A smooth OCONUS PCS often comes down to the details. AHRN.com has invited blogger Melissa Shaw, currently living in Germany, to share the details of housing in Wiesbaden!
One of the most common questions I see asked online by families preparing to PCS to Wiesbaden is “What is housing like there?”
USAG Wiesbaden, which services 17 installations, has four housing areas: Clay Kaserne (also called Wiesbaden Air Field, “the WAAF”, or just “Clay”), Hainerberg Housing Area, Crestview Housing Area, and Aukamm Housing Area. The majority of families in Wiesbaden live in on-post stairwell housing. Stairwell housing includes private, lockable storage rooms and shared yard areas. It’s also dual-voltage: you’ll find 110 and 220 outlets in military housing.
No matter your family’s size or your soldier’s rank, there’s a good chance you’ll live in an apartment on post. Some higher-ranking senior NCOs and field grade officers and their families live in town homes, but far more families live in apartments. Families who live in German homes are in the minority in Wiesbaden.
As you’re preparing for your PCS, you may have questions about what to pack and what to leave behind. Most of the bigger questions will revolve around furniture (how big is too big?) and electronics (will I be able to use my electronics in Germany?). Housing — on post or off — has smaller rooms than homes in the United States, so plan accordingly. If you have a king-sized bed with a large headboard and footboard, for instance, you may want to trade in for a queen before heading overseas. The same goes for large sectional sofas or other over-sized furniture.
Most electronics, on the other hand, are usable in Germany. If you live on post, you’ll be able to use your mixer, coffee pot, television, X-Box, etc. just like you would in the States, thanks to the dual-voltage wiring. If your family is assigned housing on the local economy, you’ll need to pick up a few transformers to make sure you don’t damage electronics that have motors inside. At $75-$100 or so, buying a transformer for each of your major electronic items makes more sense than replacing pricier electronics when you get to Germany.
Since you’re more likely to live on post than off, let’s talk a little bit about each of the four housing areas in Wiesbaden, each of which has unique pros and cons:
Clay Kaserne (where the airfield is located) is the post where the majority of the garrison’s soldiers work. It’s also where the Welcome Center, Fitness Center, and Post Office are located. Although Clay has both stairwell housing and single-family homes, most families live in one of the three other housing areas.
Hainerberg Housing Area is, for all practical purposes, the center of the USAG Wiesbaden community. The Army Lodge, the Entertainment Center, Army Community Services, the PX, the movie theater and the Commissary are all on Hainerberg. One of the two Wiesbaden elementary schools is on Hainerberg, as is the community’s middle school and high school.
Aukamm and Crestview Housing Areas are both are a bit quieter than Hainerberg or Clay. While stairwell housing makes up the majority of the housing in Aukamm and Clay, there are a few town homes as well. Aukamm also has its own small elementary school.
No matter where you live in Wiesbaden, you’ll have access to amazing travel and cultural opportunities. To learn more about shopping, dining, and travel in Wiesbaden, check out AHRN blog post, “Enjoying Wiesbaden”.
We want to know:
Are you preparing to move overseas? What questions do you have?
Meet Your Contributor
Melissa Gilliam Shaw is a freelance marketing professional and the creator of Marrying the Army: a blog that offers encouragement to military spouses. Melissa’s husband is an officer in the Army, and they live in Germany with their baby daughter and their scruffy rescue dog. You can find Melissa on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Bloglovin’, LinkedIn, and Google+.
The facilities in Wisebaden are quite good and the best things is that these homes are equipped with dual voltage.
Thank you for sharing that!
We’re about to move to Wiesbaden in July. I have a service dog for stability. My knees buckle and I fall. There are days I can walk 2 miles and there are days I can’t even get out of bed. So, we NEED a yard to let my service dog go potty when I can’t walk him. Can we request not to be in the stairwell unit, but in a townhouse with a yard?
Thank you.
Vero, most of the installations do have a limited amount of housing designated for those with limited access. Are you enrolled in EFMP? Your best bet would be to check with the EFMP office and the Wiesbaden housing office to see what accommodations are available for your condition.
Vero, I also remember seeing stairwell housing units in Wiesbaden that had handicap access elevators installed. One way or another, I’m sure that if you’re enrolled in EFMP, they’ll take good care of you and your service dog.
Thanks for chiming in Melissa!
We’re moving to wiesbaden soon and have a question about the newman village houses
Is it good to live there with children or is it better to live in Aukamm or Hainerberg area.
Romy – For the most current feedback, I’d suggest posting on our AHRN.com Facebook page! facebook.com/ahrncom