The second Bad Homburg Open started on Saturday in the Kurpark in Bad Homburg.

The tennis tournament is seen as the professional women's preparation for the tournament in Wimbledon immediately afterwards.

This time, five Grand Slam winners have announced themselves for the Bad Homburg lawn tournament.

The German top player Angelique Kerber wants to defend her title from last year.

Florentine Fritzen

Correspondent in the Hochtaunus district

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The 2021 tournament was a test run because of the pandemic, said Lord Mayor Alexander Hetjes (CDU) when he presented the program these days.

Now it is being played “under full load”: if the center court had 600 seats in the Corona year, this time there were 3500 and almost six times as many, reported spa director Holger Reuter.

In addition to the courts that are only accessible with an admission ticket, there will also be a promenade around Courts 1 and 2 in the "Baloise Park Village" on Brunnenallee, as a representative of the tournament office also reported.

"We want to create an event for everyone."

It is important to treat nature in the listed spa park with "very great care".

But the city, as those responsible agreed, has many years of experience with major events, such as the Thai Festival with 45,000 visitors and the Bad Homburg Summer.

The administration and organizers expect 21,000 ticket holders over the week of the tennis tournament.

How many other interested people will come cannot be estimated, said Hetjes.

Reuter reported that the hotels were already fully booked.

Tickets are only available for individual days.

Establish “the flair and aura of a tennis tournament” in the city center

Two qualifiers were played this Saturday.

There was a small opening ceremony on the Kurhaus forecourt from 11 a.m. to welcome the players and guests.

Street art and street food, such as "Hessian interpreted hot dogs" with hand cheese cubes and three new ice cream creations from "Gelato Bella".

The official start was made at 1 p.m. by Hetjes and Reuter together with tournament director Aljoscha Thron.

Also present was the squirrel Hazel, the tournament's mascot.

City marketing also wants to gradually establish “the flair and aura” of a tennis tournament in the city center over the next few years.

Already this time the retailers get posters and decorations for it.

Motorists can use one of 170 additional parking spaces at the Kronenhof for eight euros or drive into the multi-storey car park at the train station.

For the two Saturdays and Sunday, the organizer has rented 500 spaces in the Fresenius car park, parking there also costs eight euros.

Shuttle buses to the games leave the parking areas every half hour.

Local transport is free for ticket holders.

Due to construction and dismantling, Kisseleffstrasse will remain closed until the beginning of July.

A week later the tournament ends again on Saturday with the final.

The fact that it is not only on Sunday is because the tournament in Wimbledon starts on Monday.

By the way, there are supposed to be strawberries in Bad Homburg, just like there.