Business trip to Merck in Darmstadt: getting there, where to stay and how to reach Evonik and Fraunhofer

Getting to Merck in Darmstadt: where are the headquarters and how do you get there?

According to Darmstadt Tourismus, around 11,000 people work at Merck’s Darmstadt group headquarters, the Group Headquarters, and the company’s roots go back to 1668. The site is at Frankfurter Straße 250 in the north of the city. Whether it’s a project kick-off, an audit or a job interview: check your invitation to see which reception you are expected at – on such a large site, that saves valuable minutes in the morning.

By train

Darmstadt Hauptbahnhof is an ICE stop. The fastest connection to Frankfurt (Main) takes 16 minutes according to bahn.de, and since December 2025 a direct ICE to Berlin has run every four hours.

From Frankfurt Airport

Two routes lead to Darmstadt: the train, taking 30 minutes on the fastest connection, or the AirLiner bus from Terminal 1. During the day the bus runs every 30 minutes and, according to the timetable, takes around half an hour to the main station. A single ticket costs €10.70; with a Deutschlandticket (Germany’s monthly public transport pass) you only pay the €3.80 supplement. DB tickets and BahnCard 25/50 are not valid on the AirLiner.

The last leg

Plan your route to Frankfurter Straße 250 in the RMV journey planner or the RMVgo app, which also shows roadworks. To get to the studio from the main station, take tram 3: from platform 1 it’s 18 minutes to the Orangerie according to the HEAG timetable. All the ways to reach Darmstadt are collected in our guide on getting to Darmstadt.

Evonik, Software AG and more: the major employers and where they are

Merck isn’t the only reason for a business trip to Darmstadt. Project teams, auditors and technicians also often head to these addresses:

• Evonik, Kirschenallee 45: According to Evonik, around 1,500 people work at the Darmstadt site. Products made here include ROHACELL foams and pharmaceutical polymers such as EUDRAGIT. From Bessungen this is the most convenient connection: according to the HEAG timetable, tram 3 runs without changing from the Orangerie to the Kirschenallee stop, for example departing at 9:29 and arriving at 9:44. Which entrance to use is usually stated in your invitation.
• Software AG, Uhlandstraße 12 in Eberstadt: The software company, founded in 1969, is based in the south of the city – on the same side as Bessungen, with no need to cross the city centre. The RMV journey planner shows you the right bus or tram connection.
• ESA ESOC, Robert-Bosch-Straße 5: The European Space Operations Centre opened in 1967, and ESA satellites are controlled from here. According to ESA, take tram 4 or 9 from Luisenplatz towards Griesheim to „TZ Rhein Main“ or „Maria-Goeppert-Straße“. Tram 3 takes you from the Orangerie to Luisenplatz in 10 minutes.
• EUMETSAT, Eumetsat-Allee 1: The European organisation for weather satellites has 30 member states, so meetings and workshops are very international. Here too, plan your connection in the RMV journey planner.

After your appointment, what awaits you in Bessungen is not a hotel corridor but a small home of your own with the Orangeriegarten on your doorstep. You can see which studios are available directly in the overview.

Fraunhofer institutes and ATHENE: appointments in research

Darmstadt has held the title „Wissenschaftsstadt“ (City of Science) since 1997. Three Fraunhofer addresses appear in travel plans particularly often:

Fraunhofer IGD

The Institute for Computer Graphics Research at Fraunhoferstraße 5 describes itself as a world leader in applied research in visual computing: computer graphics, computer vision, virtual and augmented reality. It is in the university quarter near the TU’s city-centre campus and the darmstadtium. Take tram 3 from the Orangerie to „Schloss“ in seven minutes and walk from there. More on the conference venue next door: congresses at the darmstadtium.

ATHENE and Fraunhofer SIT

The Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology is located at Rheinstraße 75. Fraunhofer describes ATHENE as the largest research centre for cybersecurity and privacy protection in Europe. Besides SIT and IGD, its partners include TU Darmstadt, Goethe University Frankfurt and Hochschule Darmstadt. If you still have a report to write after the security workshop, what you need most in the evening is a quiet table with Wi-Fi rather than a corner of a hotel lobby.

Fraunhofer LBF

The Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability has its main building at Bartningstraße 47 in Kranichstein and a second site at Schlossgartenstraße 6. Research topics include plastics, elastomers, materials analysis and component design. If you are having components tested here or working on a project, you often plan for more than one day. Kranichstein is in the north-east of the city; the RMV journey planner shows the connection from Bessungen. More research addresses are gathered in our guide to Darmstadt, City of Science.

Several days on a project: what a studio with a workspace and kitchenette offers

An audit rarely takes just one day, and a commissioning job certainly doesn’t. After the third night in a hotel, you miss a proper table and a dinner that doesn’t come off a menu. That’s what BSG Living’s seven studios are set up for:

• Workspace and Wi-Fi: Every studio has a place to work. Studio 3 has a desk by the window, Studio 5 a separate desk and Studio 4 a large wooden table with room for your laptop and audit documents side by side.
• Kitchenette: Hob, fridge, coffee machine including coffee, kettle and toaster. Your first coffee is steaming before the tram arrives.
• Self check-in: After online check-in you receive your access code, so the studio is accessible around the clock. Regular arrival is from 15:00 to 20:00. If you arrive later, just let us know beforehand.
• For teams and fitters: An alternative to classic workers’ accommodation in Darmstadt. All seven studios are in one building, each with its own bathroom and kitchenette. For work clothes, a washing machine and dryer are available in the building for a fee. It’s best to request several studios together by email to info@bsginvest.de.

Book directly online from two nights. If you need an invoice with company details for your expense report, enter them in the notes field when booking. Everything about company stays is on our business trip Darmstadt page. If your assignment lasts four weeks or longer, read on at long stays in Darmstadt: long-term stays are available from 28 nights.

And if you need a day of real office atmosphere? The coworking space COWO21 at Holzhofallee 21 is open Mon–Fri 8:00–18:00, and a day ticket costs €15.97 plus VAT (as of Oct 2026). Start-up meetings often lead to HUB31, the technology and start-up centre at Hilpertstraße 31 (bus K to „Hauptzollamt“).

By car or public transport: commuting between Bessungen and the factory gate

Your starting point is the Orangerie stop, served by tram 3. According to the HEAG timetable, line 3 runs without changing to the Schloss (7 minutes), Luisenplatz (10 minutes), Kirschenallee (around 15 minutes) and the main station (19 minutes). Monday to Friday it comes every 20 minutes during the day. For Merck, Software AG and the LBF, the RMV journey planner shows the fastest combination.

With the Deutschlandticket (€63 a month, as of 2026), trams and buses are included. Without a pass, a day ticket pays off from the second journey according to RMV. Important in October: during the autumn school holidays until 18 October 2026, HEAG mobilo is carrying out construction work across the city, affecting many tram and bus lines. According to HEAG, line 3 is not on the list and even runs more frequently during this period, roughly every 10 minutes during the day.

By car

Darmstadt has a low-emission zone, so you need the green emissions sticker. For company cars, paid parking spaces are available on the studio grounds – please ask when booking. It’s worth it: from 19 October 2026, the city is introducing the new paid parking zone BE3 in Bessungen-Süd around the Orangerie. Monday to Saturday from 6:00 to 21:00, on-street parking costs €0.75 per 30 minutes, for a maximum of 4 hours at a time.

After work: short walks to sport, sauna and restaurants

In Bessungen it’s easy to clear your head. The Bezirksbad Bessungen (district swimming pool) at Ludwigshöhstraße 10 is just around the corner: a 25-metre sports pool, 27 degrees water temperature, open in the winter season on Thursdays and Fridays from 7:00 to 22:00, Saturdays from 8:00 to 19:00 and Sundays from 8:00 to 15:00. From Monday to Wednesday only schools and clubs swim (as of Oct 2026). A single online ticket costs €5. A few lengths in the morning, a walk under the avenue trees of the Orangeriegarten in the evening – a project week often needs no more balance than that.

If you’re after warmth, head to the Jugendstilbad (Art Nouveau baths) on Mercksplatz: open daily 10:00–22:00, three hours of sauna cost €25.80 from Monday to Friday (as of Oct 2026). More ideas: sports in Darmstadt.

For a team evening after the audit, the Grohe Brauhaus on Nieder-Ramstädter Straße is a good fit. According to the operator, beer has been brewed on the site for around 170 years; on tap are Hell, Pils, Märzen or alcohol-free Fassbrause. It’s open daily from 11:00, with a lunch menu from 11:00 to 14:00 (as of Oct 2026). Tram 3 stops at Schulstraße. Quieter is the brasserie l’oxalis in the Bessunger Jagdhof, run by the team of Darmstadt’s Michelin-starred restaurant OX: Tuesday to Saturday from 18:00, with a peaceful garden in the middle of the neighbourhood. From there it’s just a short walk back to your studio by the Orangerie – and the next morning, the 3 is running again.