Preparation

First off, I booked a round-trip non-stop flight on Continental from Newark to Frankfurt, leaving on Friday Dec. 12 at 7:20pm and returning on Monday, Dec. 15 at 11:10am. Total cost was $403. If I wanted to upgrade using miles, this cheap Q fare would have had a service fee of $400 each way. I was tempted to do it, at least for the outbound portion, but I saw that the flight was 2/3 full and there was a good chance that the middle seat would be open next to me. So I rolled the dice on that one (and came up a winner – more on that later).

Next was the car. What a disaster on the last trip. I wound up paying over $250 for a small car from Hertz and never did get the navigational system to work. This time I made a reservation on www.sixt.com Well, actually two reservations. I reserved a BMW3er for a really low rate – about $50 per day. Then when I was checking the site the week before my trip, I saw they had a special for a Mercedes CLK Sports Coupe @ 186 Euros for the weekend. I’m not a car guy, but visions of me speeding down the Autobahn in the same car as the one in the latest Beyonce Knowles video made me reserve this car too.

Now the hotel. The last time I either mistakenly reserved a hotel far from Frankfurt or the navigational system (which told me it was 200 ki. away) was once again screwing with me. Either way I didn’t bother to find it. I walked into one B&B in Altenstadt that was full, but I noted the name as it looked quaint and clean - “Hotel Garni Altenstadter Monchhof” and that’s where I stayed this time. I reserved online @ hotel.moenchhof@t-online.de and booked a single room for 45 Euros per night, breakfast and tax included. The hotel is in the center of Altenstadt, about 2 ki. from the industrial park that FKK Atlantis calls home.

Now the maps. Although the car through Sixt came with a navigational system, I wasn’t going to trust it. I knew how to get to Altenstadt from the airport (it’s really easy the second time around) and since that would be my base of operation, I printed out directions from www.map24.com to four other clubs from there. I even printed out directions on www.mapquest.com for a couple of them, just as a back-up. Plus I would get navigational help from Redwinger63. How lost could we get? (I’ll tell you just how lost a little later).

I packed several changes of clothes and extra socks and underwear. Here’s a little trick I’ve picked up, to keep me feeling fresh. When I go directly from the office to the airport, I change socks and underwear just before leaving the office. I also make a point of packing socks and underwear that I’m ready to throw out, so instead of having dirty laundry in my bag, I throw out all socks and underwear on a daily basis. That and some body-spray and powder is the next best thing to hitting a shower.

And last, but certainly not least – I got a cheap, water-proof watch (just a simple Timex). FKKs are like casinos in Vegas – no clocks. It is essential to have a watch when visiting the FKKs and make note of when a session starts. When I’m in the middle of a session, I have no idea how much time has elapsed – I rely heavily on the watch. I also think if the girl sees you noting the time at the start of the session, there is less likely to be any time discrepancies. And since you are going to be getting wet (no pun intended), make sure the watch is water-proof. I had a cheap watch from Bangkok that stopped working on my last FKK trip because it got really wet. Also, something with an alarm would be good (or bring a travel alarm). Both hotels I stayed at did not have alarm clocks in the room and no wake-up calls. So bring a water-proof watch with an alarm – buy one as soon as you buy your plane ticket.

Just curious. How did you get the Beemer for $50 a day? I don't see anything like that on the site. Also, where is the spot for specials. That seems like a good deal.

If you go to this link a BMW3er is $127. for the entire weekend, from 12:00noon on Friday and dropping off on Monday by 9:00am.

http://www.sixt-europe.com/main.php3

As far as the specials, it was just a window that opened up when I was checking on the site for no particular reason. They now have a Holiday Special Box to click on with specials in certain cities. The prices and specials seem to change arbitrarily, so checking the site every day a month before you go is a wise use of time.

Ahh..Ok. I didn't notice the weekend special. Cool. I'll use them when I go to Frankfurt. Thanks for the report.

Walstreet,

Good planning. Did you like "throw away" plan? I had done it once before which I liked it for a couple of 'reasons'.

I'll keep reading your posting.