belarussian refugees? :nuts: )


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

I thought Lufthansa operates international hubs in Frankfurt and Munich but Berlin passengers have to do a domestic connection.


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## empersouf (Mar 19, 2004)

I dont hear anything about Munich? It has the second airport of Germany and the airport is a main hub for whole south germany and central/east europe.
Plus Munich has more than a million inhabitants and BMW.


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## Küsel (Sep 16, 2004)

Munich municipality is 1.3mio, which makes it 11th biggest city in the EU (without suburbs). The agglomeration is close to 2 mio. As a "Metropolitanregion" it ranks 7th with 2.6 mio after Rhein-Ruhr, RheinMain, Hamburg, Berlin, Hannover-Göttingen, and Leipzig-Dresden-Chemnitz.


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## BettyK (Dec 7, 2006)

*Berlin isn´t the one and only ....*

Hi!

I wouldn´t agree that Berlin is the only megacity in Germany. 
There are other big cities in Germany. 

You are right by talking about the good travel-connection in Berlin. But don´t forget that there where two cities growing and developing after the second world war. Today as one it gives you a feeling to have such a big city.

Greetings


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## Klas (May 16, 2005)

*@all guys*

thanks you all very much for your interess in this interesting facts. So okay if you will take the 10 million data , so Berlin is not a Megacity okay. But Hamburg is not real a worldcity or megacity i must laugh :bash: :nuts: .I was in Hamburg two days with a friend in autum 2000,and we stay in Niendorf a district in the north of hamburg , you can see only old people, a few"Eckkneipen " "bierecks" :eek2: and a boring shopping mall (too outdatet and small ).

And the city of mönckeberg and ABC district are too snobish :runaway: ! So thats my view over hamburg. The only cities with feeling in Germany are for me Berlin and frankfurt (main) , and a few small cities in the southwest of germany ,like rotenburg , reutlingen and Freiburg:cheers: !

Also folks berlin is cool , and have the most important nightlife of all german cities !

When we come to statistics berlin has an urbanized area of around 900 km 2^^ ^^ 

with its beuatiful old suburban towns bernau , potsdam and Oranienburg . It is for me the only megacity in germany beside eventuelly the rhine ruhr and rhine main :cheers: !

Thanks for your comments


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

Klas, obviously you haven't seen the whole side of Hamburg. Had you experienced the nightlife in St.Pauli and Schanzenviertel? Within Germany Hamburg is as well known and loved as Berlin for its nightlife. Also using an infact boring suburb with its outdated suburban shopping mall is not fair to judge a whole city. The Mönckebergstraße (not city of Mönkeberg) is actually not snobbish, but a standard shopping street you would find in every german city. The snobbish parts are north of the town hall, for example in the street "Neuer Wall". Hamburg IS a worldcity (not a megacity though)! A rather quiet one and not as globally important as other worldcities, but it is one.
BTW: There is no ABC district in Hamburg. Just a street called "ABC-Straße".


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## Klas (May 16, 2005)

*^^*



DiggerD21 said:


> Klas, obviously you haven't seen the whole side of Hamburg. Had you experienced the nightlife in St.Pauli and Schanzenviertel? Within Germany Hamburg is as well known and loved as Berlin for its nightlife. Also using an infact boring suburb with its outdated suburban shopping mall is not fair to judge a whole city. The Mönckebergstraße (not city of Mönkeberg) is actually not snobbish, but a standard shopping street you would find in every german city. The snobbish parts are north of the town hall, for example in the street "Neuer Wall". Hamburg IS a worldcity (not a megacity though)! A rather quiet one and not as globally important as other worldcities, but it is one.
> BTW: There is no ABC district in Hamburg. Just a street called "ABC-Straße".


i mean this ABC street


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## schmidt (Dec 5, 2002)

I didn't understand. That whole Ruhrgebiet has about 10 million inhabitants right? And the cities are not in a continuous urban area? I mean, Düsseldorf, Essen, Cologne and Dortmund, those are all separate cities? In GE they all look like if they were only one city. And Bonn is pretty close as well, right? It's crazy, so many important cities together!


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

christoph said:


> Berlin is not a Megacity. But, definitely, the only German city in which you can experience metropolitan feeling. Hamburg might be a bit alike but maybe too small. Frankfurt, Munich, Cologne, Dusseldorf are nice cities but can't compare.


This sums it up pretty much for me as well.

Frankfurt maybe more important in the financial spectrum, and it has a fair sized metro area, and decent sized urban area, but it feels nothing like the city that Berlin is.

Berlin is not the largest city in Germany as far as urban or metro standards go, but it's the only city that feels like a true large city. Essentially, it's a city _made_ for 5million, but filled with less people - yet, it still feels bigger than it really is.

I can't hide the fact that Berlin is my favourite German city, and one of my favourites in the world. It simply feels larger than it is, and this is what I love about the place, which is quite the opposite of Frankfurt. Frankfurt is a big city that refuses to accept it's big. It's a big city that acts like a small town, where's Berlin is in some ways the opposite.

Only Hamburg in my opinion comes close to Berlin, but is still not quite there.

The Rhein Ruhr region has a vast population, but despite each city virtually existing right next to each other, often where their suburbs join to each other, they still act like separate cities, and none feeling particularly large or impressive - at least to me.


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

LordChaos80 said:


> Of course I know Hamburg has far more to offer than only its port. Let´s say Hamburg is a semi-world city...


What do you think is missing in Hamburg to make it a worldcity? What is your definition of a "worldcity"?


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

Personally I'd agree with DiggerD21. A world city is very different from a megacity, and Hamburg would probably be classified as a world city - though quite a small one.


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## Küsel (Sep 16, 2004)

Shanghai City said:


> Stimme zu, Hamburg ist schön, kann aber mit Berlin, Frankfurt usw. nicht mithalten in Sachen Grosstadtfeeling! In Deutschland ist halt die Bevölkerung so verteilt, dass es keine Mega City gibt, sondern viele mittelgroße Städte!
> 
> Grüße aus Shanghai
> Patrick


Halt Halt Halt! Frankfurt ist eine Alphacity, aber Hamburg ist also schon urbaner als Frankfurt! 

What Frankfurt has to offer to Germany and the rest of the world that is surpassing Hamburg except that it is a financial center and a few "Phallussymbole" impersonated by skyscrapers? I don't want to bash Frankfurt, but comparing to Hamburg it's a dull and boring place (although it wins clearly against Stuttgart, Bremen, Dortmund, Leipzig, Essen, Duisburg, Hannover... that are the same sice in city proper)! Frankfurt is a city to make money, Hamburg is a city to LIVE :lol:


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

Let's introduce a new term: World-village. And Hamburg is the biggest among them.


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## Desven (May 18, 2004)

Berlin hat zwar nicht die Einwohnerzahl einer Weltstadt,aber ich finde dass es die einzige Metropole Deutschlands mit Weltstadtflair ist!


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## Delfts blauw (Nov 12, 2005)

Ning said:


> Stuttgart has Mercedes Benz, IBM, Philips and HP.


Philips is a dutch company :nono:


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

And the Germany headquarter of Philips is located in...Hamburg.


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## christoph (Jul 4, 2005)

Frankfurt sucks. Such a dull place. Does a financial centre make a city interesting, a worldcity? I doubt it.

Instead, I believe, that the cultural aspect is much more important. Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne (maybe Duesseldorf) are the top ones in this category.

Hamburg has 1,7 million inhabitants but it feels smal as the city km² is rather big. But I really like that.


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## Juanca1379 (May 13, 2006)

i have a question..is berlin and former west berlin an one city? how far are theses city from each other.


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## Minato ku (Aug 9, 2005)

Former East Berlin and Former West Berlin was two part of the same city but separed by a wall

Former east berlin in Red (soviet)
Former West berlin in blue (American british and French)


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## Juanca1379 (May 13, 2006)

minato ku said:


> Former East Berlin and Former West Berlin was two part of the same city but separed by a wall
> 
> Former east berlin in Red (soviet)
> Former West berlin in blue (American british and French)


Thank you for the explanation, because of it ask already merging the two berlin should be a megacity.


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

Juanca1379 said:


> i have a question..is berlin and former west berlin an one city? how far are theses city from each other.


Now that they are merged, it has created a city with two downtowns. Originally, the central city was in what became the Eastern side. When the wall divided Berlin, the Western side created it's own downtown a few u-bahn stops from the original. Today, both these downtowns still exist, and are quite close to each other. This gives the central city a very large feel, much larger than a normal city of the size would have.


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## staff (Oct 23, 2004)

Hamburg is definitely a world city, and so is Berlin of course. 
These two cities belong to my absolute favourites in the world.


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## Fallout (Sep 11, 2002)

Has anyone been to Hamburg (or Berlin) and Warsaw? which city gives more of a "big" feeling?


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

Look said:


> Has anyone been to Hamburg (or Berlin) and Warsaw? which city gives more of a "big" feeling?


Coming from Hamburg, been to Berlin and Warsaw: Berlin is the winner.


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## Küsel (Sep 16, 2004)

Yes Berlin for sure! It's also one of the largest municipality area for its population in Europe. 

Berlin: 900km2 - 3.3mio pop 
Paris: 105km2 (1/9th! of Berlin) - 2.1mio pop (2/3 of Berlin)
Barcelona: 100km2 - 1.6mio pop (half of Berlin on 1/9th of the area)
Milano: 182 km2 - 1.3mio pop (40% of Berlin pop on 20% of its area)
London: 1580km2 - 7.4mio pop (even that city: 2.2 times pop on 1.6 times area)

I know this is only city propers but if you look at the metro the fact doesn't change that much. Barcelona has about the same Metro pop and you can overview it easily from one point. Being on a high altitude point in Berlin you don't see the end - similar to London or Paris, that have 4 resp. 2.5 times the pop of Berlin metro.


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## Depredator (Apr 23, 2006)

Madrid: 607km² - 3.2mio pop
Madrid + Metro (first "Corona"): 2730km² - 5.7mio pop

Dont forget us


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## brisavoine (Mar 19, 2006)

Kuesel said:


> Yes Berlin for sure! It's also one of the largest municipality area for its population in Europe.
> 
> Berlin: 900km2 - 3.3mio pop
> Paris: 105km2 (1/9th! of Berlin) - 2.1mio pop (2/3 of Berlin)
> ...


Comparing administrative cities doesn't make much sense at all though, because different countries have different administrative unit sizes. It's better to compare urban areas with urban areas, and metro areas with metro areas.

According to demographia.com (pdf here), Berlin urban area extends over 984 km² of land, whereas the London urban area extends over 1,623 km² (1.6 times Berlin), and the Paris urban area extends over 2,723 km² (2.8 times Berlin).

I've been to Berlin, and although the city has a nice feel to it, it certainly feels much smaller than either Paris or London, in fact it feels almost provincial, but provincial in a good way. I wish I could have visited the Berlin of the 1920s though, I wonder how it would have felt when it was then truly one of the largest world cities, with all the big buildings still intact, and all the nightlife going on. It would be nice to create a thread with views of the 1920s Berlin, if anyone has pictures...


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## HelloMoto163 (Aug 13, 2005)




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## Kampflamm (Dec 28, 2003)

Frankfurt definitely isn't a world city. So it's got a big airport. Big deal. There are some corporations in Frankfurt but that's about it. The city itself definitely feels smaller and less cosmopolitan than Cologne.


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## Golden Age (Dec 26, 2006)

*German cities ranked*

I would rate Germany's cities as follows:

1) Berlin. It is probably in its own category in terms of what is has to offer culutrally (the Museumsinsel itself takes a whole weekend to see properly) and nightlife (no other German city has so many hip neighborhoods; take Prenzlauer Berg or Kreuzberg for instance or the awesome downtown area of Hackesche Höfe). Of course, it also has the BIG advantage of being the political capital, so it gets a lot of pompous structures as Lehrter Bahnhof and the big airport that is to come. It will be really interesting to see what this city will look like in 15-20 years. Berlin's biggest downside, however, that it's bankrupt, is lacking employment opportunities and a solvent burgeoisie. It, however, also means that it's Germany's most affordable big city..

2) Munich. By far, Germany's most livable, but also most expensive city. I would say Munich is to Germany what San Fran is to the USA or Vancouver is to Canada. Right after Berlin it probably attracts the most tourists, which is also due to the many highlights Bavaria has to offer. It is known as Italy's northern most city because of its picturesque downtown which connects to the lovely English Garden. The many beergardens and the Oktoberfest show that it takes its traditions very seriously. A lot of big companies have their headquarters there (BMW, Siemens, Allianz, HVB, etc.) and Munich probably has the most all year round activities to offer (surrounded by four great lakes, very close to the Alps & Italy, lots of beautiful towns like Garmisch or Landshut). As you can tell, I'd love to live in Munich one day.

3) Hamburg & Frankfurt. This is a tough call, but I rank both cities equally. Similar to Munich, Hamburg has a very rich tradition and takes its Hanseatic heritage very seriously. It reminds me a lot of Geneve with its beautiful Innenalster and the many stately buildings. For business the city profits from its big harbor (import/export trading companies, banks etc.) and also hosts many of Germany's biggest media companies. It's probably the best city for shopping and also benefits from its surroundings (North Sea, Baltic, Lübeck, Sylt).

Frankfurt, in my view, is Germany's most underrated city. It had a serious image problem in the 80's in terms of crime, but Berlin and Hamburg have long since overtaken it in this aspect. First of all, Frankfurt has the only skyline in Germany and similar to Munich and Hamburg is extremely wealthy. In contrast to other financial capitals in the world, Frankfurt has great neighborhoods (Westend, Nordend, Sachsenhausen) that are within walking distance, so the bankers don't need to commute for hours. It hosts the European Central Bank and the German Bundesbank, which played a big role during Germany's Wirtschaftwunder times. Culturally, it is on par with Hamburg with its many theatres, museums and trade fairs. Often overlooked, it also boasts big time living quality with the nearby Taunus region (Germany's highest GDP per capita), the gorgeous wine region Rheingau and beautiful nearby cities such as Wiesbaden or Heidelberg. It outbeats Hamburg in terms of weather and its role as transportation hub (airport).

5) Düsseldorf. Germany's fashion capital is also host to a really attractive Altstadt and rhine embankment. Due to its many banks and other company headquarters it is also an extremely solvent area. Its downside is the ugly surrounding of the Ruhrpott.

6) Stuttgart. It is Germany's most provinvial of big cities, has a nice enough city center, which is surrounded by wine hills. Most of all though, Audi, Porsche and Mercedes come from this region (it has one of Germany's highest GDP/capita). The Alps, Bodensee, Black Forest and beautiful Freiburg are also quite close.

7) Cologne. As I lived in Bonn a long time, I know this city all to well. It is Germany's media city, has a nice surrounding (Rhine valley, Bonn) and an ok inner city (it was rebuilt similarly ugly as Stuttgart or Frankfurt with many grey buildings from the 50's). The relevance of this city to Germany's economy is, however, not nearly as high as the cities I ranked from 1-4. It has a higher population than Frankfurt or Düsseldorf, but similar to Berlin, the entire region seems to be losing ground to the wealthier south (the city itself is, nonetheless, quite well off).


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## Chicagoago (Dec 2, 2005)

I would have to say Berlin is the "tops" city in Germany. From my perspective as a general American, Berlin is by far the most well known city in Germany. One aspect of being a global city is to be a commonly known city to most people in other developed countries.

I think most people have heard of Berlin and Munich and know what they are. I don't think many Americans (just saying that since I have first hand knowledge) have really heard of or know anything about Frankfurt or Hamburg. Of course people dealing in the business world have heard of Frankfurt, but most common people walking down the street have probably not really heard of it.


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

Kampflamm said:


> Frankfurt definitely isn't a world city. So it's got a big airport. Big deal. There are some corporations in Frankfurt but that's about it. The city itself definitely feels smaller and less cosmopolitan than Cologne.


I agree with the first part. Frankfurt is not a world city. But I disagree with the 2nd. Frankfurt seems more cosmopolitan than Köln. definitely.

@Golden Age. Sorry, but many bankers have very long commutes as they often live in the wider metro area quite from from downtown Frankfurt.


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## Kampflamm (Dec 28, 2003)

Justme said:


> I agree with the first part. Frankfurt is not a world city. But I disagree with the 2nd. Frankfurt seems more cosmopolitan than Köln. definitely.


Perhaps...I've lived in both cities and I just feel that Cologne's more welcoming and imo you definitely notice that the city's bigger. There are on the other hand more foreigners in Frankfurt though and there's a bigger variety of them down there as well.


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## Golden Age (Dec 26, 2006)

Justme said:


> @Golden Age. Sorry, but many bankers have very long commutes as they often live in the wider metro area quite from from downtown Frankfurt.


Right on, but Frankfurt still has a major advantage as a financial center over many of its international rivals in that it's more affordable (especially with hidden gems like Bornheim or Bockenheim) and that it has a much higher turnover in appartments than other German cities. Finding an appartment in downtown Munich or Hamburg is probably harder.


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## Justme (Sep 11, 2002)

Golden Age said:


> Right on, but Frankfurt still has a major advantage as a financial center over many of its international rivals in that it's more affordable (especially with hidden gems like Bornheim or Bockenheim) and that it has a much higher turnover in appartments than other German cities. Finding an appartment in downtown Munich or Hamburg is probably harder.


Year, it is easier to find apartments in Frankfurt than it was, and I remember terrible problems looking for apartments in Munich.

And yes, Frankfurt is more affordable than say London, but when we are talking about the banking industry, this is not an important point. London bankers don't have many problems affording property in their city, it's mainly the lower income earners that have these problems.


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## Klas (May 16, 2005)

*@all*

hi folks , okay yore all right berlin is not even the most important city in germany this role goes to frankfurt and its not even the largest urban area this role is reservated for the rhine ruhr with its 11 million inhabitans including bonn and cologne !

But Berlin has night life restaurants a culur scene (kreuzberg and Prenzlauer berg ) Shopping and urban streets (i live here) so Berlin for me is one of the most vibrant cities here in GE behinds London in UK !
:banana:


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

Klas said:


> But Berlin has night life


So have other german cities (i.e. Hamburg - ever heard of the Reeperbahn?, Munich - known for the "snobby" part of nightlife, even Frankfurt was once famous for its techno scene). The only thing which puts Berlin's nightlife into another level is IMO its creativity. 


> restaurants


 Which city doesn't have them? I don't know if the variety is greater than in Hamburg or Frankfurt (the latter has the highest percentage of foreigners of all german cities)


> a culture scene (kreuzberg and Prenzlauer berg )


 You obviously mean the bohéme culture scene. Also other german cities have this, on a smaller scale and not so known outside the respective city though (Hamburg has Schanzenviertel, St.Georg and - to a lesser extend - Ottensen).


> Shopping and urban streets


 Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Munich are also popular destinations in Germany for shopping trips and also offer their share of urbanity. 

Klas, have you been to other major german cities already? Or read about them?


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## eusebius (Jan 5, 2004)

and stupid Dutch tourists go to Oberhausen ^^ Köln/Cologne also deserves a mention, many shops (Saturn), many media companies and again more music subculture (A-Musik for example). Germany is such a large music market that music labels hold (or held) offices in various German cities.

Historically speaking, Cologne is very important; Berlin is a relative newcomer. I guess only Moscow, Istanbul, Paris and London count as the megacities of Europe. If the Federal government of Nordrhein-Westfalen would decide on Wanne-Eickel to become the capital of the Ruhr area, Wanne-Eickel would easily be the only German megacity but I don't see it happen, as much as I like the lovely A43 Kreiz, or Kreuz? I'm confused.


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

eusebius said:


> Köln/Cologne also deserves a mention, many shops (Saturn),


 Is this irony?:lol: Btw, if you want to experience the world's biggest Saturn-store, come to Hamburg.:lol: 

OK, enough of shameless self-promotion.


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## solbyair (Aug 16, 2004)

Chicagoago said:


> Of course people dealing in the business world have heard of Frankfurt, but most common people walking down the street have probably not really heard of it.


An American-man-in-the-street, you said? Have you met one that hasn´t ordered a frankfurter? :lol:


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## eusebius (Jan 5, 2004)

DiggerD21 said:


> Is this irony?:lol: Btw, if you want to experience the world's biggest Saturn-store, come to Hamburg.:lol:
> 
> OK, enough of shameless self-promotion.


Oops, Saturn doesn't originate from Köln?? I assume that when I regarded Köln as the Rhein-Ruhr major city, I was wrong too.

Please don't feel uptight about your own Hamburg. The city has a false image, by the name of Horst Hrubesch. And the hamburger got your city more of a bad reputation. I know people are stupid. Worst I saw was FC Utrecht-HSV played in Arnhem (3-6) with drunken hordes walking over German cars.


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## DiggerD21 (Apr 22, 2004)

I didn't know that Saturn originates from Köln. So the Saturn-store there is a special store in this regard (but not the biggest of the company). I hope we both speak of this electronic-store chain? I wouldn't regard Saturn as something special for the attractivity of a city as a shopping destination. It is like Media-Markt. Heck, both Saturn and Media-Markt belong to the same corporate group: Metro AG


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## eusebius (Jan 5, 2004)

No, I went to Saturn because it stocked nearly everything and the store had both racks ordered by the alphabet as well as chests, ordered by record company, which I found very handy. I was referring to the record store, Hansa ##(?), in fact! The local record stores here are very fine now. I no longer go to Saturn. Yes, we now have a MediaMarkt as well  It's like Aldi and shouldn't be allowed into city centres.


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## christoph (Jul 4, 2005)

Hansaring.


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