This quarter, northwest of the city center, has an impressive cluster of fine museums displaying art spanning from 3000 B.C. right up to the present (Egyptian Museum, Glyptothek, Alte and Neue Pinakotheks, Lenbachhaus, Moderne Pinakothek, and the Museum Brandhorst). Most people don’t come to Munich for the art, but this group makes a case for the city’s world-class status. The Alte Pinakothek is the best of the bunch, but modern art is also surprisingly well represented. Consider spending an afternoon here (and maybe an evening; most of these museums are open late one night of the week). Café Ella, in the Lenbachhaus, is a good option for lunch or dinner (closed Mon). Also in this area is the excellent Nazi Documentation Center.
Getting There: The Glyptothek and Lenbachhaus are right by the Königsplatz stop on the U-2 subway line. The three Pinakothek museums, the Egyptian Museum, and the Brandhorst are a few blocks to the northeast. Handy tram #27 whisks you right to the Pinakothek stop from Karlsplatz (between the train station and Marienplatz). You can also take bus #100 from the train station, or walk 10 minutes from the Theresienstrasse or Königsplatz stops on the U-2 line.
Tickets: A €12 pass covers the three Pinakotheks, plus the Brandhorst and Schack Collection (more 19th-century German Romanticism) on a single day. A €29 combo-ticket covers five visits to any of those museums (no time restriction, shareable with travel companions). On Sundays, these museums and the Glyptothek let you in for just a token €1, but charge €4.50 for the useful audioguides (normally included).
(See “Alte Pinakothek” map, here.)
The Alte Pinakothek (“Old Art Gallery,” pronounced ALL-teh pee-nah-koh-TEHK) shows off a world-class collection of European masterpieces from the 14th to 19th century, starring the two tumultuous centuries (1450-1650) when Europe went from medieval to modern. See paintings from the Italian Renaissance (Raphael, Leonardo, Botticelli, Titian) and the German Renaissance it inspired (Albrecht Dürer). Through the art displayed here, you can follow along as the Reformation of Martin Luther eventually split Europe into two subcultures—Protestant and Catholic—with their two distinct art styles (exemplified by Rembrandt and Rubens, respectively). Note that the museum will likely be under renovation when you visit, though you should find the majority of the rooms on this tour to be open—ask when you arrive.
Cost and Hours: €4 during renovation (otherwise €7), €1 on Sun, covered by day pass and combo-ticket; Wed-Sun 10:00-18:00, Tue until 20:00, closed Mon; excellent audioguide is usually free (€4.50 on Sun), mandatory lockers for big bags, pleasant Café Klenze; U-2: Theresienstrasse, tram #27, or bus #100; Barer Strasse 27, tel. 089/2380-5216, www.pinakothek.de/alte-pinakothek.
Visiting the Museum: Pick up a map and get your bearings. All the paintings we’ll see are on the upper floor, which is laid out like a barbell. Start at one fat end and work your way through the “handle” to the other end. From the ticket counter, head up the stairway to the left to reach the first rooms. I’ve listed the highlights, but as you walk, let your audioguide explain any painting that catches your interest.
German Renaissance (Room II): Albrecht Altdorfer’s The Battle of Issus (Schlacht bei Issus) shows a world at war. Masses of soldiers are swept along in the currents and tides of a battle completely beyond their control, their confused motion reflected in the swirling sky. We see the battle from a great height, giving us a godlike perspective. Though the painting depicts Alexander the Great’s history-changing victory over the Persians (find the Persian king Darius turning and fleeing), it could as easily have been Germany in the 1520s. Christians were fighting Muslims, peasants battled masters, and Catholics and Protestants were squaring off for a century of conflict. The armies melt into a huge landscape, leaving the impression that the battle goes on forever.
Albrecht Dürer’s larger-than-life Four Apostles (Johannes und Petrus and Paulus und Marcus) are saints of a radical new religion: Martin Luther’s Protestantism. Just as Luther challenged Church authority, Dürer—a friend of Luther’s—strips these saints of any rich clothes, halos, or trappings of power and gives them down-to-earth human features: receding hairlines, wrinkles, and suspicious eyes. The inscription warns German rulers to follow the Bible rather than Catholic Church leaders. The figure of Mark—a Bible in one hand and a sword in the other—is a fitting symbol of the dangerous times.
Dürer’s Self-Portrait in Fur Coat (Selbstbildnis im Pelzrock) looks like Jesus Christ but is actually 28-year-old Dürer himself (per his inscription: “XXVIII”), gazing out, with his right hand solemnly giving a blessing. This is the ultimate image of humanism: the artist as an instrument of God’s continued creation. Get close and enjoy the intricately braided hair, the skin texture, and the fur collar. To the left of the head is Dürer’s famous monogram—“A.D.” in the form of a pyramid.
Italian Renaissance (Room IV): With the Italian Renaissance—the “rebirth” of interest in the art and learning of ancient Greece and Rome—artists captured the realism, three-dimensionality, and symmetry found in classical statues. Twenty-one-year-old Leonardo da Vinci’s Virgin and Child (Maria mit dem Kinde) need no halos—they radiate purity. Mary is a solid pyramid of maternal love, flanked by Renaissance-arch windows that look out on the hazy distance. Baby Jesus reaches out to play innocently with a carnation, the blood-colored symbol of his eventual death.
Raphael’s Holy Family at the Canigiani House (Die hl. Familie aus dem Hause Canigiani) takes Leonardo’s pyramid form and runs with it. Father Joseph forms the peak, with his staff as the strong central axis. Mary and Jesus (on the right) form a pyramid-within-the-pyramid, as do Elizabeth and baby John the Baptist on the left. They all exchange meaningful eye contact, safe within the bounds of the stable family structure.
In Botticelli’s Lamentation over Christ (Die Beweinung Christi), the Renaissance “pyramid” implodes, as the weight of the dead Christ drags everyone down, and the tomb grins darkly behind them.
Venetian Painting (Room V): In Titian’s Christ Crowned with Thorns (Die Dornenkrönung), a powerfully built Christ sits silently enduring torture by prison guards. The painting is by Venice’s greatest Renaissance painter, but there’s no symmetry, no pyramid form, and the brushwork is intentionally messy and Impressionistic. By the way, this is the first painting we’ve seen done on canvas rather than wood, as artists experimented with vegetable oil-based paints.
Rubens and Baroque (Room VII): Europe’s religious wars split the Continent in two—Protestants in the northern countries, Catholics in the south. (Germany itself was divided, with Bavaria remaining Catholic.) The Baroque style, popular in Catholic countries, featured large canvases, bright colors, lots of flesh, rippling motion, wild emotions, grand themes...and pudgy winged babies, the sure sign of Baroque. This room holds several canvases by the great Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens.
In Rubens’ 300-square-foot Great Last Judgment (Das Grosse Jüngste Gericht), Christ raises the righteous up to heaven (left side) and damns the sinners to hell (on the right). This swirling cycle of nudes was considered risqué and kept under wraps by the very monks who’d commissioned it.
Rubens and Isabella Brant shows the artist with his first wife, both of them the very picture of health, wealth, and success. They lean together unconsciously, as people in love will do, with their hands clasped in mutual affection. When his first wife died, 53-year-old Rubens found a replacement—16-year-old Hélène Fourment, shown in an adjacent painting (just to the left) in her wedding dress. You may recognize Hélène’s face in other Rubens paintings.
The Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus (Der Raub der Töchter des Leukippos) has many of Rubens’ most typical elements—fleshy, emotional, rippling motion; bright colors; and a classical subject. The legendary twins Castor and Pollux crash a wedding and steal the brides as their own. The chaos of flailing limbs and rearing horses is all held together in a subtle X-shaped composition. Like the weaving counterpoint in a Baroque fugue, Rubens balances opposites.
Notice that Rubens’ canvases were—to a great extent—cranked out by his students and assistants from small “cartoons” the master himself made (displayed in the side room).
Rembrandt and Dutch (Room IX): From Holland, Rembrandt van Rijn’s Six Paintings from the Life of Christ are a down-to-earth look at supernatural events. The Adoration (Die Anbetung der Hirten) of Baby Jesus takes place in a 17th-century Dutch barn with ordinary folk as models. The canvases are dark brown, lit by strong light. The Adoration’s light source is the Baby Jesus himself—literally the “light of the world.” In the Raising of the Cross (Kreuzaufrichtung), a man dressed in blue is looking on—a self-portrait of Rembrandt.
In the Deposition (Kreuzabnahme), the light bounces off Christ’s pale body onto his mother Mary, who has fainted in the shadows, showing how his death also hurts her. The drama is underplayed, with subdued emotions.
The Alte Pinakothek’s younger sister is an easy-to-like collection located just across the street, showing paintings from 1800 to 1920. Breeze through a smattering of Romantics on your way to the museum’s highlight: some world-class Impressionist paintings, and one of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers.
Cost and Hours: €7, €1 on Sun, covered by day pass and combo-ticket; Thu-Mon 10:00-18:00, Wed until 20:00, closed Tue; well-done audioguide is usually free (€4.50 on Sun), classy Café Hunsinger in basement spills into park; U-2: Theresienstrasse, tram #27, or bus #100; Barer Strasse 29 but enter on Theresienstrasse, tel. 089/2380-5195, www.pinakothek.de/neue-pinakothek.
Visiting the Museum: Pick up the audioguide and floor plan, and follow their prescribed route. Along the way, be sure to hit these highlights.
Rooms 1-3: In Room 1, Jacques-Louis David’s curly-haired Comtesse de Sorcy shows the French noblewoman dressed in the ancient-Greek-style fashions popular during the Revolution. Room 3 features English painters—Turner’s stormy seascapes and Gainsborough’s contemplative Mrs. Thomas Hibbert. Nearby, you’ll see other less-famous works by other major European artists.
Rooms 4-18: These rooms—the bulk of the museum—feature colorful, pretty, realistic (and mostly forgettable) paintings by German Romantics. In the remarkable King Ludwig I in Coronation Robes (Room 8), the young playboy king is both regal and rakish. (For more on the king, the artist, and their Gallery of Beauties, see here.) Caspar David Friedrich (Room 9) is Germany’s best-known chronicler of the awe-inspiring power of nature (though these small canvases aren’t his best). Carl Spitzweg’s tiny The Poor Poet (Room 12) is often reproduced. Room 13 has huge (hard-to-miss) canvases: The Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus, and the nationalist-themed Thusnelda Led in Germanicus’ Triumph, showing a German noblewoman and her son, captured by the Romans, being paraded before the emperor.
Rooms 19-22: In these rooms, you’ll find classic examples of all the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masters: Degas’ snapshots of women at work, Monet’s sunny landscapes and water lilies, Manet’s bourgeois Realism, Cézanne’s still lifes, and Gauguin’s languid Tahitian ladies. Van Gogh’s Sunflowers is one of 11 such canvases he did, which he used to decorate his home in Arles when Gauguin came to visit.
In the final rooms, see works by Gustav Klimt and Munich’s answer to Klimt, Franz von Stuck. The Neue Pinakothek may whet your appetite for even neuer art, found nearby at the Lenbachhaus, Pinakothek der Moderne, and the Museum Brandhorst.
This museum picks up where the other two Pinakotheks leave off, covering the 20th and 21st centuries. Most of the building houses temporary exhibits and constantly rotating collections, but there are two (fairly) permanent exhibits, with excellent English descriptions throughout. The striking, white, high-ceilinged building is itself worth a look—it’s free to step into the atrium.
Cost and Hours: €10, €1 on Sun, covered by day pass and combo-ticket; Tue-Sun 10:00-18:00, Thu until 20:00, closed Mon; audioguide is usually free (€4.50 on Sun), mandatory bag check for big bags; U-2: Theresienstrasse, tram #27, or bus #100; Barer Strasse 40, tel. 089/2380-5360, www.pinakothek.de/pinakothek-der-moderne.
Visiting the Museum: The manageably sized Classical Modernism wing, upstairs near the entrance, covers many of the stars of modern art—Picasso, Dalí, Miró, and so on. The museum’s strength is the German contribution. The Expressionists rendered reality in deep colors and bold black outlines. Munich’s Blue Rider Group (Kandinsky, Klee, Marc) took it the next step by abandoning reality altogether and expressing themselves with only color and line. One or two rooms display “degenerate art”—paintings confiscated by the Nazis and eventually rescued by an art lover. Max Beckmann (whose work is usually in Room 9) witnessed the rise of Nazism—and was branded a degenerate—and his symbol-laced works chronicle the cynicism of the time.
The design wing, in the basement, is worth a quick look. From chairs to bikes to blenders to cars and computers, these are everyday objects that work efficiently but also have a sleek artistic flair.
To enjoy this museum, you don’t need a strong interest in ancient Egypt (but you may have one by the time you leave). This modern space was custom-made to evoke the feeling of being deep in an ancient tomb, from the wide, easy-to-miss staircase outside that descends to the narrow entry, to the twisty interior rooms that grow narrower and more catacomb-like as you progress. The art here is beautifully lit, explained well in English, and accompanied by touch-screen terminals that give the curious more background. The museum’s clever design creates a low-stress visit (just follow the one-way route marked by brass arrows in the floor), and makes up for the fact that the collection lacks a rock-star showpiece (such as Nefertiti, who still holds her head high in Berlin’s Neues Museum).
Cost and Hours: €7, €1 on Sun, covered by day pass and combo-ticket; Wed-Sun 10:00-18:00, Tue until 20:00, closed Mon; audioguide is usually free (€1 on Sun), U-2 or U-8 to Königsplatz, tram #27 to Karolinenplatz, or bus #100 to Pinakothek stop; 10-minute walk from main train station, Gabelsbergerstrasse 35, tel. 089/2892-7630, www.smaek.de.
Locals like to say, “Berlin had generals, Munich had artists.” And that was particularly true in the decades before World War I. Little ol’ Munich blew the art world’s mind when a bunch of art-school cronies got fed up with being told how and what to paint, and together as the revolutionary “Blue Rider” (Blaue Reiter) group galloped toward a brand new horizon—abstract art. In the Lenbachhaus’ series of pleasant galleries you can witness the birth of Modernist nonrepresentational art, with paintings by Kandinsky, Klee, and Marc, then stroll the rest of the building’s offerings (including the apartments of painter Franz von Lenbach, whose original villa and studio are now largely enclosed by the modern museum building).
Cost and Hours: €10, includes well-done audioguide; ticket gets you half-price admission to Jewish History Museum, Nazi Documentation Center, Munich City Museum, or Villa Stuck (or use any of those tickets to get half-price admission here); Wed-Sun 10:00-18:00, Tue until 20:00, closed Mon; Luisentrasse 33, tel. 089/2333-2000, www.lenbachhaus.de.
Cuisine Art: The museum has a good, upscale Italian restaurant, Café Ella, that’s open much later than the museum (Tue-Sat 9:00-24:00, Sun until 21:00, closed Mon, tel. 089/7008-8177).
Visiting the Museum: The collection includes three distinct sections: 19th century (conservative, colorful, optimistic); Blue Rider (emotional, inspired, modern); and Post-1945 (abstract). The Blue Rider revolution begins on the second floor, with seemingly innocuous paintings of the cute Bavarian town of Murnau. It was here in 1908 that two Munich couples—Wassily Kandinsky, Alexej Jawlensky, and their artist girlfriends—came for vacation. The four painted together—it’s hard to tell their work apart—employing intense colors, thick paint, and bold black outlines. Over the next few years (c. 1911-1914), they’d gather together into a group of Munich-based artists calling themselves the Blue Rider, which included Paul Klee and Franz Marc. They were all devoted to expressing the spiritual truths they felt within by using intense colors and geometric shapes.
The Blue Rider School was blown apart by World War I: The artists who survived the Great War went on to pioneer abstract art. Over time, they paid less attention to re-creating the physical world realistically on canvas and more attention to the colors and lines alone. Kandinsky’s “Improvisations”—like a jazz musician improvising a new pattern of notes from a set scale—eventually became the art world’s first purely abstract canvases. Soon Kandinsky was teaching at the famous Bauhaus school in Weimar, and his style spread everywhere. Jawlensky and Klee also went on to develop a simpler and more abstract style. This is the art that infuriated Hitler, art that he termed “degenerate.”
One floor down, in the “Art After 1945” section, you’ll see big, empty canvases by the Abstract Expressionists who—like Kandinsky and his Blue Rider contemporaries—tried to “express” deep truths through “abstract” color and line alone. You’ll see other recent pieces, most of them provocative.
This floor also has a section devoted to several oddball installations by Joseph Beuys. (Is that art, or did the janitor just leave a broom here?) The far wing’s stash of 19th-century paintings (on both floors) provides a nice contrast to all the abstract stuff (but skip it if you’re also hitting the Neue Pinakothek, which has a better collection of similar works).
Finally, across the entry hall from the ticket desk and up one floor, check out portraits of 19th-century notables by the painter who lived and worked here in what is now the museum that bears his name, Franz von Lenbach.
The museum quarter has several more highly regarded museums, but for the typical tourist on a quick visit they probably don’t merit a stop. However, if you have a special interest in art, you’ll want to know about these two (both closed Mon).
The Museum Brandhorst covers the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st, with a particular emphasis on Andy Warhol and Cy Twombly. Its collection is contained in a striking building with thousands of colored cylinders lining the outside. The Glyptothek is an impressive collection of Greek and Roman sculpture started by Ludwig I.
This center—housed in a stark, light-filled, cube-shaped building—documents the rise and fall of Nazism with a focus on Munich’s role and the reasons behind it, as this city, like the rest of Germany, is determined to learn from its 20th-century nightmare. While there are no actual artifacts here, the learning experience is moving and a worthwhile companion to visiting the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial.
Cost and Hours: €5 includes well-done and techie audioguide; ticket gets you half-price admission to Jewish History Museum, Munich City Museum, Villa Stuck, or Lenbachhaus—or use any of those tickets to get half-price admission here; Tue-Sun 10:00-19:00, closed Mon, U-2: Königsplatz, Brienner Strasse 34, tel. 089/2336-7001, www.ns-dokumentationszentrum-muenchen.de.
Background: Munich was the birthplace of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP—or Nazi Party), and even after the Nazis took power and moved to Berlin, it remained the official Nazi Party headquarters. It was in Munich that Hitler and other disillusioned World War I veterans gathered to lick their wounds. The Nazi Party was founded here in 1919, and this is where Hitler staged his attempted coup (the Beer Hall Putsch). He was imprisoned in nearby Landsberg where wrote his Mein Kampf manifesto.
As soon as the Nazis took power (in 1933), they opened their first concentration camp, outside Munich in Dachau. Munich was the site of the infamous failed peace pact, the Munich Agreement of 1938, where Britain’s prime minister tried to avoid war by appeasing Hitler. Once in power, Hitler officially proclaimed Munich “Capital of the Movement.”
Königsplatz was ground zero for Nazi activities. (Remember that Hitler fancied himself an artist, and with its world-class museums, art academies, and artists’ villas, this square was at the heart of the German art world—thus making it a perfect stage for Hitler’s ego; the monumental Neoclassical buildings that surround the square were also right up his alley.) Mass rallies were held on Königsplatz, where they burned forbidden books. Some 68 buildings in the neighborhood housed dozens of Nazi departments and 6,000 employees. While WWII bombs left much of the city in rubble, the Nazi-built structures were so strong that, ironically, they were among the rare buildings in the center still standing in 1945. Most of the Nazi-built architecture is gone now, but at Arcisstrasse 12, once the Führerbau (“Führer building,” now used as a music academy), you can still see the window of Hitler’s personal office above the entrance porch. The official Nazi Party headquarters (called the Brown House) was next door, along Brienner Strasse. That structure was destroyed in the war and has now been replaced by this brand-new building.
Visiting the Museum: The museum is arranged chronologically and begins on the top floor. (Take the elevator to avoid confusion.) The top floor covers the end of World War I and the beginning of Hitler’s movement in Munich (1918-1933). It includes gripping biographies of the early opponents of the Nazi Party.
The third floor (covering 1933-1939) documents the establishment of the racially pure Volksgemeinschaft (“people’s community”) and the effect of Nazi domination on everyday life, including a timeline that illustrates the restrictions and ordinances that worsened Jewish isolation. Look out onto Königsplatz and envision Hitler’s rise to power, which started right here. The second floor (1939-1945) covers the horrors of war, the Holocaust, and the “denazification” period after the end of Nazi rule. Find the video showing Munich in ruins immediately following the war and compare the footage to what you see today.
The first floor (after 1945) examines the faith people put in the Nazi regime and the difficulty in coming to terms with the past. The Learning Center, in the basement, encourages reflection, with a collection of books banned during Nazi rule and research stations where you can delve into topics of interest.
Munich’s “Central Park,” the largest urban park on the Continent, was laid out in 1789 by an American. More than 100,000 locals commune with nature here on sunny summer days (including lots of students from the nearby university). The park stretches three miles from the center, past the university and the trendy Schwabing quarter. For the best quick visit, take bus #100 or tram #18 to the Nationalmuseum/Haus der Kunst stop. Under the bridge, you’ll see surfers. (The surf’s always up here—even through the night; surfers bring their own lights.) Follow the path, to the right of the surfing spot, downstream until you reach the big lawn. The Chinese Tower beer garden (described on here, under “Eating in Munich”) is just beyond the tree-covered hill to the right. Follow the oompah music and walk to the hilltop temple, with a postcard view of the city on your way. Afterward, instead of retracing your steps, you can walk (or take bus #54 a couple of stops) to the Giselastrasse U-Bahn station and return to town on the U-3 or U-6.
A rewarding respite from the city, the park is especially fun—and worth ▲▲—on a bike under the summer sun and on warm evenings (unfortunately, there are no bike-rental agencies in or near the park; to rent some wheels, see here). Caution: While local law requires sun worshippers to wear clothes on the tram, the park is sprinkled with buck-naked sunbathers—quite a shock to prudish Americans (they’re the ones riding their bikes into the river and trees).
Built by Hitler as a temple of Nazi art, this bold and fascist building—a rare surviving example of a purpose-built Nazi structure—is now an impressive shell for various temporary art exhibits. Ironically, the art now displayed in Hitler’s “house of art” is the kind that annoyed the Führer most—modern. Its cellar, which served as a nightclub for GIs in 1945, is now the extremely exclusive P-1 nightclub.
Cost and Hours: €14, daily 10:00-20:00, Thu until 22:00, exhibits usually well-explained in English, at south end of English Garden, tram #18 or bus #100 from station to Nationalmuseum/Haus der Kunst, Prinzregentenstrasse 1, tel. 089/2112-7113, www.hausderkunst.de.
Eating: The Golden Bar, where a 1930s atmosphere survives (on the back side of the building, overlooking the English Garden), is one of Germany’s most interesting cafés (café open daily 10:00-20:00; bar open Mon-Sat until late, closed Sun).
Nearby: Just beyond the Haus der Kunst, where Prinzregentenstrasse crosses the Eisbach canal, you can get another view of adventure seekers surfing in the rapids created as the small river tumbles underground.
This tired but interesting collection features Tilman Riemenschneider wood carvings, manger scenes, traditional living rooms, and old Bavarian houses. For those with a keen interest in Baroque and Rococo art, it’s worth the trip.
Cost and Hours: €7, €1 on Sun; Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00, Thu until 20:00, closed Mon; tram #18 or bus #100 from station to Nationalmuseum/Haus der Kunst, Prinzregentenstrasse 3, tel. 089/211-2401, www.bayerisches-nationalmuseum.de.
Franz von Stuck, Munich’s top Art Nouveau artist and fin-de-siècle tastemaker, designed this mansion for himself, then lived and worked (and partied) here from 1898 until his death in 1928. Within Munich’s cutting-edge art scene, you were nobody until you were invited to an evening here. The rooms’ original dark-wood/gold-leaf decor dazzle Jugendstil fans; upstairs in Von Stuck’s former studio is his “Sin Altar” with a version of his most famous (and perhaps most erotically charged) painting, The Sin (Die Sünde).
Cost and Hours: €4; ticket gets you half-price admission to Jewish History Museum, Munich City Museum, Nazi Documentation Center, or Lenbachhaus—or use any of those tickets to get half-price admission here; Tue-Sun 11:00-18:00, closed Mon; U-4: Prinzregentenplatz or tram #16 or bus #100 to Friedensengel/Villa Stuck, just a short ride across the river from the north end of the city center, Prinzregentenstrasse 60, tel. 089/455-5510, www.villastuck.de.
Germany’s answer to our Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, the Deutsches Museum traces the evolution of science and technology. The main branch is centrally located. The two other branches—the Museum of Transportation and the Flight Museum—are situated outside the city center, but are worth the effort for enthusiasts (both described later). You can pay separately for each museum, or buy a combo-ticket that covers all three.
Here at the main branch, enjoy wandering through rooms of historic airplanes, spaceships, mining, the harnessing of wind and water power, hydraulics, musical instruments, printing, chemistry, computers, astronomy, and nanotechnology...it’s the Louvre of technical know-how. The museum feels a bit dated, and not all the displays have English descriptions—but major renovations are under way to get this museum up to speed. About a third of the collection will likely be closed during your visit, but even those on roller skates will still need to be selective. Use my mini tour to get oriented, then study the floor plan and choose which sections interest you. The museum is designed to be hands-on; if you see a button, push it.
Cost and Hours: €11, €16 combo-ticket with other Deutsches Museum branches, €23 family ticket, €2 extra for planetarium show, daily 9:00-17:00, no guided tours in English but English map available, several small cafés in the museum, tel. 089/217-9333, www.deutsches-museum.de.
Getting There: Take tram #16 to the Deutsches Museum stop. Alternatively, take the S-Bahn or tram #18 to Isartor, then walk 300 yards over the river and turn right, following the signs (if you can find them). The entrance is near the far end of the building along the riverside. See the map on here.
Visiting the Museum: After buying your ticket at the kiosk outside, head inside and stop by the information desk to ask about the day’s schedule of demonstrations (for example, electric power or glass-blowing). Pick up an essential floor plan (you’ll get lost without it) and then walk toward the vast high-ceilinged room dominated by a tall-masted ship.
Ground Floor: Get oriented and locate the handy elevator behind you—it’s one of the few elevators in this labyrinthine building that goes to all six floors. Use the diagram (outlining the exhibits on each floor) near the elevators to make a plan. Now, let’s explore.
The exhibit on marine navigation is anchored by the 60-foot sailing ship Maria. Take the staircase down, where you can look inside her cut-away hull and imagine life below decks. Before heading back upstairs, find the bisected U1 submarine (on the wall farthest from the entrance)—the first German U-Boot (undersea boat), dating from 1906.
Now make your way to several technology exhibits—DNA and nanotechnology (downstairs). Children will enjoy the “Kinderreich” (past the cloakroom to the left as you enter) and the exciting twice-daily high-voltage demonstrations (ground floor) showing the noisy creation of a five-foot bolt of lightning.
First Floor: The historic aviation collection occupies the center of the first floor. You’ll see early attempts at flight—gliders, hot-air balloons, and a model of the airship pioneered by Germany’s Count Zeppelin. The highlight is a Wright Brothers double-decker airplane from 1909—six years after their famous first flight, when they began to manufacture multiple copies of their prototype. By World War I, airplanes were becoming a formidable force. The Fokker tri-plane was made famous by Germany’s war ace the Red Baron (Manfred von Richthofen).
Second Floor: Gathered together near the main elevator, you’ll find a replica of prehistoric cave paintings and daily glass-blowing demonstrations. Don’t miss the flight simulator—a training device that is almost identical to flying a real airplane.
Third Floor: The third floor traces the history of measurement, including time (from a 16th-century sundial and an 18th-century clock to a scary Black Forest wall clock complete with grim reaper), weights, and geodesy (surveying and mapping). In the computer section, you go from the ancient abacus to a 1956 Univac computer—as big as a room, with a million components, costing a million dollars, and with less computing power than your smartphone.
Floors 4-6: The focus here is on astronomy. A light-show exhibit traces the evolution of the universe. The recently renovated planetarium requires a €2 extra ticket (purchase this at the info desk beforehand); the lecture is in German, but it might be worth it if you love the stars. Finally, you emerge on the museum rooftop—the “sundial garden”—with great views. On a clear day, you can see the Alps.
The following sights are 30 minutes or less from the city center. A little farther out are several excellent day-trip options, including the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial (about an hour away by public transportation) and Andechs Monastery. King Ludwig’s castles of Bavaria, Nürnberg, Salzburg, and Berchtesgaden also make good day trips. For more information on these, including a self-guided tour of Dachau, see “Day Trips from Munich” on here.
While it veers a little toward the wonky, this fun museum has enough to interest the casual visitor—and it’s heaven for any driving enthusiast. You’ll see all aspects of transport, from old big-wheeled bikes to Benz’s first car (a three-wheeler from the 1880s) to sleek ICE super-trains (serious train buffs going to Nürnberg will be more excited by the German Railway Museum there). The museum asks what our lives would be like without transportation, and the exhibits show how modes of transportation developed from Neolithic “bone” skates (predecessors to today’s in-line skates) to 19th-century Lapland skis, to today’s snowboards and fast cars. This annex of the Deutsches Museum is housed in three giant hangar-like exhibition halls near the Oktoberfest grounds, a.k.a. Theresienwiese.
Cost and Hours: €6, €16 combo-ticket with other Deutsches Museum branches, €23 family ticket; daily 9:00-17:00, Am Bavariapark 5—but if arriving by GPS try Theresienhöhe 14a, tel. 089/500-806-123, www.deutsches-museum.de.
Getting There: Take the U-4 or U-5 to Schwanthalerhöhe and follow signs for Deutsches Museum from the platform. The museum is just a few steps from the station exit.
Visiting the Museum: True to the Deutsches Museum’s interactive spirit, the Museum of Transportation is engaging and well-explained in English.
Hall I focuses on urban transport, with special attention to Munich. Climb into the original 1927 prototype of a Berliner S-Bahn car, marvel at a cross-section of the intricate and multilayered subway system, learn about the history of the bicycle, and admire the vintage cars—including a deluxe 1930s Mercedes-Benz 370—arrayed into mock traffic jams. Twice a day (10:30 and 15:00) they fire up an S-Bahn simulator and let visitors pretend to drive the train.
Hall II gives you a look at the development of long-distance overland travel. The focus here is on trains and bus travel. Don’t miss the Maffei S3/6, a.k.a. “The Pride of Bavaria” (in its heyday the fastest steam engine, at nearly 80 miles per hour); climb aboard the clever old postal train car (complete with a mail slot on the side); and check out the 1950s panorama bus that shuttled eager tourists to fashionable destinations such as Italy. If your timing is right (or you see a tour in progress), be sure to take a ride in the old carriage. The metal track simulates what it would have felt like to travel in the 18th century over different terrain (grass and cobblestones—pretty uncomfortable).
Hall III is all about fun: motorcycles, bicycles, skis, and race cars. Famous prewar models include the Mercedes-Benz SS and the Auto Union Type C “Grand Prix” race car. Other tiny racers—which resemble metal pickles to the uninitiated—include the 1950s Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR and the famous Messerschmitt 200. You’ll also find early-18th-century bicycles based on Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings. Before the invention of the pedal crank, bikes were just silly-looking scooters for adults.
Fans of all things winged will enjoy the Deutsches Museum’s Flight Museum, with more than 50 planes, helicopters, gliders, and an original Europa rocket housed in a historical aerodrome on a former military airfield. Expect to find a few extras here while the main Deutsches Museum is under renovation, particularly aircraft designed after World War I. Inside the museum, try a helicopter simulator (for an extra charge, usually available on weekends) and watch antique planes being restored in the glass-walled workshop. The museum is well conceived and has some English explanations, but probably only those interested in the history of flight will find the trek to this out-of-the-way museum worthwhile.
Cost and Hours: €6, €16 combo-ticket with other Deutsches Museum branches, €23 family ticket, daily 9:00-17:00, tiny café, tel. 089/3157-1410, www.deutsches-museum.de.
Getting There: It’s easiest by car. If arriving by train take S-1 (direction: Freising Flughafen) and get off at Oberschleissheim (trip covered by Munich XXL day pass), then walk over the bridge, following Museen signs, for 15 minutes until the street turns into Effnerstrasse. It’s a 20-minute S-Bahn trip from Marienplatz.
Nearby: Consider a visit to opulent Schleissheim Palace, a two-minute walk from the Flight Museum (see here).
For 200 years, this oasis of palaces and gardens was the Wittelsbach rulers’ summer vacation home, a getaway from the sniping politics of court life in the city. Their kids could play, picnic, ride horses, and frolic in the ponds and gardens, while the adults played cards, listened to music, and sipped coffee on the veranda. It was at Nymphenburg that a seven-year-old Mozart gave a widely heralded concert, that 60-year-old Ludwig I courted the femme fatale Lola Montez, and that ”Mad” King Ludwig II (Ludwig I’s grandson) was born and baptized.
Today, Nymphenburg Palace and the surrounding one-square-mile park are a great place for a royal stroll or discreet picnic (see map on here). Indoors, you can tour the Bavarian royal family’s summer quarters and visit the Royal Stables Museum (carriages, sleighs, and porcelain). If you have time, check out playful extras such as a hunting lodge (Amalienburg), bathhouse (Badenburg), pagoda (Pagodenburg), and fake ruins (Magdalenenklause). The complex also houses a humble natural history museum and Baroque chapel. Allow at least three hours (including travel time) to see the palace complex at a leisurely pace.
Cost and Hours: Palace-€6; combo-ticket-€11.50 (€8.50 off-season) covers the palace, Royal Stables Museum, and outlying sights. All of these sights are open daily April-mid-Oct 9:00-18:00, mid-Oct-March 10:00-16:00—except for Amalienburg and the other small palaces in the park, which are closed in winter; park open daily 6:00-dusk and free to enter; audioguide-€3.50, mandatory bag check for big bags, tel. 089/179-080, www.schloss-nymphenburg.de.
Getting There: The palace is three miles northwest of central Munich. Take tram #17 (direction: Amalienburgstrasse) from the north side of the train station (or catch it at Karlsplatz). In 15 minutes you reach the Schloss Nymphenburg stop. From the bridge by the tram stop, you’ll see the palace—a 10-minute walk away. The palace is a pleasant 30-minute bike ride from the main train station (either follow Arnulfstrasse all the way to Nymphenburg, or turn up Landshuter Allee—at Donersburgerbrücke—then follow Nymphenburger Strasse until you hit the canal that stretches to the palace). Be aware that biking in the palace grounds is not permitted.
Eating: A $$ café serves lunch and snacks in a winter garden or on a nice terrace, a five-minute walk behind and to the right of the palace (open year-round). More eating options are near the tram stop.
In 1662, after 10 years of trying, the Bavarian ruler Ferdinand Maria and his wife, Henriette Adelaide of Savoy, finally had a son, Max Emanuel. In gratitude for a male heir, Ferdinand gave this land to his Italian wife, who proceeded to build an Italian-style Baroque palace as their summer residence. Their son expanded the palace to its current size. (Today’s Wittelsbachs, who still refer to themselves as “princes” or “dukes,” live in one wing of the palace.)
The palace interior, while interesting, is much less extensive than Munich’s Residenz. The place is stingy on free information; you’ll need the serviceable audioguide if you’d like more info than what I’ve provided below.
Self-Guided Tour: Your visit starts in the Great Hall (a.k.a. Stone Hall). As the central room of the palace, this light and airy space was the dining hall, site of big Wittelsbach family festivals. One of the grandest and best-preserved Rococo rooms in Bavaria (from about 1760), it sports elaborate stucco work and a ceiling fresco by Johann Baptist Zimmermann (of Wieskirche fame). Imagine the feasts and celebrations held in this room; you can practically hear the musicians playing from the balcony.
Zimmerman’s fresco opens a sunroof to the heavens, where Greek gods cavort. In the sunny center, Apollo drives his chariot to bring the dawn, while bearded Zeus (astride an eagle) and peacock-carrying Juno look on. The rainbow symbolizes the peace brought by the enlightened Wittelsbachs. Around the borders of the painting, notice the fun optical illusions: For example, a painted dog holds a stucco bird in its mouth. The painting’s natural setting and joie de vivre reflect the pastoral pleasures enjoyed here at the Wittelsbachs’ summer home. Find the woman with the crescent moon above her head: That’s Princess-Electress Maria Amelia, depicted as the Greek goddess Diana (you can visit the hunting lodge her husband, Prince-Elector Karl Albrecht, built for her nearby). And at one end of the fresco (away from the windows) lounges a lovely maiden with flowers in her hair: It’s Flora, the eponymous nymph who inspired this “nymph’s castle”—Nymphenburg.
From here, two wings stretch to the left and right. They’re mirror images of one another: antechamber, audience chamber, bedchamber, and private living quarters. Guests would arrive here in the Great Hall for an awe-inspiring first impression, then make their way through a series of (also-impressive) waiting rooms for their date with the Wittelsbach nobility.
• The tour continues to the left (as you look out the big windows).
North Wing (Rooms 2-9): Breeze quickly through this less interesting wing, filled with tapestries and Wittelsbach portraits (including curly-haired Max Emanuel, who built this wing). Pause in the long corridor (the North Gallery) lined with paintings of various Wittelsbach palaces. The names of each are labeled on gilded plaques above the paintings. The ones of Nymphenburg show the place around 1720, back when there was nothing but countryside between it and downtown (and gondolas plied the canals). Imagine the logistics when the royal family—with their entourage of 200—decided to move out to the summer palace. Find the painting of Fürstenried Palace (in another Munich suburb), and look for the twin onion domes of the Frauenkirche in the distance.
Take a short detour into the North Apartment Antechamber (Room 3), where audiences would patiently wait to meet with the Bavarian ruler. Notice the portraits of his children that adorn the wall and the exquisite black marble table, inlaid with expensive gemstones, given to Max Emanuel’s oldest son (Prince-Elector Karl Albrecht, later Holy Roman Emperor Charles VII, seated in the center portrait) upon a visit to the Medicis in Florence. Next, the former bedroom houses the Little Gallery of Beauties, with portraits of ladies at the French court and mistresses of the Sun King, commissioned by Max Emanuel while he was exiled in France.
• Return to the Great Hall and enter the other wing.
South Wing (Rooms 10-20): Pass through the gold-and-white Room 10 and turn right into the red-walled Audience Chamber. The room calls up the exuberant time of Nymphenburg’s founding couple, Ferdinand and Henriette. A portrait on the wall shows them posing together in their rich courtly dress. The large painting on the left depicts the family in a Greek myth: Henriette (as the moon goddess) leads her youngest son Joseph Clemens by the hand, while her first son Max Emanuel (as Hercules) receives the gift of a sword. On the right side of the room, Ferdinand is represented as Endymion, a mortal loved by the moon goddess. The ceiling painting (of the earth goddess Cybele) also dates from the time of Nymphenburg’s first family.
After admiring the Queen’s Bedroom and Chinese lacquer cabinet, head back down the long hall to King Ludwig I’s Gallery of Beauties. The room is decorated top to bottom with portraits of 36 beautiful women (all of them painted by Joseph Stieler between 1827 and 1850). Ludwig I was a consummate girl-watcher. (His rakish coronation portrait—by Stieler—hangs in the Neue Pinakothek.)
Ludwig prided himself on his ability to appreciate beauty regardless of social rank. He enjoyed picking out the prettiest women from the general public and, with one of the most effective pickup lines of all time, inviting them to the palace for a portrait. Who could refuse? The portraits were on public display in the Residenz, and catapulted their subjects to stardom. The women range from commoners to princesses, but notice that they share one physical trait—Ludwig obviously preferred brunettes. The portraits are done in the modest and slightly sentimental Biedermeier style popular in central Europe, as opposed to the more flamboyant Romanticism (so beloved of Ludwig’s “mad” grandson) also thriving at that time.
Most of these portraits have rich stories behind them (each of the following is at eye level): With the door you entered as your “6 o’clock,” work your way counterclockwise, starting from “7 o’clock.” There you’ll find Helene Sedlmayr, a humble cobbler’s daughter who caught Ludwig’s eye; she poses in a blue-and-gray dress way beyond her budget. Though poor, she was considered Munich’s comeliest Fräulein, and she eventually married the king’s valet and had 10 children. Back near the door is Lady Jane Ellenborough—an elegant English baroness who went through four marriages and numerous affairs, including one with Ludwig (and, much later, with his son Otto, after Otto had become king of Greece). She was fluent in nine languages, including Arabic, after marrying a Syrian sheik 20 years her junior.
Continuing to your left near another door is Lola Montez, the king’s most notorious mistress, who led him to his downfall. The portrait shows her the year she met Ludwig (she was 29, he was 60), wearing the black-lace mantilla and red flowers of a Spanish dancer. This Irish beauty (born Maria Gilbert) lived in India for a time, became Franz Liszt’s lover in Paris, and eventually made her way to Munich. Ludwig was so bedazzled that he gave her a title—Countess of Landsfeld—along with a hefty annual income. Near Lola, the woman half-cloaked in a red-and-ermine robe is Princess Marie of Prussia—Ludwig’s daughter-in-law—who once lived in the last rooms we’ll visit. (And where in the Gallery of Beauties is the portrait of Ludwig’s wife, Queen Therese? She’s not here...you’ll have to duck into the elegant, green Queen’s Study to see her portrait.)
Pass through the blue Audience Room (with elaborate curtain rods and mahogany furniture in the French-inspired Empire style) and into the (other) Queen’s Bedroom. The room has much the same furniture it had on August 25, 1845, when Princess Marie gave birth to the future King Ludwig II. Little Ludwig (see his bust, next to brother Otto’s) was greatly inspired by Nymphenburg—riding horses in summer, taking sleigh rides in winter, reading poetry at Amalienburg. The love of nature and solitude he absorbed at Nymphenburg eventually led Ludwig to abandon Munich for his castles in the remote Bavarian countryside. By the way, note the mirror in this bedroom. Royal births were carefully witnessed, and the mirror allowed for a better view. While Ludwig’s birth was well-documented, his death was shrouded in mystery (see here).
The wooded grounds extend far back beyond the formal gardens and are popular with joggers and walkers (biking is not allowed). Find a bench for a low-profile picnic. The park is laced with canals and small lakes, where court guests once rode on Venetian-style gondolas.
These former stables (to the left of the main palace as you approach the complex) are full of gilded coaches that will make you think of Cinderella’s journey to the king’s ball. Upstairs, a porcelain exhibit shows off some of the famous Nymphenburg finery. If you don’t want to visit the main palace, you can buy a €4.50 ticket just for this museum (no audioguide available).
Visiting the Museum: Wandering through the collection, you can trace the evolution of 300 years of coaches—getting lighter and with better suspension as they were harnessed to faster horses. In the big entrance hall is a golden carriage drawn by eight fake white horses. In 1742, it carried Karl Albrecht Wittelsbach to Frankfurt to be crowned Holy Roman Emperor. As emperor, he got eight horses—kings got only six. The event is depicted in a frieze on the museum wall; Karl’s carriage is #159.
Other objects bear witness to the good times of the relaxed Nymphenburg lifestyle and are a window into the pomp and circumstance surrounding the royals.
Just around the corner, on the right, is a painting of “Mad” King Ludwig on his sleigh at night. Next up are some over-the-top objects—sleighs, golden carriages, and (in the glass cases) harnesses—owned by Ludwig II. In his later years, Ludwig was a Howard Hughes-type recluse who stayed away from the public eye and only went out at night. (At his nearby Linderhof Palace, he actually had a hydraulic-powered dining table that would rise from the kitchen below, completely set for the meal—so he wouldn’t be seen by his servants.) Ludwig’s over-the-top coaches were Baroque. But this was 1870. The coaches, like the king, were in the wrong century.
Notice the photos (c. 1865, in the glass case) of Ludwig and the Romantic composer Richard Wagner. Ludwig cried on the day Wagner was married.
Backtrack to the entrance, then pass the courtyard into another hall, this one filled with more practical coaches for everyday use. At the end of the hall, Ludwig II’s favorite horse, “Cosa-Rara,” is stuffed and mounted.
Head upstairs to a collection of Nymphenburg porcelain. You’ll see plates and cups painted in various styles, from ancient Greek to Old Masters, Romantic, and Art Nouveau. Historically, royal families such as the Wittelsbachs liked to have their own porcelain factories to make fit-for-a-king plates, vases, and so on. The Nymphenburg Palace porcelain works is still in operation (not open to the public—but the factory store on Odeonsplatz is happy to see you—see “Shopping in Munich,” later). Find the large room with copies of 17th-century Old Masters’ paintings from the Wittelsbach art collection (now at the Alte Pinakothek). Ludwig I had these paintings copied onto porcelain for safekeeping into the distant future. Take a close look—they’re exquisite.
Three hundred yards from Nymphenburg Palace, hiding in the park (head into the sculpted garden and veer to the left, following signs), you’ll find a fine little Rococo hunting lodge, which takes just a few minutes to tour. In 1734, Prince-Elector Karl Albrecht had it built for his wife, Maria Amalia. Amalienburg was designed by François de Cuvilliés (of Residenz fame) and decorated by Johann Baptist Zimmermann. It’s the most worthwhile of the four small “extra” palaces buried in the park that are included on the combo-ticket. The others are the Pagodenburg, a Chinese-inspired pavilion; Badenburg, an opulent bathing house and banquet hall; and the Magdalenenklause, a mini palace that looks like a ruin from the outside but has an elaborate altar and woody apartments inside.
Visiting Amalienburg: As you approach, circle to the front and notice the facade. Above the pink-and-white grand entryway, Diana, goddess of the chase, is surrounded by themes of the hunt and flanked by busts of satyrs. The queen would shoot from the perch atop the roof. Behind a wall in the garden, dogs would scare nonflying pheasants. When they jumped up in the air above the wall, the sporting queen—as if shooting skeet—would pick the birds off.
Tourists now enter this tiny getaway through the back door. Doghouses under gun cupboards fill the first room. In the fine yellow-and-silver bedroom, the bed is flanked by portraits of Karl Albrecht and Maria Amalia—decked out in hunting attire. She liked her dogs. The door under her portrait leads to stairs to the rooftop pheasant-shooting perch. The relief on the door’s lower panel shows Vulcan forging arrows for amorous cupids.
The mini Hall of Mirrors is a blue-and-silver commotion of Rococo nymphs designed by Cuvilliés. In the next room, paintings depict court festivities, formal hunting parties, and no-contest kills (where the animal is put at an impossible disadvantage—like shooting fish in a barrel). Finally, the sparse kitchen is decorated with Chinese-style drawings on Dutch tile.
At the headquarters of BMW (“beh-em-VEH” to Germans), Beamer dreamers can visit two space-age buildings to learn more about this brand’s storied heritage. The renowned Autos and Motorräder are beautifully displayed (perhaps even fetishized by car enthusiasts). This vast complex—built on the site of Munich’s first airstrip and home to the BMW factory since 1920—has four components: the headquarters (in the building nicknamed “the Four Cylinders”—not open to the public), the factory (tourable with advance reservations), the showroom (called BMW-Welt—“BMW World”), and the BMW Museum. Everything comes with fine English translations.
Cost and Hours: Museum—€10, Tue-Sun 10:00-18:00, closed Mon; BMW-Welt showroom—free, building open daily until 24:00, exhibits staffed 9:00-18:00; tel. 089/125-016-001, www.bmw-welt.com.
Tours: English tours are offered of both the museum (€13, 1 hour, call or email ahead for times) and BMW-Welt (€7.50, 1 hour, daily at 14:00). Factory tours must be booked at least two months in advance (€9, 2.5 hours, Mon-Fri only, ages 7 and up, reservations tel. 089/125-016-001, infowelt@bmw-welt.com).
Getting There: From the city center, ride the U-3 to Olympia-Zentrum. Follow Ausgang signs to BMW-Welt/BMW Museum. Leaving the station, climb the stairs and get oriented: Ahead is the BMW-Welt (showroom) entry, the massive multicornered building across the street is the BMW factory, the quadruple “piston” towers are for the corporate offices, and the BMW Museum is marked by the gray “soup bowl.” Across the highway bridge (beyond the southeast corner of BMW-Welt) is the Olympic Park and stadium. To reach the BMW Museum, head down Lerchenauer Strasse, staying parallel to the factory on your left, and cross at the stoplight just before the bridge.
Visiting BMW: The futuristic, bowl-shaped museum encloses a world of floating walkways linking exhibits highlighting BMW motorcycle and car design and technology through the years. The museum traces the Bavarian Motor Works’ history since 1917, when the company began making airplane engines. Motorcycles came next, followed by the first BMW sedan in 1929. You’ll see how design was celebrated here from the start. Exhibits showcase motorsports, roadsters, and luxury cars. Stand on an E for English to hear the chief designer talk about his favorite cars in the “treasury.” And the 1956 BMW 507 is enough to rev almost anyone’s engine.
When you finish your visit at the museum, cross over the swoopy bridge to enter BMW-Welt on the first floor. The building itself—a cloud-shaped, glass-and-steel architectural masterpiece—is reason enough to visit. It’s free and filled with exhibits designed to enthuse car lovers so they’ll find a way to afford a Beamer. While the adjacent museum reviews the BMW past, BMW-Welt shows you the present (including new electric models) and gives you a breathtaking look at the future. With interactive stations, high-powered videos, an inviting cafeteria, and lots of horsepower, this is where customers come to pick up their new Beamers (stand on the sky bridge viewpoint to watch in envy), and where hopeful customers-to-be come to nurture their automotive dreams.
After the construction of Munich’s Allianz Arena for the 2006 World Cup, the city’s great 1972 Olympic stadium and sports complex were left in the past, and have melted into the neighborhood as simply a lush park and swimming pool. You can get a good look at the center’s striking “cobweb” style of architecture while enjoying the park’s picnic potential. In addition, there are several activities on offer at the park, including a TV tower (Olympiaturm) and an excellent swimming pool, the Olympia-Schwimmhalle.
The TV tower has commanding views from 620 feet. Walk completely around, enjoying the vista, with sights identified on the windows. You can see the Alps on a good day. The strange little rock-and-roll museum (with Freddie Mercury’s black leather pants) is a bonus for some. Two floors higher is the open rooftop. And downstairs is the revolving Restaurant 181 (named for its altitude—see “Eating in Munich,” later).
Cost and Hours: Tower-€7, daily 9:00-24:00, tel. 089/3067-2750, www.olympiapark.de; pool-€4.60, daily 7:00-23:00, tel. 089/2361-5050, www.swm.de.
Getting There: The U-3 runs from Marienplatz directly to the Olympia-Zentrum stop. Emerging from the station, you’ll face the BMW-Welt (described above). Turn right and follow the path closest to BMW-Welt to a bridge over the highway and into Olympic Park. From this bridge, from left to right, you can see the ice rink and sports center, the Olympiaturm TV tower, the swimming facility, the Olympiahalle arena and concert venue, and Olympic Stadium. In the distance, the grassy hill (likely with people on top enjoying the view) was made from the rubble of WWII bomb damage.
Munich’s river, lined by a gorgeous park, leads bikers into the pristine countryside in just a few minutes. From downtown (easy access from the English Garden or Deutsches Museum), follow the riverside bike path south (upstream) along the east (left) bank. You can’t get lost. Just stay on the lovely bike path. It crosses the river after a while, passing tempting little beer gardens and lots of Bavarians having their brand of fun—including gangs enjoying Munich’s famous river-party rafts. Go as far as you like, then retrace your route to get home. The closest bike rental is Mike’s Bike Tours (see here).
Tucked just outside central Munich, Schleissheim Palace is a hidden gem of High Baroque architecture and Wittelsbach wealth. As a way of wielding his political power, Max Emanuel commissioned French and Italian artists to create a mini Versailles (the New Palace) to house his impressive art collection and show off his beautifully manicured Baroque garden. Porcelain collectors shouldn’t miss the Meissen porcelain exhibit in the Lustheim Palace at the far end of the gardens—about a 30-minute walk. Rarely visited, this expansive palace is worth a stop, especially for those with a car.
Cost and Hours: New Palace-€4.50, gardens-free, €8 combo-ticket covers New Palace, Old Palace (skippable), and porcelain collection; April-Sept Tue-Sun 9:00-18:00, off-season 10:00-16:00, closed Mon year-round; nice beer garden, tel. 089/315-8720, www.schloesser-schleissheim.de.
Getting There: Schleissheim Palace is a two-minute walk from the Flight Museum (listed on here). It’s easiest by car, or you can ride the S-1 about 20 minutes from Marienplatz (direction: Freising Flughafen) and get off at Oberschleissheim (trip covered by Munich XXL day pass). Walk over the bridge, following Museen signs, for 15 minutes until the street turns into Effnerstrasse.
While the whole city is great for shopping, the most glamorous area is around Marienplatz. It’s fun to window shop, even if you have no plans to buy. Here are a few stores and streets to consider.
Servus Heimat’s amusing shops are a good source of unusual gifts that remind Bavarians of their childhood. Ask for the inside scoop behind T-shirt logos, books, and quirky kitchen utensils (City Museum store, tucked between the Munich City Museum and the Stadt Café: Mon-Sat 10:00-19:00, Sun until 18:00, St.-Jakobs-Platz 1, tel. 089/2370-2380; also stores at Im Tal 20—between Marienplatz and the Isartor—and at Brunnstrasse 3—near Asam Church, same hours except closed Sun; www.servusheimat.com).
The Hugendubel bookstore on Karlsplatz has some English offerings and free Wi-Fi (Mon-Sat 10:00-20:00, closed Sun, Karlsplatz 12, tel. 089/3075-7575, www.hugendubel.de).
For fine-quality (and very expensive) traditional clothing (Trachten in German), head to Loden-Frey Verkaufshaus. The third floor of this fine department store is dedicated to classic Bavarian wear for men and women (Mon-Sat 10:00-20:00, closed Sun, a block west of Marienplatz at Maffeistrasse 7, tel. 089/210-390, www.loden-frey.com). For less expensive (but still good quality) gear, visit Angermaier Trachten, near the Viktualienmarkt (Mon-Fri 11:00-19:00, Sat 10:00-18:00, closed Sun; Rosental 10, tel. 089/2300-0199, www.trachten-angermaier.de).
Obletter, right on Karlsplatz, has a good selection of wooden toys in its underground level and a fun section full of puppets (Mon-Sat 9:30-20:00, closed Sun, Karlsplatz 11, tel. 089/5508-9510).
For contemporary and classic dinnerware and figurines, find the Nymphenburg Porcelain Store on Odeonsplatz (Mon-Sat 10:00-18:00, closed Sun, Odeonsplatz 1, tel. 089/282-428, www.nymphenburg.com).
Shoppers will want to stroll from Marienplatz down the pedestrianized Weinstrasse (to the left as you face the New Town Hall). Look for Fünf Höfe on your left, a delightful indoor/outdoor mall filled with Germany’s top shops (Mon-Fri 10:00-19:00, Sat 10:00-18:00, closed Sun). Named for its five courtyards, this is where tradition meets modern. Note how its Swiss architects play with light and color. Even if you’re not a shopper, wander through the Kunsthalle to appreciate the architecture, the elegant window displays, and the sight of Bavarians living very well.
Built by Maximilian II in the 1850s, the nearby Maximilianstrasse was designed for shoppers. Today it’s home to Munich’s most exclusive shops.
Ludwig Beck, an upscale department store at Marienplatz, has been a local institution since 1861. With six floors of expensive designer clothing (plus some music, stationery, and cosmetics), this is the place to go for a €200 pair of jeans. Beck has long been to fabrics what Dallmayr is to fine food—too expensive a place to buy, but fun to browse (Mon-Sat 9:30-20:00, closed Sun). For more reasonable prices near Marienplatz, try C&A (considered cheap yet respected; sells only clothing) and Galeria Kaufhof (midrange; sells everything), or the more upmarket Karstadt near the train station.
For that beer stein you promised to take home to your uncle, try the shops on the pedestrian zone by St. Michael’s Church and the gift shops that surround the Hofbräuhaus. If you’re looking for a used cell phone or exotic groceries, the area south of the train station fits the bill.
Here are a few nightlife alternatives to the beer-and-oompah scene.
Ballet and opera fans can check the schedule at the Bayerisch Staatsoper, centrally located next door to the Residenz. Because of high demand, book at least two months ahead—seats range from reasonable to very pricey (Max-Joseph-Platz 2, tel. 089/2185-1920, www.bayerische.staatsoper.de). The Hotel Bayerischerhof’s nightclub has live music—major jazz acts plus pop/soul/disco—in a posh, dress-up, expensive setting (Promenadeplatz 2, tel. 089/212-0994, www.bayerischerhof.de). Café am Beethovenplatz is another option for live classical, jazz, and swing music (see listing later, under “Eating in Munich”). For familiar Broadway-style musicals (usually in German), try the Deutsches Theatre, conveniently located near my train-station hotels (Schwanthalerstrasse 13, tel. 089/5523-4444, www.deutsches-theater.de).
A good, untouristed area known for its nightlife—both gay and straight—is Gärtnerplatz, a 30-minute walk due south of Marienplatz (bus #52 from Marienplatz, or U-1 or U-2 to Fraunhoferstrasse).
Jodlerwirt (“Yodeling Innkeeper”) is a tiny, cramped, and smart-alecky pub with a small menu and a big attitude. The ambience is as Bavarian as you’ll find—even if it’s just you and the accordionist, it’s fun. Lots of belly laughs...and completely incomprehensible to the average tourist (Tue-Sat 19:00-late, accordion act from 20:00, closed Sun-Mon and late June-early Aug, between Hofbräuhaus and Marienplatz at Altenhofstrasse 4, tel. 089/221-249, www.jodlerwirt-muenchen.net, Paula speaks English). For some travelers, this quirky place is just plain awkward. For others, it’s a trip highlight.
Unless you hit Munich during a fair, convention, or big holiday, you can sleep reasonably here. Lots of student hotels around the station house anyone who’s young at heart for €25, and it’s possible to find a fine double with breakfast in a good basic hotel for €90. I’ve listed accommodations in two main neighborhoods: within a few blocks of the central train station (Hauptbahnhof), and in the old center, between Marienplatz and Sendlinger Tor. Many of these places have complicated, slippery pricing schemes. During major conventions and events, prices increase from 20 percent to as much as 300 percent (worst at Oktoberfest; reserve well in advance). Sunday is very slow and usually comes with a huge discount if you ask.
Good-value hotels cluster in the multicultural area immediately south of the station. To some this is a colorful neighborhood, for others it feels seedy after dark (erotic cinemas and men with moustaches loitering in the shadows), but it’s sketchy only for those in search of trouble. Still, hotels in the old center (listed later) might feel more comfortable to some.
$$$ Marc München—polished, modern, and with 80 rooms—is a good option if you need a little more luxury than the other listings here and are willing to pay the price. It’s just a half-block from the station, and has four-star comforts like a refined lobby and classy breakfast spread (RS%, air-con, pay parking, Senefelderstrasse 12, tel. 089/559-820, www.hotel-marc.de, info@hotel-marc.de).
$$$ Hotel Schiller5 is convenient to the train station, and its dark wood elegance makes the splurge feel worthwhile. The hotel is divided in half: The “Old Style” section is somewhat contemporary but the “Modern” section is more polished. Most of their 64 rooms come with a kitchenette (breakfast extra, air-con, pay parking, includes minibar and lounge drinks, Schillerstrasse 5, tel. 089/515-040, www.schiller5.com, info@schiller5.com).
$$ Hotel Monaco is a delightful and welcoming little hideaway, tucked inside three floors of a giant, nondescript building two blocks from the station. Emerging from the elevator, you’re warmly welcomed by Christine and her staff into a flowery, cherub-filled oasis. It’s homey, with 22 clean rooms and lots of feminine touches (breakfast extra, cash preferred, cheaper rooms with shared bath, family rooms, pay parking nearby, Schillerstrasse 9, entrance on Adolf-Kolping-Strasse, reception on fifth floor, tel. 089/545-9940, www.hotel-monaco.de, info@hotel-monaco.de).
$$ Hotel Uhland is a stately mansion that rents 29 rooms with modern bathrooms in a safe-feeling, genteel residential neighborhood a slightly longer walk from the station than other places listed here (toward the Theresienwiese Oktoberfest grounds). It’s been in the Hauzenberger and Reim families for 60 years (family rooms, some waterbeds, limited parking, Uhlandstrasse 1, tel. 089/543-350, www.hotel-uhland.de, info@hotel-uhland.de). From the station, take bus #58 (direction: Silberhornstrasse) to Georg-Hirth-Platz, or walk 15 minutes: Out the station’s south exit, cross Bayerstrasse, take Paul-Heyse-Strasse three blocks to Georg-Hirth-Platz, then take a soft right on Uhlandstrasse.
$$ Hotel Belle Blue, three blocks from the station, has 30 brightly colored rooms and air-conditioning. Run by Irmgard, this hotel has been in the family for 90 years and offers a good value. The breakfast is tops, and their two stylish apartments with kitchenettes are perfect for families (elevator, pay parking, Schillerstrasse 21, tel. 089/550-6260, www.hotel-belleblue.de, info@hotel-belleblue.com).
$$ Hotel Deutsches Theater, filled with brass and marble, has 27 well-worn, three-star rooms. The back rooms face the courtyard of a neighboring theater—when there’s a show, there can be some noise (breakfast extra, elevator, pay parking, Landwehrstrasse 18, tel. 089/545-8525, www.hoteldeutschestheater.de, info@hoteldeutschestheater.de).
$$ Hotel Europäischer Hof, across the street from the station, is a huge, impersonal hotel with 150 decent rooms. During cool weather, when you can keep the windows shut, the street-facing rooms are an acceptable option. The quieter, courtyard-facing rooms are more expensive and a lesser value (RS%, includes breakfast when you book directly, cheaper rooms with shared bath, elevator, pay parking, Bayerstrasse 31, tel. 089/551-510, www.heh.de, info@heh.de).
$$ Hotel Royal is one of the best values in the neighborhood (if you can ignore the strip joints flanking the entry). While a bit institutional, it’s plenty comfortable and clean. Most importantly, it’s energetically run by Pasha and Christiane. Each of its 40 rooms is sharp and bright (RS%, family rooms, comfort rooms on the quiet side cost extra—worth it in summer when you’ll want the window open, elevator, Schillerstrasse 11a, tel. 089/5998-8160, www.hotel-royal.de, info@hotel-royal.de).
$$ Hotel Cocoon Hauptbahnhof is part of a funky (and perhaps too trendy) chain but it’s a good value. This location has a rustic countryside/alpine theme. Ride the elevator like a personal gondola up to one of their 103 rooms (breakfast extra, pay parking, Mittererstrasse 9, tel. 089/5999-3905, www.hotel-cocoon.de, info.hbf@cocoon-hotels.de).
$$ Hotel St. Paul is a clean, simple, no-nonsense place to rest your head and comes with a cheery courtyard and the charming sound of bells from the nearby church. Rooms at the back do not have elevator access (limited free parking, St. Paul Strasse 7, tel. 089/5440-7800, www.hotel-stpaul.de, info@hotel-stpaul.de).
$ Litty’s Hotel is a basic place offering 42 small rooms with little personality. Some first-floor rooms have a street-facing balcony (breakfast extra, cheaper rooms with shared bath, elevator, pay parking, Landwehrstrasse 32c, tel. 089/5434-4211, www.littyshotel.de, info@littyshotel.de, Verena and Bernd Litty).
$ Helvetia Hotel unapologetically provides rooms that are modern (except for dated bathrooms)—they’re functional with a Swiss sensibility. Ask about the pop art throughout the hotel—the artist has a connection to the owners (breakfast extra, air-con, Schillerstrasse 6, tel. 089/590-6850, www.helvetia-hotel.com, info@helvetia-hotel.com).
¢ The CVJM (YMCA), open to all ages, rents 85 beds in clean, slick, and simple rooms, each with its own bathroom. Doubles are head-to-head; triples are like doubles with a bunk over one of the beds (reserve at least 6 months ahead for Oktoberfest weekdays, a year ahead for Oktoberfest weekends; Landwehrstrasse 13, tel. 089/552-1410, www.cvjm-muenchen.org/hotel, hotel@cvjm-muenchen.org).
The following hostels are casual and well-run, with friendly and creative management, and all cater expertly to the needs of young beer-drinking backpackers enjoying Munich on a shoestring. With 900 cheap dorm beds, this is a spirited street. Each place has a lively bar that rages until the wee hours. All have 24-hour receptions, none has a kitchen, but each offers a reasonably priced buffet breakfast. Sleep cheap in big dorms, or spend a little more for a private room.
¢ Wombat’s Hostel, perhaps the most hip and colorful, rents cheap doubles and dorm beds, plus some private rooms. The dorms are fresh, modern, and contain bathrooms. The bright rooms facing the winter garden have huge windows (Senefelderstrasse 1, tel. 089/5998-9180, www.wombats-hostels.com/munich, office@wombats-munich.de).
¢ Euro Youth Hotel fills a rare pre-WWII building (includes breakfast for private rooms, Senefelderstrasse 5, tel. 089/5990-8811, www.euro-youth-hotel.de, info@euro-youth-hotel.de, run by Alfio and Andy).
¢ Jaeger’s Hostel rounds out this trio, with all the fun and efficiency you’d hope for in a hostel—plus the only air-conditioning on the street. Popular with the backpacker set and also business travelers, this is the quietest hostel of the group. All rooms have en suite bathrooms, and the classy bar is a congenial gathering place (Senefelderstrasse 3, tel. 089/555-281, www.jaegershostel.de, office@jaegershostel.de).
A few good deals remain in the area south of Marienplatz, going toward the Sendlinger Tor. This neighborhood feels more genteel than the streets around the train station, and is convenient for sightseeing.
$$$$ Derag Livinghotel am Viktualienmarkt rents 83 rooms in two connected buildings. One building is elegant and tech-savvy, with great views of the Viktualienmarkt. The other has stylish rooms with kitchenettes but no views, and is geared toward longer-stay business guests, although short-term visitors are welcomed. Both buildings share the same homey breakfast room (breakfast extra, complimentary minibar, air-con, elevator, laundry facilities, pay parking, entrance facing the market on Frauenstrasse 4, tel. 089/885-6560, www.deraghotels.de, res.vik@derag.de).
$$$$ Mercure München Altstadt Hotel is reliable, with all the modern comforts in its 80 pricey business-class rooms, and is well-located on a boring, quiet street very close to the Marienplatz action. It’s a chain, and a bit bland, but has fine service (air-con, a block south of the pedestrian zone at Hotterstrasse 4, tel. 089/232-590, www.mercure-muenchen-altstadt.de, h3709@accor.com).
$$$ Hotel Blauer Bock, formerly a dormitory for Benedictine monks, has been on the same corner near the Munich City Museum since 1841. Its 69 contemporary Bavarian rooms are classy, the breakfast is top-notch, and the location is great, with some views of the nearby Viktualienmarkt (family rooms, elevator, guest iPads at front desk, pay parking, Sebastiansplatz 9, tel. 089/231-780, www.hotelblauerbock.de, info@hotelblauerbock.de).
$$$ At Hotel am Viktualienmarkt, everything is small but well-designed—including the elevator and three good-value, tiny single rooms. The hotel rents 26 rooms on a small side street a couple of blocks from the Viktualienmarkt (family rooms, apartment, elevator, Utzschneiderstrasse 14, tel. 089/231-1090, www.hotel-am-viktualienmarkt.de, reservierung@hotel-am-viktualienmarkt.de).
$$ Hotel am Markt, right next to the Viktualienmarkt, has old-feeling hallways and 32 simple rooms with lots of red and wood accents. Light sleepers might need earplugs—the neighboring church’s bells ring hourly (save money by skipping expensive breakfast, elevator, Heiliggeiststrasse 6, tel. 089/225-014, www.hotel-am-markt.eu, service@hotel-am-markt.eu).
$$ Pension Lindner is clean and quiet, with nine pleasant, pastel-bouquet rooms off a bare stairway. Frau Marion Sinzinger offers a warm welcome and good buffet breakfasts (cheaper rooms with shared bath, tiny elevator, Dultstrasse 1, tel. 089/263-413, www.pension-lindner.com, info@pension-lindner.com).
$$ Pension am Jakobsplatz, downstairs from Pension Lindner and well-run by Christoph, makes you feel like you’re visiting friends. It’s a good value with an ideal location, cheap prices, and plenty of good local recommendations. It has four basic but pleasant rooms—two have full private facilities, and the others have a sink and shower but share a toilet (Dultstrasse 1, tel. 089/2323-1556, mobile 0173-973-4598, www.pension-jakobsplatz.de, info@pension-jakobsplatz.de).
$$ Motel One Sendlinger Tor, around the corner from the Sendlinger Tor tram and U-Bahn stop, is a huge, posh-feeling, 241-room, inexpensive chain hotel with rushed-but-pleasant staff in a fine location. The stylish, modern rooms are fairly tight and lack some basic amenities (phones, minibars), but otherwise are a good value—and tend to sell out a few weeks in advance. Streetside rooms on upper floors have great views for a little extra—I’d request one of these. When booking on their website, make sure to choose the Sendlinger Tor location—they have several other hotels in Munich (breakfast extra, air-con, guest iPad at front desk, pay parking, Herzog-Wilhelm-Strasse 28, tel. 089/5177-7250, www.motel-one.com, muenchen-sendlingertor@motel-one.com).
¢ The Tent—a venerable Munich institution officially known as the International Youth Camp Kapuzinerhölzl—offers 400 spots in three huge circus tents near Nymphenburg Palace. It never fills up, though you are encouraged to reserve online. Choose a mattress on a wooden floor or a bunk bed, or pitch your own tent. Blankets, hot showers, lockers (bring or buy a lock), a kitchen, and Wi-Fi are all included; breakfast is extra. A fun but noisy experience (a cross between a slumber party and Woodstock), it feels wholesome, but I wouldn’t bring kids. It’s really for young adults, with a cool table-tennis-and-Frisbee atmosphere throughout the day, nightly campfires, and no curfew, though silence is requested after 1:00 (open early June-early Oct only, prices a little higher during Oktoberfest, cash only, bikes-€9/day, catch tram #17 from train station for 18 minutes to Botanischer Garten, direction: Amalienburgstrasse, then go right down Franz-Schrank-Strasse—it’s behind the trees at the end of the street, tel. 089/141-4300, www.the-tent.com, cu@the-tent.com).
If my listings above are full, consider these.
Within walking distance of the Viktualienmarkt, artsy $$$$ Hotel Olympic has 37 fresh, relaxing rooms (Hans-Sachs-Strasse 4, tel. 089/231-890, www.hotel-olympic.de); $$$$ Hotel Admiral is classy yet homey (Kohlstrasse 9, tel. 089/216-350, www.hotel-admiral.de); and $$$ Hotel Isartor has 68 comfortable but plain rooms (Baaderstrasse 2, tel. 089/216-3340, www.hotel-isartor.de).
Near Sendlinger Tor, alpine-bright and sunny $$$ Hotel Müller Munich offers 44 cozy rooms (Fliegenstrasse 4, tel. 089/232-3860, www.carathotels.de), while $$$ Carathotel München City is a glossy slumber-mill popular with groups. Its streetside rooms have rare air-conditioning, and its 48 apartments have kitchenettes (Lindwurmstrasse 13, tel. 089/230-380, www.carathotels.de).
An easy tram or U-Bahn ride from Marienplatz, $$$ Hotel Europa Muenchen has four-star American-style comfort and amenities in an impersonal, blocky structure (Dachauerstrasse 115, U-1 to Stiglmaierplatz or U-2 to Theresienstrasse, tel. 089/542-420, www.hotel-europa.de).
Munich’s cuisine is traditionally seasoned with beer. In beer halls, beer gardens, or at the Viktualienmarkt, try the most typical meal in town: Weisswurst (white-colored veal sausage—peel off the skin before eating, often available only until noon) with süsser Senf (sweet mustard), a salty Brezel (pretzel), and Weissbier (“white” wheat beer). Another traditional favorite is Obatzter, a mix of soft cheeses, butter, paprika, and often garlic or onions that’s spread on bread. Brotzeit, literally “bread time,” gets you a wooden platter of cold cuts, cheese, and pickles and is a good option for a light dinner. Also look for these Munich specialties: Fleischpfanzerl, a.k.a. Fleischklösse or Frikadellen (meatballs); Hendl or Brathähnchen (roasted chicken); Radi (radish that’s thinly spiral-cut and salted); Schweinrollbraten (pork belly); Schweinshax’n, or just Hax’n (pork knuckle); spareribs; and Steckerlfisch (a whole fish—usually mackerel—herbed and grilled on a stick). Many restaurants claim to have the best Bavarian classics (schnitzel and pork knuckle)—find your own favorite. (For more on food in Germany, see here of the Practicalities chapter.)
I’m here for the beer-hall and beer-garden fun (my first several listings). But when the Wurst und Kraut get to be too much for you, Munich has plenty of good alternatives; I’ve listed my favorites later in this section.
Bavarian restaurants are smoke-free. The only ashtrays you’ll see throughout Bavaria are outside.
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
Nothing beats the Hofbräuhaus (the only beer hall in town where you’ll find oompah music) for those in search of the boisterous, clichéd image of the beer hall. Locals prefer the innumerable beer gardens. On a warm day, when you’re looking for the authentic outdoor beer-garden experience, your best options are the Augustiner (near the train station), the small beer garden at the Viktualienmarkt (near Marienplatz), or the sea of tables in the English Garden. Eating outside is made more pleasant by the Föhn (warm winds that come over the Alps from Italy), which gives this part of Germany 30 more days of sunshine than the North—and sometimes even an Italian ambience. (Many natives attribute the city’s huge increase in outdoor dining to global warming.)
For tips on eating in beer halls and beer gardens, see the sidebar on here.
(See Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$ The Hofbräuhaus (HOAF-broy-howz) is the world’s most famous beer hall. While it’s grotesquely touristy and filled with sloppy backpackers and tour groups, it’s still a lot of fun—a Munich must. Even if you don’t eat here, check it out to see hundreds of tourists drinking beer in a German beer hall...across from a Hard Rock Café. Germans go for the entertainment—to sing “Country Roads,” see how Texas girls party, and watch tourists try to chug beer.
You can drop by anytime for a large or light meal (my favorite: €8 for Vier Stück gebratene Schweinswürstl auf Sauerkraut—four small pork sausages with sauerkraut), or just for a drink. Even though visitors outnumber locals, the food here is decent. Except for Weissbier, the Hofbräuhaus sells beer only by the Mass (one-liter mug) after 18:00—and they claim to sell 10,000 of these liters every day. Choose from four zones: the rowdy main hall on the ground floor, a quieter courtyard under the stars, a dainty restaurant with mellow music (zither, oboe, harp) where the locals gather on the first floor up, or the giant festival hall (Festsaal, sometimes reserved for events) under a big barrel vault on the top floor.
The Hofbräuhaus main hall/restaurant offers regular live oompah music. This music-every-night atmosphere is irresistible, and the fat, shiny-leather bands get even church mice to stand up and conduct three-quarter time with breadsticks. The festival hall, notorious as the place where Hitler gave his first public speech in 1920, today is a vacuous venue where tour groups come for a nightly folk show. While kitschy, it’s a fun and tasty way to enjoy traditional live folk music and dance (main hall/restaurant—daily 9:00-23:30, music during lunch and dinner only—daily 12:00-16:00 & 18:00-23:30; festival hall—nightly 19:00-22:00, free show with food or drink, same prices as the ground-floor beer hall, reservations generally unnecessary; 5-minute walk from Marienplatz at Platzl 9, tel. 089/2901-3610, www.hofbraeuhaus.de). For more on this Munich institution, see here.
$$$ Haxnbauer, stark and old-school, is a hit with German tourists for one reason: the best pork knuckle in town (half Schweinshaxe-€19, slightly less if you just get some slices). You’ll pay a little extra, but it’s clearly the place for what looks like a pork knee—notice the rotisserie window luring customers inside (daily 11:00-23:00, two blocks from Hofbräuhaus at Sparkassenstrasse 6, tel. 089/216-6540).
$$ Andechser am Dom sits at the rear of the twin-domed Frauenkirche on a breezy square. Charming Sepp runs this local favorite, serving Andechs beer brewed by monks and great food to appreciative regulars. Some customers are more famous than others—how many do you recognize from the photos blanketing the walls? Münchners favor the dark beer (ask for dunkles), but I love the light (helles). The Gourmetteller is a great sampler of their specialties, but you can’t go wrong with Rostbratwurst with kraut (daily 10:00-24:00, Weinstrasse 7a, reserve during peak times, tel. 089/2429-2920, www.andechser-am-dom.de).
$$ Nürnberger Bratwurst Glöckl am Dom, around the corner from Andechser am Dom, is popular with tourists and offers a more traditional, fiercely Bavarian evening. Dine outside under the trees or in the dark, medieval, cozy interior. Enjoy the tasty little Nürnberger sausages with kraut and their popular shredded pancake for dessert (daily 10:00-24:00, Frauenplatz 9, tel. 089/291-9450, www.bratwurst-gloeckl.de).
$$$ Altes Hackerhaus is popular with locals and tourists for its traditional Bayerisch (Bavarian) fare served with a slightly fancier feel in one of the oldest buildings in town. It offers a small courtyard and a fun forest of characteristic nooks festooned with a veritable museum of family pictures and nostalgic treasures. Naturally, Hacker-Pschorr beer is popular, especially the Weisse (“small appetite” menu available, daily 10:30-24:00, Sendlinger Strasse 14, tel. 089/260-5026, www.hackerhaus.de).
$$$ Der Pschorr, an upscale beer hall occupying a former slaughterhouse, has a terrace overlooking the Viktualienmarkt and serves what many consider Munich’s finest beer. With organic “slow food” and chilled glasses, this place mixes modern concepts—no candles, industrial-strength conviviality—with traditional, quality, classic dishes. They tap classic wooden kegs every few minutes with gusto. The sound of the hammer tapping wooden kegs lets patrons know their beer is good and fresh (seasonal specials, daily 10:00-24:00, Viktualienmarkt 15, at end of Schrannenhalle, tel. 089/442-383-940, www.der-pschorr.de).
$ Viktualien Beer Garden, at the center of the Viktualienmarkt, taps you into about the best budget eating in town. It’s just steps from Marienplatz (daily 10:00-22:00 in good weather, see here). There’s table service wherever you see a tablecloth; to picnic, choose a table without one—but you must buy a drink from the counter. Countless stalls surround the beer garden and sell wurst, sandwiches, produce, and so on. This B.Y.O.F. tradition recalls a time when monastery beer gardens served beer but not food. This is a good spot to grab a typical Munich Weisswurst—and some beer.
$$$ Spatenhaus is the opera-goers’ classy beer hall, serving elegant food in a rustic, traditional setting since 1896—maybe it’s not even right to call it a “beer hall.” You can also eat outside, on the square facing the opera and palace. It’s pricey, but you won’t find better-quality Bavarian cuisine. The upstairs restaurant serves international cuisine to locals in a more formal dining room—reservations recommended (daily 9:30-23:00, on Max-Joseph-Platz opposite opera, Residenzstrasse 12, tel. 089/290-7060, www.spatenhaus.de).
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$ Augustiner Beer Garden is a sprawling haven for local beer lovers. A true under-the-leaves beer garden packed with Münchners, this is a delight. In fact, most Münchners consider Augustiner the best beer garden in town—which may be why it has 6,000 seats. There’s no music, it’s away from the tourist hordes, and it serves up great beer, good traditional food, huge portions, reasonable prices, and perfect conviviality. The outdoor self-service (at the opposite end from the entrance) is best on a nice summer evening, and it’s easy to make new friends at the communal picnic tables. Parents with kids can sit at tables adjoining a sizable playground. There’s also indoor and outdoor seating at a more expensive $$$ restaurant with table service by the entrance (daily 11:00-24:00, Arnulfstrasse 52, 3 looooong blocks from station going away from the center—or take tram #16/#17 one stop to Hopfenstrasse, taxis always waiting at the gate, tel. 089/594-393, www.augustinerkeller.de).
$$ Park Café Beer Garden is a nice hideaway in good weather, tucked inside the Alter Botanischer Garden, just north of the train station. Order Bavarian food from self-service counters (don’t forget to reclaim your deposit at the counter for your plate and mug). The indoor $$$ restaurant is a modern and cozy pricier option, and often features DJs or live music in the late evening (daily 10:00-24:00, beer garden open until 19:00 in nice weather, Sophienstrasse 7, tel. 089/5161-7980, www.parkcafe089.de).
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$ The Chinese Tower beer garden (Chinesischer Turm Biergarten), deep in the English Garden, is famed for outdoor ambience and a cheap meal; it’s a great place for a balmy, relaxed evening. You’re welcome to B.Y.O. food and grab a table, or buy from the cafeteria-style food stalls with clear English descriptions. Don’t bother to phone ahead—they have 6,000 seats. This is a fine opportunity to try a Steckerlfisch, sold at a separate kiosk. Take your blue token and your beer mug around back to redeem your refund (daily, long hours in good weather, usually live music, playground, tel. 089/383-8730, www.chinaturm.de; take tram #18 from main train station or Sendlinger Tor to Tivolistrasse, or U-3 or U-6 to Giselastrasse and then bus #54 or #154 two stops).
$$$$ Seehaus, deeper into the English Garden (and worth the effort to find), is a 10-minute walk past the Chinese Tower or a fun pedicab ride. It’s famous among Münchners for its idyllic lakeside setting and excellent Mediterranean and traditional Bavarian cooking (seafood emphasized), served in two separate restaurants. It’s dressy and a bit snobbish, and understandably filled with locals who fit the same description. Choose from classy indoor or lakeside seating (daily 10:00-24:00; take U-3 or U-6 to Münchner Freiheit and walk 10 minutes, or get off at Dietlindenstrasse and then take bus #144 one stop to Osterwaldstrasse; Kleinhesselohe 3, tel. 089/381-6130).
$$ Seehaus Beer Garden, adjacent to the fancy Seehaus restaurant, offers the same waterfront atmosphere in a less expensive, more casual setting. There’s all the normal wurst, kraut, pretzels, and fine beer at typical prices (daily 11:00-22:00 in good weather).
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
Man does not live by beer alone. Well, maybe some do. But for the rest of us, I recommend the following alternatives to the beer-and-wurst circuit.
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$$ Glockenspiel Café is good for a coffee or a meal with a bird’s-eye view down on the Marienplatz action—I’d come for the view more than the Italian food. Locals like the open terrace without a view (drinks and meals served anytime). Regardless of the weather, I grab a seat overlooking Marienplatz—but after 18:00, you must order dinner for view seating (Mon-Sat 9:00-24:00, Sun 10:00-19:00, ride elevator from Rosenstrasse entrance, opposite glockenspiel at Marienplatz 28, tel. 089/264-256).
$$ Blatt Salate is a self-serve salad bar on a side street between the Frauenkirche and the New Town Hall; it’s a great little hideaway for a healthy, quick lunch—a yummy salad with fresh bread and a drink (vegetarian and meat salads and soups, Mon-Sat 11:00-19:00, closed Sun, Schäfflerstrasse 7, tel. 089/2102-0281).
$$ Pfälzer Residenz Weinstube, a very traditional German dining hall actually in the Residenz complex, is dedicated to food and wine from the Rhineland (Palatine)—which, while not part of Bavaria, was ruled by the Wittelsbach family. Serving lots of small wine-friendly dishes and a big variety of German wines by the tiny glass, it’s ideal for wine lovers needing a break from beer (daily 11:00-23:00, Residenzstrasse 1, tel. 089/225-628).
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$$ Osteria Veneta, hidden on a quiet street just behind the Viktualienmarkt, provides a nice escape from the traditional Bavarian beer hall. It’s perfect for a leisurely meal, with indoor and outdoor seating; a chalkboard lists daily specials (Mon-Sat 18:00-24:00, closed Sun, Utzschneiderstrasse 4, tel. 089/2602-2093).
$ Die Münchner Suppenküche (“Munich Soup Kitchen”), a soup tent at the Viktualienmarkt, is a fine place for a small, cozy sit-down lunch at picnic tables under a closed-in awning. The red sign lists the soups of the day—I go for the goulash or the Bavarian potato soup (Mon-Sat 10:00-18:00, closed Sun, near corner of Reichenbachstrasse and Frauenstrasse, tel. 089/260-9599).
$$ Stadt Café is a lively café serving healthy fare with a nice wine list and a big selection of cakes. This informal, no-frills restaurant draws newspaper readers, stroller moms, and locals meeting for a drink after work. Dine in the quiet cobbled courtyard, inside, or outside facing the new synagogue (open daily 10:00-24:00, in same building as Munich City Museum, St.-Jakobs-Platz 1, tel. 089/266-949).
$$$ Prinz Myshkin Vegetarian Restaurant is an upscale vegetarian eatery in the old center—a rare find in this wurst-loving part of the world. The decor is trendy, the arched ceilings are cool but provide poor acoustics, and the outside seating is on a quiet street. Don’t miss the enticing appetizer selection on display as you enter (they do a fine €14 mixed-appetizer plate). They also have vegetarian sushi, pastas, Indian dishes, and their own baker, so they’re proud of their sweets (lunch specials, seasonal menu, daily 11:00-23:00, Hackenstrasse 2, tel. 089/265-596).
$$ Eataly at Schrannenhalle, the former grain exchange just off Viktualienmarkt, is a sparkling, pricey food court full of Italian taste treats. It’s a foodie’s paradise with a variety of restaurants serving pizza, pasta, and main courses with Italian gusto and fresh ingredients. You can sit at your choice of bars to watch the cooking, and get pizza by the slice to go. While overpriced, it’s a festival of Italian food fun with great seating inside the old market hall and outside overlooking the square (daily 9:00-23:00).
Eateries on Sebastiansplatz: Looking for a no-schnitzel-or-dumplings alternative? Sebastiansplatz is a long, pedestrianized square across from Eataly, between the Viktualienmarkt and the synagogue, lined with $$ bistros handy for a healthy and quick lunch. Options range from French to Italian to Asian to salads. You can eat out on the busy cobbled square or inside—just survey the scene and choose.
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$$ Brenner Grill is just right for an upscale yet fun break from heavy Bavarian fare. It’s in a big, modern, high-energy place with hundreds of local diners and almost no tourists. Diners enjoy steak, fish, international dishes, and a popular pasta bar under a forest of modern pillars adjacent to two big open grills, or outside behind the National Theater. Save room for what’s in the dessert case (long hours daily, Maximilianstrasse 15, tel. 089/452-2880).
$$$$ Restaurant 181, the fine revolving restaurant atop the TV tower in Olympic Park (named for its height in meters above the ground) is where locals go for anniversaries and birthdays. Dinner is formal and pricey (seatings at 18:00 with €54 three-course menu and at 20:30 with a €74 four-course menu); lunch is more casual (à la carte, 12:00-14:00). The offerings are international and diners ride the lift free (daily from 11:00, reserve for dinner, tel. 089/350-948-181, www.drehrestaurant.de).
$$ Kennedy’s Irish Pub, at Sendlinger Tor, is a hit with millennials for quality hamburgers, ribs, salads, and nightly music from 22:00 (karaoke Mon and Wed, live band Tue and Thu-Fri). The basement interior has a family-friendly pub feel, and outside tables are under trees and a medieval gate (long hours daily, Sendlinger Torplatz 11, tel. 089/5998-8460).
$$ Café Luitpold is where Munich’s high society comes to sip its coffee and nibble on exquisite cakes. The café is proudly home to the original Luitpoldtorte (sponge cake with layers of marzipan and buttercream, covered in dark chocolate). Some say this is Munich’s answer to Vienna’s Sacher torte—though I prefer their strawberry-cream cake (Tue-Sat 8:00-23:00, Sun-Mon 9:00-19:00, Brienner Strasse 11, tel. 089/242-8750).
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
$$$ Münchner Stubn, just across the street from the train station, is a rare traditional German find in a neighborhood full of ethnic eateries. The air-conditioned bright modern interior with folkloric touches is worth a few extra euros. It’s a nice escape while waiting for a train. They offer traditional dishes with a modern twist as well as reasonably priced lunch specials (daily 10:00-24:00, Bayerstrasse 35, tel. 089/551-113-330).
$$$ Café am Beethovenplatz feels like an old Vienna café with its inviting, woody interior and charming garden. While just a 10-minute walk from the station, it’s in a leafy and quiet residential neighborhood. They serve a mix of Italian, Bavarian, and vegetarian fare, offer cheap lunch specials and homemade cakes, and have live music almost nightly (from 20:00, classical Mon and Tue, jazz or swing otherwise). Popular with university students, it feels both trendy and classy (daily 9:00-24:00, at Mariandl Hotel, Goethestrasse 51, tel. 089/552-9100).
$$$ La Vecchia Masseria, between Sendlinger Tor and the train station hotels, serves Italian food in a cozy Tuscan farmhouse-style interior, or outside in a beautiful flowery courtyard. Pasta, pizzas, and seasonal, more expensive main courses are served by bustling waiters who likely speak more Italian than German. Can’t decide which pasta to get? Ask for a bis, half-portions of two pastas (daily 11:30-23:30, garden dining until 21:30, reservations smart, Mathildenstrasse 3, tel. 089/550-9090, www.lavecchiamasseria.de).
$$ Altin Dilim, a cafeteria-style Turkish restaurant, is a standout among the many hole-in-the-wall Middle Eastern places in the ethnic area near the station. It feels like a trip to Istanbul—complete with a large selection, a handy pictorial menu that helps you order, and interesting decor. Pay at the counter (cheap döner kebabs, daily 6:00-24:00, Goethestrasse 17, tel. 089/9734-0869).
(See “Munich Restaurants” map, here.)
For a truly elegant picnic (costing as much as a restaurant meal), Dallmayr’s is the place to shop. The crown in their emblem reflects that even the royal family assembled its picnics at this historic delicatessen. Pretend you’re a Bavarian aristocrat—King Ludwig himself, even—and put together a royal spread to munch in the nearby Hofgarten. Or visit the classy but pricey café that serves light meals on the first floor (Mon-Sat 9:30-19:00, closed Sun, behind New Town Hall, Dienerstrasse 13, tel. 089/213-5110). For more information, see here.
A Budget Picnic: To save money, browse at Dallmayr’s but buy at a supermarket (generally open Mon-Sat until 20:00, closed Sun). The ones that hide in the basements of department stores are on the upscale side: Galeria Kaufhof stores at Marienplatz and Karlsplatz, or the even more upmarket Karstadt across from the train station. Cheaper grocery stores include the REWE in the basement at Fünf Höfe (entrance is in Viscardihof), Lidl at Schwantaler Strasse 31 (near the train-station hotels), or Yorma’s (several branches at the train station).
Munich is a super transportation hub (one reason it was the target of so many WWII bombs), with easy train and bus connections to most Bavarian destinations, as well as international trains.
For quick help at the main train station, stop by the service counter in front of track 18. For better English and more patience, drop by the EurAide desk in the Reisezentrum (see here). Train info: Toll tel. 0180-699-6633, www.bahn.com.
From Munich to: Füssen (hourly, 2 hours, most with easy transfer in Kaufbeuren; for a Neuschwanstein Castle day trip, leave as early as possible), Reutte, Austria (every hour, about 3 hours, change in Füssen), Oberammergau (nearly hourly, 2 hours, change in Murnau), Salzburg, Austria (2/hour, 1.5 hours on fast train), Berchtesgaden (at least hourly, 2.5 hours, change in Freilassing or Salzburg), Nürnberg (2/hour, 1 hour on fast train), Cologne (2/hour, 4.5 hours, some with 1 change), Würzburg (1-2/hour, 2 hours), Rothenburg (hourly, 3.5 hours, 2-3 changes), Frankfurt (hourly, 3.5 hours), Frankfurt Airport (1-2/hour, 3.5 hours), Leipzig (8/day direct, 5.5 hours; more with change in Nürnberg or Naumburg), Erfurt (hourly, 4.5 hours, some with transfer in Würzburg or Fulda), Dresden (every 2 hours, 6 hours, change in Leipzig or Nürnberg), Hamburg (hourly direct, 6.5 hours), Berlin (2/hour, 6.5 hours, some direct, otherwise change in Göttingen), Vienna (direct trains every 2 hours, 4 hours), Venice (every 2 hours, 7.5 hours, change in Verona, 1 direct night train, 9 hours), Paris (1/day direct, 6 hours, 6/day with transfer, 8 hours), Prague (7/day direct, 6 hours; better by bus—see below; no night trains), Zürich (3/day direct, 4.5 hours). To use a rail pass for any train to Italy, your pass must include all countries on the train route (i.e., Austria or Switzerland), or you’ll have to buy the segment that’s not included; EuroCity trains to Italy via Innsbruck also require pass holders to make a reservation (not indicated in online schedules, and not required if you’re buying a point-to-point ticket instead of using a pass).
For information on Munich’s Central Bus Station (ZOB), see here. The Lufthansa airport bus (described later, under “By Plane”) leaves from the north side of the train station (exit by track 26). Those on a tight budget should consider the Deutsche Bahn buses, which leave from Munich’s Central Bus Station (ZOB) for Prague, Milan, Zürich, Split, and Zagreb.
Romantic Road Bus: The Romantic Road bus (mid-April-mid-Oct only; run by Deutsch Touring) connects Munich’s Central Bus Station north to Rothenburg, Würzburg, Frankfurt, and other destinations en route. This slower but more scenic alternative to the train provides a glimpse of towns such as Augsburg, Nördlingen, and Dinkelsbühl. For more information, including schedules, see here.
Munich Airport (Flughafen München) is 17 miles northeast of town (airport code: MUC, tel. 089/97500, www.munich-airport.de). It has two large terminals linked by shuttle buses: Older Terminal 1 serves Air France, Air Europa, American, British Airways, Delta, EasyJet, and others. Lufthansa, United, Germanwings, and minor airlines use Terminal 2.
The Munich Airport Center (MAC) is a public space that connects the two terminals with plenty of shops, a post office, supermarket, ATMs, and an S-Bahn station. (It even hosts a Christmas market, with 50 market stalls and an ice-skating rink, in November and December.)
Both terminals have ATMs and plenty of eateries in the gate areas. Terminal 1 has a lost-and-found office, and Terminal 2 and the MAC each have a pharmacy.
Munich’s airport is an easy 40-minute ride on the S-1 or S-8 subway (both run every 20 minutes, from 4:00 to after midnight) between the airport and Marienplatz and the train station. The S-8 is a bit quicker and easier; the S-1 line has two branches and some trains split—if you ride the S-1 to the airport, be certain your train is going to the Flughafen (airport). A single airport ticket costs €11.20, but the all-day pass (€12.80) is worth getting if you’ll be making even one more public transport trip that day. Groups of two or more should buy the €23.90 all-day partner ticket (Partner-Tageskarte), which covers up to five adults for the day (see here for info on buying tickets and for more on passes). The trip is also free with a validated and dated rail pass.
Another alternative is the Lufthansa airport bus, which links the airport with the main train station (€10.50, €17 round-trip, 4/hour, 45 minutes, buses depart train station 5:15-20:00, from airport 6:30-22:30, buy tickets on bus; from inside the station, exit near track 26 and look for yellow Airport Bus signs; www.airportbus-muenchen.de). If you’re traveling alone, going round-trip, and not using other public transport the same day, the bus saves a few euros. Avoid taking a taxi from the airport—it’s a long, expensive drive (roughly €65). Take public transport and then switch to a taxi if needed.
The Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial and Andechs Monastery are at opposite ends of the day-trip spectrum. Dachau, less than an hour by public transportation, makes for a serious, thought-provoking visit while Andechs, doable by public transportation but easier by car, serves up some of my favorite beer in Germany in a serene rural setting. Other day-trip possibilities—including the King’s Castles, Nürnberg, Salzburg, and Berchtesgaden—are summarized at the end of this section.
(See “Dachau” map, here.)
Dachau was the first Nazi concentration camp (1933). Today, it’s an easily accessible camp for travelers and an effective voice from our recent but grisly past, pleading, “Never again.” A visit to Dachau is a powerful and valuable experience and, when approached thoughtfully, well worth the trouble. Many visitors come away from here with more respect for history and the dangers of mixing fear, the promise of jobs, blind patriotism, and an evil government. You’ll likely see lots of students here, as all Bavarian schoolchildren are required to visit a concentration camp. It’s interesting to think that little more than a couple of generations ago, people greeted each other with a robust “Sieg Heil!” Today, almost no Germans know the lyrics of their national anthem, and German flags are a rarity outside of major soccer matches.
Cost and Hours: Free, daily 9:00-17:00. Some areas of the camp may begin to close before 17:00—plan your visit to wrap up by 16:40 to allow time to walk back to the entrance. The museum discourages parents from bringing children under age 14.
Planning Your Time: Allow yourself about five hours—giving you at least two and a half hours at the camp, plus round-trip travel from central Munich. With limited time you could do the whole trip in as little as three and a half hours by concentrating on the museum and skipping the powerful-but-long walk to the memorials and crematorium.
Getting There on Your Own: The camp is a 45-minute trip from downtown Munich. Take the S-2 (direction: Petershausen) from any of the central S-Bahn stops in Munich to Dachau (3/hour, 20-minute trip from Hauptbahnhof). Then, at Dachau station, go down the stairs and follow the crowds out to the bus platforms; find the one marked KZ-Gedenkstätte-Concentration Camp Memorial Sight. Here, catch bus #726 and ride it seven minutes to the KZ-Gedenkstätte stop (3/hour). Before you leave this bus stop, be sure to note the return times back to the station.
The Munich XXL day pass covers the entire trip, both ways (€8.80/person, €15.90/partner ticket for up to 5 adults). If you’ve already invested in a three-day Munich transport pass (which covers only the inner zone), you can save a couple of euros by buying and stamping single tickets (€2.80/person each way) to cover the Dachau part of the trip.
Drivers follow Dachauer Strasse from downtown Munich to Dachau-Ost, then follow KZ-Gedenkstätte signs.
Getting There by Guided Tour: The camp is easy to see on your own. But if you’d prefer a guided visit, Radius and Munich Walk tours are a great value, considering how good and passionate their guides are—and that you’re only paying about €10 for the guiding, once you factor in transportation costs. Allow roughly five hours total. Both companies charge about the same price (€26, includes cost of public transportation, ask for Rick Steves discount—select “student rate” if booking online for the Radius tour). It’s smart to reserve the day before, especially for the morning tours. Choose between Radius (daily year-round at 9:15, also at 12:15 April-mid-Oct, tel. 089/543-487-7740, www.radiustours.com) and Munich Walk (daily year-round at 10:15, also at 13:15 April-Oct, tel. 089/2423-1767, www.munichwalktours.de).
The Town: The town of Dachau—quiet, tree-lined, and residential—is more pleasant than its unfortunate association with the camp on its outskirts, and it tries hard to encourage you to visit its old town and castle (www.dachau.de). With 40,000 residents and quick access to downtown Munich, Dachau is now a high-priced and in-demand place to live.
Visitors Center: Coming from the bus stop or parking lot, you’ll first see the visitors center, outside the camp wall. It lacks exhibits, but does have a small cafeteria (sandwiches and pasta dishes), a bookstore with English-language books on Holocaust themes, and a WC (more WCs inside the camp). At the information desk, you can pick up a €0.50 information sheet, rent an audioguide, or sign up for a tour. Also consider buying the excellent 200-page book with a CD (€18) that contains the same text and images that you’ll be seeing in the museum.
Tours: The €3.50 audioguide covers the grounds and museum; its basic itinerary includes 1.5 hours of information (cash only, leave ID). It gives you a few extras (mainly short reminiscences by two camp survivors and three members of the Allied forces who liberated the camp), but isn’t essential, since the camp is fully labeled in English (rental desk closes right at 17:00). Two different guided walks in English are offered, starting from the visitors center (€3, daily at 11:00 and 13:00, 2.5 hours; limited to 30 people, so show up early—especially in summer, 11:00 walk fills up first; call or visit website to confirm times, tel. 08131/669-970, www.kz-gedenkstaette-dachau.de).
Self-Guided TourFrom the visitors center, you approach the main compound. You enter, like the inmates did, through the infamous iron gate that held the taunting slogan Arbeit macht frei (“Work makes you free”). The original sign was stolen in 2014; a replica may be on display. Inside are the four key experiences: the museum, the bunker behind the museum, the restored barracks, and a pensive walk across the huge but now-empty camp to the memorials and crematorium at the far end.
Enter the museum, housed in a former camp maintenance building. Just inside is a small bookshop that funds a nonprofit organization (founded by former prisoners) that researches and preserves the camp’s history. Check show times for the museum’s powerful 22-minute documentary film (described later). The museum is organized chronologically, everything is thoughtfully described in English, and touch-screens let you watch early newsreels.
On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler took power. Two months later, Dachau opened. It was a “concentration” camp, to gather together and isolate enemies of the state so they could not infect the rest of society. The camp was built well outside Dachau’s residential zone, surrounded by a mile-wide restricted area.
A map of the Nazi camp system shows that Dachau was just one of many such camps. Some were concentration camps (marked with a square, like Dachau). Others (marked with a triangle with a V) were extermination camps—Auschwitz, Sobibor—built with the express purpose of executing people on a mass scale. Nearby, photos and posters chronicle the rise of Hitler in the 1920s: the resentment bred by Germany’s defeat in World War I, the weak Weimar Republic, Hitler’s solution to Germany’s problems (blame the Jews), his failed Beer Hall Putsch, his participation in mainstream politics. No sooner did he take power than he suspended democracy and began squelching all opposition.
In 1933, the first prisoners passed through the Arbeit macht frei gates. They were classified and labeled with a badge (see the chart) according to their “crime” against the state. Besides political activists (communists and leftist intellectuals), prisoners included homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Gypsies, so-called career criminals, and Germans who had tried to flee the country. A special badge—the yellow Star of David—was reserved for a group the Nazis particularly loathed: Jews.
The camp was run by the SS, the organization (headed by mastermind Heinrich Himmler) charged with Germany’s internal security. Dachau was a training center for future camp managers. Rudolf Höss, who worked at Dachau from 1934 to 1938, went on to become the first commandant of Auschwitz.
Life at Dachau was horrific. It was a work camp, where inmates were expected to pay for their “crimes” with slave labor. It was strictly regimented: a wake-up call at 4:00, an 11-hour workday, roll call at 5:15 and 19:00, lights out at 21:00. The work was hard, whether quarrying or hauling loads or constructing the very buildings you see today. The rations were meager. Rule-breakers were punished severely—all manner of torture took place here. The most common punishment was being forced to stand at attention until you collapsed.
On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, World War II began, and Dachau’s role changed.
The 22-minute film from the 1960s is a sobering, graphic, and sometimes grisly account of the rise of Hitler and the atrocities of the camp (usually shown in English at 10:00, 11:30, 12:30, 14:00, and 15:00; not recommended for children under 14).
Once the war began, conditions at Dachau deteriorated. The original camp had been designed to hold just under 3,000 inmates. In 1937 and 1938, the camp was expanded and the building that now houses the museum was built, as well as barracks intended to hold 6,000 prisoners. With the war, the prisoner population swelled, and the Nazis found other purposes for the camp. It was less a concentration camp for German dissidents and more a dumping ground for foreigners and POWs. It was used as a special prison for 2,000 Catholic priests. From Dachau, Jewish prisoners were sent east to the gas chambers. Inmates were put to use as slave labor for the German war machine—many were shipped to nearby camps to make armaments. Prisoners were used as human guinea pigs for war-related medical experiments of human tolerance for air pressure, hypothermia, and biological agents like malaria; the photos of these victims may be the most painful to view.
As the Allies closed in on both fronts, Dachau was bursting with more than 30,000 prisoners jammed into its 34 barracks. Disease broke out, and food ran short in the winter of 1944-1945. With coal for the crematorium running low, the corpses of those who died were buried in mass graves outside the camp site. The Allies arrived on April 29. Even so, 2,000 prisoners were so weak or sick that they died soon after. After 12 years of existence, Dachau was finally liberated.
About 32,000 people died in Dachau between 1933 and 1945. (By comparison, more than a million were killed at Auschwitz in Poland.) But Dachau remains notorious because it was the Nazis’ first camp. Oddly, Dachau actually housed people longer after the war than during the war. First, it housed Nazi officials arrested by the Allies, as they awaited trial at Nürnberg for war crimes. From 1948 to 1964, the camp became cheap housing for ethnic Germans expelled from Eastern Europe, complete with a cinema, shops, and so on. The last of the barracks was torn down in 1964, and the museum opened the following year.
• Consider using the WC before leaving the museum building (there aren’t any bathrooms elsewhere within the camp walls). Find the side door, at the end of the exhibition, which leads out to the long, low bunker behind the museum building.
This was a cellblock for prominent “special prisoners,” such as failed Hitler assassins, German religious leaders, and politicians who challenged Nazism. Most of the 136 cells are empty, but exhibits in a few of them (near the entrance) profile the inmates and the SS guards who worked at Dachau, and allow you to listen to some inmates’ testimonies. Cell #2 was the interrogation room. Cell #9 was a “standing cell”—inmates were tortured here by being forced to stay on their feet for days at a time.
• Exit the bunker, and walk around past the Arbeit macht frei gate to the big square between the museum and the reconstructed barracks, which was used for roll call. In front of the museum, notice the powerful memorial to the victims created in 1968 by Nandor Glid, a Jewish Holocaust survivor and artist, which includes humanity’s vow: Never Again. Cross the square to the farther of the two reconstructed...
Take a quick look inside to get an idea of what sleeping and living conditions were like in the camp. There were 34 barracks, each measuring about 10 yards by 100 yards. When the camp was at its fullest, there was only about one square yard of living space per inmate.
• Now walk between the two reconstructed barracks and down the tree-lined path past the foundations of the other barracks. At the end of the camp, in space that once housed the camp vegetable garden, rabbit farm, and brothel, there are now three places of meditation and worship (Jewish to your right, Catholic straight ahead, and Protestant to your left). Beyond them, just outside the camp, is a Carmelite convent. Turn left toward the corner of the camp and find the small bridge leading to the...
A memorial garden surrounds the two camp crematorium buildings, which were used to burn the bodies of prisoners who had died or been killed. The newer, larger concrete crematorium was built to replace the smaller wooden one. One of its rooms is a gas chamber, which worked on the same principles as the much larger one at Auschwitz, and was originally disguised as a shower room (the fittings are gone now). It was never put to use at Dachau for mass murder, but some historians suspect that a few people were killed in it experimentally. In the garden near the buildings is a Russian Orthodox shrine.
• Our tour is over. To return to Munich by public transit, retrace your steps to the bus stop, where bus #726 takes you back to the Dachau train station. Then catch the S-2 to downtown Munich (direction: Erding or Markt Schwaben). The ride back to Munich gives you ample time to process all you’ve seen and experienced on your visit.
This monastery crouches quietly with a big smile between two lakes just south of Munich. For a fine Baroque church in a rural Bavarian setting at a monastery that serves hearty cafeteria-quality food—and perhaps the best beer in Germany—consider a short side-trip here. The cafeteria terrace offers first-class views and second-class prices. Don’t miss the stroll up to the church, where you can sit peacefully and ponder the striking contrasts a trip through Germany offers.
Cost and Hours: Free, beer garden open daily 10:00-20:00, church open until 18:00, tel. 08152/376-261, www.andechs.de.
Getting There: Reaching Andechs from Munich without a car is doable with a little planning. Bus #951 stops at the monastery on its run between Herrsching (at the end of the S-8 subway line) and Starnberg Nord (on the S-6 line). Bus #958 runs to Andechs from Tutzing (also on the S-6 line). Check the schedules at www.bahn.com or www.mvv-muenchen.de to find a convenient connection (use Kloster Andechs as your destination; trip takes 1-1.5 hours, buy Munich airport-city day ticket for €12.80 or pay €23.90 for the partner pass good for up to 5 people). You can also take the S-8 train to Herrsching, then hike, bike, or catch a taxi for the three miles to the monastery.
Below I’ve listed other fine day-trip options from Munich. If traveling by train, consider buying the Regional Day Ticket for Bavaria, which covers up to five people from Munich to anywhere in Bavaria (plus Salzburg) and back for a very low price (€25 for the first person plus €6 for each additional person, €2 more if bought at counter instead of machine—but worth the extra cost if you need help, not valid before 9:00 Mon-Fri, valid only on slower “regional” trains—most of them labeled on schedules as either “RB,” “RE,” or “IRE,” also valid on city transport). The ticket is sold at train stations and at EurAide (for details on day-pass tickets, see here).
“Mad” King Ludwig’s Castles: The spectacular castles of Neuschwanstein and Linderhof each make a great day trip (it’s possible to do both in a day, but exhausting). Your easiest option is to take a tour (reserve at least a day ahead, as tours sell out in summer; see “Tours in Munich” on here). Without a tour, only Neuschwanstein is easy (2 hours by train to Füssen, then 10-minute bus ride to the castle). Or spend the night in Füssen. For all the details, see the next chapter.
Nürnberg: A handy but expensive ICE express train zips you to Nürnberg in about an hour (departures several times an hour), making this very historic city a viable day trip from Munich. Cheaper RE trains, covered by the Regional Day Ticket, take a little longer. It’s also accessible via a Radius Tours all-day excursion (www.radiustours.com). For information, see the Nürnberg chapter.
Salzburg: This Austrian city is an easy day trip and offers some exciting sightseeing (fast train from Munich gets you there in around 1.5 hours; also reachable via Radius Tours package). For details, see the Salzburg chapter.
Berchtesgaden: This resort, near Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest getaway, is easier as a side-trip from Salzburg (just 15 miles from there). For more, see here.