Arriving in Giessen

Almost 40 % of Giessen’s population are students 👩🏽‍🎓! What makes town life vibrant also makes the search for accommodation a bit of an adventure, as lots of people are looking for places to stay within a certain budget. You’ll need some time and resilience to bag a place, but we’re here to help you get an overview, and our GCSC community is always happy to share opportunities they come across.

• ✅ Find the most important starting points (dorms, flat search websites, a helpful glossary) in your GCSC Onboarding Package on the JLUbox: in your “Checklist: Coming to Germany” and in the “Accommodation” folder.
• 🚌 Consider branching out of Giessen. The inner city is relatively small; the flat market in the more rural districts might be a little less tight. Giessen is also surrounded by villages and small towns, some of which are well connected to the inner city or the Philosophikum campus by bus or regional train, which you will be able to ride for free with your Semesterticket – or of course by bike. To check connections, use the app of the local transport provider RMV – it's better at the buses than Google.
• 🕒 Think about a short-term rent contract (“Zwischenmiete”) – many students rent out their furnished rooms while they take a semester abroad. This can be a good home base while you get your bearings, figure out in which areas you would like to live, make connections, and go to flat viewings.
• 🤝Applying for accommodation is like applying for jobs. Make sure to have all required documents and to write a nice introduction with core information about yourself. The people who advertise rooms often get a lot of messages, so ones that just say “Hi, is this still available?” are simply deleted.

• ✅ Find the most important starting points (bank account, “Anmeldung”, converting your visa to a residence permit) in your “Checklist: Coming to Germany” in the GCSC Onboarding Package.
• 👖 Finding affordable clothes: You can find second-hand treasures at the two locations of “DRK Kleiderladen”, the “KAUFHAUS”; “Secondhand Boutique Plaza”, “Seconda”, and at “GAiN Store” close to the GCSC.
• 🛋️ Finding affordable furniture and household supplies: Head to the second-hand “KAUFHAUS” at Alter Krofdorfer Weg 4 for affordable furniture and household goods; or browse “Antik & Trödel”, a flea market that takes place every first Sunday of the month. You can also find many affordable things at Kleinanzeigen.de (check out the “zu verschenken” category for free things). Groups where users post about things they give away for free can be found e. g. on Facebook or Telegram. 

Giessen lies in the middle of the state of Hesse and has approx. 88,000 inhabitants, with two universities and a student population of around 35,000. It is a very liveable city with nice spots, lovely cafés and interesting parties and activities. It is easily travelled by bicycle or public transport, both of which you can use for free (see “Getting Around” below).

• 📍 Living in the middle of things: Giessen is located in the region of Mittelhessen (Middle Hesse), which offers many beautiful spots and activities. It is close to the cities of Frankfurt (which boats a large arts and cultural scene as well as shopping opportunities) and Marburg (a fairytale German town with an excellent Christmas Market). Giessen itself, located in the middle, has numerous cultural institutions and activities to offer – for example the oldest Botanical Garden in Germany, swimming pools and lakes, and some excellent restaurants and pubs.
• 💸 As a student, you benefit from amazing flatrates or free admission to the cinema, theatre, and swimming pool every semester – check them out!
• 🆕 Learn what’s up: Subscribe to the monthly “International Researcher Newsletter” to receive English-language news about current goings-on such as music and street food festivals or cultural events in English taking place in Giessen and nearby!
• 🎭 Museums and theatres: The “Stadttheater” offers a broad repertoire of opera, musical, operetta, classical and modern drama, and modern dance theatre on two stages – and is included in your theatre flat rate 😉. The “Liebig Museum” is located in what was once Justus von Liebig’s famous laboratory. The father of modern experimental chemistry, Liebig taught at JLU from 1824-1852 and gave the world baking powder, fertilizers, chloroform, and meat extract. The “Kunsthalle Gießen” offers contemporary art. The “Neuer Kunstverein Gießen” is a forum for young local arts and regularly holds vernissages. The “Mathematikum”, the Mathematical Science Centre, is child-friendly but educational for all ages. Giessen also has two cinemas, Kinocenter (more artsy and independent films) and Kinopolis (more blockbusters) – both are included in your cinema flat rate 🍿.
• 🏃🏽 Sports: The Campus Sports Association (AHS) organises a broad range of affordable sporting activities every semester. With your student card, you can access some public baths free of charge 🛟. There are also many regional sports associations with interesting programmes that are pleased to welcome new members.
• 🎶 Music: if you play a musical instrument, JLU’s University Orchestra invites you to join in. If you’re more a listener than a player, the Orchestra can also be counted on for excellent programmes. There is also an open choir of the institute for musicology; and lots of music festivals and concerts take place in and around Giessen each year.
• 🥾 Hiking: just a few kilometres southeast from Giessen lies the “Kloster Schiffenberg”, a beautiful old monastery from the 12^th Century. It is now being used for open-air concerts and comedy acts in the summer and offers a lovely restaurant and gallery all year round. The hike to the monastery rewards you with beautiful views. Right next to the monastery, you can also find Europe’s biggest climbing forest, in case you would like to challenge your athletic side. For more extensive hikes, head to the nearby Taunus or Vogelsberg Both offer lovely hikes for all abilities and picturesque views over the middle and north Hessian landscape.
• 📚 Books: Independent bookstores are uptodate near the main station, and Rickersche on Berliner Platz. You can order any title with usually very fast delivery (often overnight) either directly at the bookstore or online via “genialokal” (pick your favourite local bookstore on the site). The city library (switch to English at the top right) offers a large catalogue (including books in English and e-books) as well as events and resources. A library card costs 3€ for students. You can even borrow board games or sheet music! 🎲 An excellent resource for used books in English and other languages is medimops.de. 

🚲 Use a “Nextbike” to get around town! This bike sharing scheme offers stations all around the city, including one directly behind the GCSC building. JLU students can ride for free for up to 45 min per ride. You can use this benefit in all cities that offer Nextbikes, e. g. in Frankfurt. Check out how it works and sign up here.

• 🚂 Your semester ticket is now a “Deutschlandticket” – it enables you to ride for free on local and regional public transport (buses, trams, subways, and regional trains) in all of Germany. Inter-regional and express trains are not included. 📣 Note: as the price of the “Deutschlandticket” is rising next year, the student parliament is discussing whether this offer will be continued. You will receive news of any developments to your student e-mail address.