Exceptional value fits the bill in Frankfurt, Germany’s financial centre and a town that has successfully shed its number-crunching image to become a centre of style and culture, not to mention picturesque history.
The outlet shopping destination of Wertheim Village, just 50 minutes from Frankfurt, is itself unusually picturesque with an open-air setting and architecture designed to recall the regional Franconian style. This Village is frequented by Germans ‘in the know’ former wife of Boris Becker Barbara Becker, winner of the 2007 TV show “Germany’s Next Top Model” Barbara Meier, model agent Peyman Amin and Olympic Gold Medal swimmer Michael Groß. And you can combine a visit to Wertheim Village with your weekend or holiday sightseeing along the Romantic Road. Between May and October the Romantic Road coach can lead you through centuries of history and drop you at the doorstep of Wertheim Village’s 100 plus boutiques with all their worldly pleasures, open all year round. As Harper’s Bazaar says, here you can combine “tourist attractions with luxury shopping and cultural experience”. If you’re travelling by train to Wertheim city, a return shuttle delivers you door to door for a shopping day trip at Wertheim Village.
Every colour on the fashion spectrum is catered for at
this Village. Particular emphasis is laid on the German luxury brands such as Aigner for chic and Strenesse for innovative style: a uniquely German shopping experience for discerning followers of fashion looking for authentic bargains. For the young at heart, German teddy bear maker Steiff has a boutique here. There’s the dizzyingly glamorous Versace where an evening gown, fit to last you a decade, might be reduced by as much as 70%*. Then there are the hippy-luxe gowns of the German evening dress designer St. Emile. To carry off an evening dress with true style you need the appropriate foundations, and Wertheim Village seems uniquely equipped to provide these, boasting Calvin Klein Underwear, Hanro, Wolford, Converse and Marc O’Polo. These are hard-working, lasting, luxury brands that won’t let you down, just like Le Creuset with its reassuringly reliable cookware in a riot of rustic colours.
Here, there is also the only outlet worldwide of the slick menswear designer Baldessarini so not only will the man in your life look good but this discount opportunity is such a well-kept secret that everyone will think he’s super rich. Féraud, too, can add some French flair to the thinking man’s wardrobe. The whole family can kit out at Lacoste and Nike Factory Store as well as at the all-American casual classic designer Tommy Hilfiger. If weekend clothes mean outdoor clothes – and in particular skiing – Bogner and Billabong have enduring skiwear, and for posing shades on the slopes, Oakley is here too. But for the younger white-hot skaters, Titus has all the bits and pieces. The worlds of sport, lifestyle and fashion collide at Puma, which has a distinguished history of cladding sporting superheroes. There are also the rare outlet boutiques in Germany of the German men’s fashion designer Bäumler, Calvin Klein Jeans and Swiss lingerie brand Hanro (the other outlet boutiques are at Wertheim Village’s sister boutique, Ingolstadt Village).
And Wertheim Village has the only outlet boutiques in Germany of the simple and attractive style of Elégance, Italy’s La Perla, and France’s Longchamp Paris. High heels are all well and good (there’s a gorgeous Bally boutique by the way) but when it comes to sightseeing, Timberlands are unbeatable. It’s time to pull them on and set off down the Romantic Road which links chocolatebox Würzburg with Füssen in the Alps. If history bores you (although this stuff is pretty impressive), you probably saved enough on your skiing clothes to splash out on a ski pass at Füssen.
After your shopping, a night at the hilltop castle hotel Schlosshotel Steinburg in nearby Würzburg affords glorious night-time views of this magical baroque city. Goethe, a local man, once said “Many people take no care of their money until they come nearly to the end of it, and others do just the same with their time”. You’ll be looking after both your money and your time with a visit to Wertheim Village. Time, in other words, well spent.
