It borders Darmstadt-Wixhausen in the north, Darmstadt-Ost in the southeast, Darmstadt-Nord in the southwest and Darmstadt-Arheilgen in the west.

On May 6, 1399, the first mention of the Einsiedel-Rod on Messeler Weg appeared, which was later named Kranich-Rod or Kranich-Rotth, after its owner Henne Cranich zu Dirmstein , derived from the German word for clearing "Rodung".

It is named after the nearby hunting lodge, the former summer residence of the Darmstadt landgraves and grand dukes.

From the beginning, the overall planning included the construction of the Bürgerpark with artificial hills and several ponds that were created in the former clay pits, as well as Lake Brentano.

Kranichstein is known for its passive houses, (Passivhaus in German) this refers to the voluntary standard for energy efficiency in a building, reducing its ecological footprint Kranichstein is served by lines 4 and 5 of the Darmstadt tram network, linking the district to central Darmstadt.