Nidda parkrun, Frankfurt 🇩🇪

After yet another long work week around Germany, I decided not to fly back and try my first German parkrun at Nidda parkrun Frankfurt.

This comes 2 months after my last foreign parkrun adventure, when I had visited Milano Nord parkrun for the second time just before Christmas. Funnily enough, the two venues have a lot of similarities. Both are in nice, large parks in the outskirts of main European financial centres, both are 2 lappers on very good, dry hard path and both are hosted by incredibly welcoming and friendly local teams. Hint for the frequent business traveler: try them both.

This visit also brings a welcome break from a recent recurring theme in my UK running events: runswimming in mud or, to look at it differently, trying to survive while crossing swamps. The latest remarkable instances were Woking parkrun and the Wimbledon 10K.

parkrun has grown quite a lot in Germany over the last few years, since the first 3 events in 2017. Growth seems to be focused on number of locations, with a lot of events around the country, while attendance per event are still manageable and have not seen the crazy growth seen in the UK yet. From my sample of one, I got the feeling that while there are a number of expats/tourists, parkrun has gained a solid foothold with German nationals. This is great and, obviously, important for a grassroots movement to keep growing in a healthy way. I have no doubts I want to and will visit more events around Germany.

Let’s dive into some more info about Nidda parkrun Frankfurt, then!

Trip to Nidda parkrun Frankfurt and parking

My trip to Nidda parkrun Frankfurt involved some planning, arranging business meetings between Munich-Frankfurt-Munich so that Frankfurt fell on Friday. This also means that, technically, the trip involved 2 3.5hrs ICE train trips. But they were not both on parkrunday, I am not that crazy.

As an aside, why do something like that when there are 2 events in Munich? Because I am there more often, so I am sure I will have other opportunities to visit both of them in the future! 🙂

Back to Nidda parkrun, the main event page has plenty of information on how to reach this nice green area just North of Frankfurt proper. If you don’t speak German, most browsers these days allow for translation. I use Safari on an iPad: just click on the little letter at the left of the URL bar and select translate. It works well.

According to the information on that page, the event can be reached via 3 different underground lines, alighting at either Niddapark (U1+U9) or Ginnheim (U1+U9). There are also tram and bus options.

If you are driving, follow the address provided above and you will reach a small(ish) car park which is less than 50 metres away from the meeting point. I did not check it out thoroughly, but it appeared to be free as well.

If you don’t have access to a car, but you are, like me, pathologically lazy, taxis are also a convenient option. In Germany, it seems the most used car booking app is FreeNow, which has recently started being frequently used in the UK as well. If your hotel is around the centre, the trip will take 10/15 minutes by car and cost around 20 euros as of Feb 2024.

Nidda parkrun Frankfurt: start and briefings

I arrived pretty early, so I was not 100% sure I was in the right place. There were nearly no one around at 8:30am, which got me a bit nervous. That said, soon enough the 2/3 people walking around the area started unpacking staff and, magically, parkrun banners popped up. I was in the right place.

It was a very intimate affair until very close to the 9:00 watermark. Is the stereotype that Germans are very punctual true, then? Scarily well timed arrivals. Plenty of non Germans were around ahead of time though and the volunteers were going beyond the call of duty in chatting us up and making us feel welcome and comfortable. Which is great indeed.

Once the time comes, the First Timers briefing is called and a volunteer stands up on a concrete feature in the little square by the meeting area. The FT briefing is held in perfect English and all important information to avoid getting lost in a foreign land is passed on. Not that you risk a lot getting lost in Frankfurt, but you know… better not ending up running 8K because you took a wrong turn.

Then it is time for the Main Briefing, which takes place in German and, since I did not understand a word of it besides the event name and number, it went pretty fast.

The start line is just behind the area where people listen to the briefing, so you only have to turn around, walk 4 steps and you are ready to go.

One thing worth noting: start and finish are not exactly in the same place here. The finish ‘funnel’ is about 100/150 metres further on into the park, so if you want to leave anything during your run, go there before the briefings start. I didn’t need to.

Nidda parkrun Frankfurt course review – star ratings

Nidda parkrun Frankfurt course review – route highlights

There were 71 parkrunners on the day I visited. Looking at historical records, it seems like attendance level between 60 and 80 are fairly regular here. This would probably qualify the event as one of small-medium size in the UK and it is definitely a very good recurring attendance level in continental Europe. I would not be surprised if in a year or two the event were consistently above 100, it is nice and easy to reach.

The start area is wide (and open to wind and rain). You will not suffer from any congestion at the get go and nowhere around the course there are areas where you might get stuck and be unable to overtake if you want to. Maybe the riverside section and the first turn into it could feel slightly more cramped if you get there in a big group, but it is nothing to be concerned about. I mean, we do like and run at Fulham Palace parkrun where you can have a sandwich while you walk to the start line after timing has already started….

Surface is all hard path, and it is very well levelled and drained. It was raining just before we started and it has been raining recently but along the whole course I found only one small muddy area at the very edge of the park. I am pretty sure this is a venue where road shoes are good all year around. Unless the Nidda river decides to come visit over the park, but I guess if that happens, we would have bigger issues.

Elevation-wise, this course is very flat, with only 8m elevation gain over 2 laps. At no point I felt there was any meaningful down or uphill. There is a little bump before getting into the riverside section and then a gentle downhill after leaving it, but the former is super short and the latter is barely noticeable.

In terms of course design, it is pretty simple: another figure 8 like Woking last week, this time 2 laps instead of 3. And again similar to the last addition to my parkrun roster, two different segments of the course touch at the centre of the 8. Here, they even share an intersection, with a volunteer being very quick in changing the way she faces to show runners where to go. It is actually pretty cool and making a mistake is borderline impossible. I wonder if this could put an upper limit to the attendance levels this course could support in the future.

A quick Relive route plot is on my YouTube Channel, with longer video highlights embedded below.

As said, the start line is at the beginning of a large path just after you get into the park from the car park. It is the continuation of a long, beautiful three-lined avenue coming from the Southern portion of Niddapark. The event course does not venture there. Once you start, you will run a short segment which will never be repeated. If you see the map above, it is the little wiggle under the figure 8 that will connect you to the main loop. This is on fast terrain and a large path, so people spread out pretty quickly.

After a first gentle turn left and another slightly sharper turn right, it is time for a sharper turn left that brings us into a wood section. This is where you join the figure 8 and where you will start your second lap in a few minutes. When you enter the woods, the path narrows slightly, but it is still wide enough for 2 or even 3 people to ran next to each other. It is not muddy and roots do not intrude into the path.

Soon it will be time to turn left and run again without tree cover, this time in the middle of an area with urban gardens/allotments, I think. They are fenced on both sides, but they seen give way to open grass and large meadows again. At the end, you reach the centre of the 8. You must listen to the Marshall and keep to the right/turn right otherwise you get lost. 🙂 After turning, there is a minimal uphill leading into another beautiful tree copse. This is not big, and soon you will face a little ramp that gets you to the riverside path.

The riverside section is not longer than 150/200 metres, so it finishes quickly. However, adding a waterside feature is a great touch, they always make a course more interesting. The river is not huge, but decent and on the day I visited it’s brown waters were definitely showing some personality. Don’t jump in.

At the end of this segment, it’s time to turn left, where a long turn alongside open meadows will let us transition into another short section under tall mature trees and then another open straight line. This straight gets us back to visit the centre of the 8 and the volunteer marshalling it. We will meet her 4 times. Once we reach her, we keep right again and turn into the bottom side of the 8.

This is probably the longest segment, but it is more of the same. Fast hard path with a mixture of tree cover and open areas. This is where I’ve seen the only mini patch of mud. It looked lonely and sad, but I did not stop to have a chat with her. Had plenty of social times with her English relatives recently.

Towards the end of this section, it is time for another long, wide curve in open fields and at the end of it, you will meet the core team. This might be slightly confusing, because you have not been here before, but fear not. Keep going as advised and after 200m you will meet the original course again and start the second lap.

At the end of the second lap, you will turn right where you have gone straight before and run a short 50 metres or so to reach the finish funnel. Which here is made with cones, so I guess maybe it’s a connell and not a funnel. Who knows.

Scanning is a fast and efficient process and results will be online fairly quickly, within a couple of hours.

Congratulations on completing Nidda parkrun Frankfurt!

Facilities at Nidda parkrun Frankfurt parkrun

The official event page mentions that toilets are available on site, but 50c are needed to access them. I did not look for them, so I don’t know where they are or if the information is up to date. And I would not have coins with me anyway, so not needed the toilet was lucky. The park is also pretty ‘open’ so if any guy things they could try hiding behind a bush, I don’t think it is a great idea here.

I also didn’t use the cafe because I was short on time. There seems to be a cafe about 200m away from the car park/meeting point with signs pointing at it from the meeting point.

Bonus info: as you can see on the picture below, the park seems to have a signposted 1-lap 5K route along its borders. I wonder why the team decided to go for a 2-lapper. Maybe it is a more scenic route. Or maybe it is less burdensome for a small team to Marshall and check a 2.5km loop, as opposed to one twice the distance..

Nidda parkrun Frankfurt parkrun: Video Highlights

As usual, I’ve taken a few video snippets during the run to give an idea of the course. If you like it, please subscribe, it’s a fun past time for me 🙂

The other parkrun videos on my YouTube channel are all linked on the course review and video highlights summary page.

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Achievements and performance

Conclusions

I enjoyed my first visit to a German parkrun event. Nidda parkrun Frankfurt definitely delivered.

The course is various enough to keep you interested, with wood sections, a short riverside segment and plenty of open green fields. If you are in good shape, I have no doubt you can bag a good time here.

Also, the team goes beyond the call of duty to make people feel welcome, you can feel it. This event has a great vibe. There are a couple other events within reach from Frankfurt, so before coming back I suspect I will explore those if I happen to be in town on Friday night. But I am not discounting the possibility I will eventually visit again, it is a great little event!

And obviously, thank you, Nidda parkrun team for your hospitality!