The Giessen Centre for Eastern Europe is located in Philosophikum I, House E, of the Justus Liebig University in Giessen.

Arriving by car

from the A 45 southbound (from Dortmund):
– exit at Wetzlar Ost onto the B 49 towards Gießen
– follow the Giessen ring road towards Marburg, and take the exit ‘Schiffenberger Tal’ (Exit 6)

from the A 45 northbound (from Frankfurt):
– exit at Gießener Südkreuz onto the A 485 towards Gießen
– follow the Giessen ring road towards Marburg, and take the exit ‘Schiffenberger Tal’ (Exit 6)

from the A 5 southbound (from Kassel):
– exit at Reiskirchener Dreieck onto the A 480 towards Gießen
– exit at Gießener Nordkreuz onto the A 485 towards Gießen/Frankfurt. Take the exit ‘Schiffenberger Tal’ (Exit 6)

Immediately after exiting at ‘Schiffenberger Tal’ you will come to a set of traffic lights, where you should follow the signs towards ‘Gießen Zentrum’. After the town sign welcoming you to Giessen, turn right at the second junction into Rathenaustraße (traffic lights at the corner with Burger King). Follow this road to the zebra crossing. Here you will find directions as to where to park at Philosophikum I.

Arriving by bus or train

For rail passengers:

There are two bus routes from Giessen station (Hauptbahnhof Gießen) to Philosophikum I:
1) Route 1

The bus stops for the town buses are located about 50 m from the main station building, on the right hand side. Take the number 10 bus (which usually departs on the hour and on the half-hour), and travel to the final stop, Rathenaustraße. The bus stop is located between Philosophikum I und Philosophikum II.
Cross the zebra crossing and follow the footpath to Philosophikum I, passing the library to your right. The main entrance (House A) is directly behind Gerhard Marcks’ statue of the ‘Whinnying Horse’. Go through the entrance hall, turn left in front of the cafeteria, and follow the signs to House E. The GiZo is located on the second floor.

2) Route 2

Alternatively, you could take the number 2 bus towards Eichendorffring. From the bus-stop Graudenzer Straße it is about a 5 minute-walk to the main building of Philosophikum I. A few metres before the bus stop, turn left into the Graudenzer Straße, which leads to the back of the University Library. Simply follow the footpath around the library to the main entrance (House A). Go through the entrance hall, turn left in front of the cafeteria, and follow the signs to House E. The GiZo is located on the second floor.

These bus routes also go through the city centre.
Bus number 10 stops at Johanneskirche and at Berliner Platz. Bus number 2 stops at Marktplatz (in the pedestrian precinct) and at Berliner Platz. At both stops it is also possible to take buses number 800-802, which also go to Rathenaustraße (located at the university campus).

Taxi and Minicar in Gießen

There are several taxi companies in Giessen. The cheapest option is the so-called Minicar for which you pay a pre-set amount. (For a journey within the town, this is about €5.00).


Taxi Lang (0641) 4 80 80 72
Taxi Blitz (0641) 96 20 20
Taxi/Minicar Astrid Klos (0641) 94 44 00
Minicar Ilona Lipp (0641) 4 30 30; 0800 - MINICAR
The One e.K. (0641) 6 30 30
Taxi u. Minicar (0641) - 33 00 1