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Frankfurt and Munich as hubs, plus Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Berlin and many regional airports – Germany packs dense scheduled traffic, leisure airlines and cargo into a small area.
15 spots listed
With Frankfurt and Munich, Germany has two major hubs where long-haul, European traffic and cargo come together. Then there are Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Berlin with strong European and leisure traffic, plus numerous regional airports that are quieter but often let you get much closer. At Hamburg-Finkenwerder, the Airbus plant adds factory traffic.
Photography is allowed from publicly accessible areas. On observation decks, in terminals and in parking garages, the operator’s house rules apply. The security area is off-limits, and so is climbing over or damaging fences. Drones have no business in an airport’s control zone without a permit. Whether ladders at the fence are tolerated is up to each airport – ask if in doubt.
Westerly weather dominates, so most airports operate in a westerly runway direction more often. Plan vantage points under the approach path with the wind forecast. The most productive months are May to September: the summer schedule brings extra leisure flights, and the sun stays low long enough in the morning and evening to light up east-west runways from the side.
Official observation decks on terminals and piers. Ideal for beginners: a view of the apron and taxiing traffic up close, usually with food and drinks nearby – but often glass or a fence in front of the lens, opening hours and sometimes an admission fee.
Observation deck at Berlin Brandenburg Airport
Schönefeld
The only official viewpoint at the capital’s airport: the observation deck on top of Terminal 1 is outside the security area, open daily and reachable directly by train. What you see there, when the light works and where its limits lie.
Observation deck at Bremen Airport
Bremen
From the roof of Terminal 1 you look across the Bremen apron to runway 08/26: straightforward, reachable directly by tram and with realistic chances of the Airbus Beluga XL, which serves the neighboring Airbus plant.
Observation deck at Cologne Bonn Airport
Cologne
The rooftop deck on Terminal 1 is the most convenient legal vantage point at Cologne Bonn Airport: free, no security check, reachable directly by train – with views of the apron, the main runway and the military side of the airport.
Observation deck at Dresden Airport
Dresden
Dresden Airport has no open-air terrace but a glazed viewing platform on the terminal’s gallery level. It costs nothing, has the S-Bahn station in the same building and shows you the apron and runway 04/22 – with all the pros and cons of a panoramic window.
Observation deck at Düsseldorf Airport
Düsseldorf
The most convenient way into plane spotting on the Rhine and Ruhr: from the observation deck you look across the apron at the two parallel runways of the largest airport in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Observation deck at Hannover Airport
Langenhagen
The official observation deck at Hannover Airport is on the roof of the Experience World between Terminal A and B. For a few euros you get a panoramic view of the apron and south runway – ideal for beginners, families and a relaxed afternoon with TUIfly, Eurowings and the Lufthansa Group.
Observation deck at Leipzig/Halle Airport
Schkeuditz
The old tower between the passenger terminal and the general aviation terminal is the classic observation deck at the Leipzig/Halle cargo hub. What you see from there, why you must check the status before you travel and which legal alternatives the airport offers.
Observation deck at Nuremberg Airport
Nuremberg
The most relaxed way into plane spotting in Franconia: from the free observation deck at Albrecht Dürer Airport you look north across the apron to the only runway, 10/28 – with the sun at your back almost all day and the subway right under the terminal.
Observation deck at Stuttgart Airport
Stuttgart
Free, in the middle of the terminal and with a view of the apron and the west end of the only runway: the observation deck on the roof of Terminal 3 is the easiest way into plane spotting on the Filder plain – best on summer evenings.
Observation decks at Hamburg Airport
Hamburg
Two decks on Level 3 of the terminals, open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and right on the S1: the easiest way into spotting in Hamburg – with a view of the apron, binoculars and short walks to a café and restrooms.
Artificial mounds and elevated viewpoints at the edge of the airport grounds. You shoot over the fence and have a clear view of runways and taxiways.
Affenfelsen (“Monkey Rock”) at Hamburg Airport
Hamburg
The best-known spotting point at Hamburg Airport: from the Affenfelsen on Holtkoppel you look over the fence onto runway 15/33 without a ladder – with a kiosk café right next door and the morning sun at your back.
Munich Airport visitors’ hill (Besucherhügel)
Munich
The best-known vantage point at Lufthansa’s Munich hub: from the visitors’ hill in the Besucherpark you look out over the airport grounds from above – with its own S-Bahn stop right next door.
Teveren spotting hill at NATO Geilenkirchen Air Base
Geilenkirchen
At NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen, which people in the region simply call Teveren airfield, NATO’s AWACS fleet takes off. From a small hill at the west end and from the fence on the Teveren side you photograph the E-3A legally from public land – if you know the rules of a military airfield.
Zeppelinheim viewing platform at Frankfurt Airport
Frankfurt am Main
The classic among Frankfurt’s spotting spots: from the platform at the motorway bridge near Zeppelinheim, most landings in a west wind glide in onto the south runway – free, public and a quick S-Bahn ride from Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof.
Museums and exhibitions with historic and retired aircraft. Weather-proof, easy to plan and a chance to see types up close that stopped flying long ago.
The Planetrack spot map shows verified spots for each airport with directions, the best light and community ratings. Planetrack is launching soon – join the waitlist and get early access.
Related
The aircraft types you’ll come across in Germany are listed in the aircraft type database. You’ll find the airlines that fly there in the airline database. And profiles of the airports themselves are in the section Airports & manufacturers.