Munich: where to stay, when to go, and how to get around

Overview

Munich is Bavaria’s capital and Germany’s most expensive major city, a prosperous, orderly place built around a tight medieval core that pivots on Marienplatz. It is not edgy and it does not pretend to be: this is a city of beer gardens, museums, and easy access to the Alps, where the wealth is visible and the rents are high. The Isar, a fast green river running south to north through the eastern side of the centre, and the vast Englischer Garten just north of the core shape how the city feels — greener and more outdoor than its size suggests. For a visitor the important facts are that the historic centre is small and walkable, the public transport is excellent, and the city works best as both a destination in its own right and a base for the mountains and lakes an hour south.

Where to stay

The tourist centre is the Altstadt, the old town inside the former walls, marked now by surviving gates like Karlstor and Isartor. It is compact — you can cross it on foot in fifteen minutes — but Munich proper sprawls well beyond it, and the U-Bahn and S-Bahn make neighbourhoods a few stops out entirely practical bases. Choose by character and by how much you mind noise and price. The Hauptbahnhof (main station) sits just west of the Altstadt and is the arrival point for most; the airport is far out to the north-east, so factor the transfer into where you land at night.

Altstadt (Marienplatz and around)

The historic heart: Marienplatz with its Glockenspiel, the food stalls and beer of the Viktualienmarkt, the pedestrianised shopping streets, and most of the headline sights within a few minutes’ walk. Stay here for a first visit when you want everything on your doorstep and no transport to think about. The trade-offs are the predictable ones — this is the priciest and most crowded part of the city, the main drags are wall-to-wall shoppers by day, and genuine local life has largely been pushed out. Rooms are small for the money.

Maxvorstadt

Directly north of the Altstadt, this is the university and museum quarter, home to the Kunstareal — the three Pinakotheken and a cluster of other galleries — plus the Ludwig-Maximilian University and a steady student presence. It is central, well connected, and calmer than the old town, with good cafés and bookshops rather than souvenir shops. Stay here if museums are your priority or you want somewhere quieter but still walkable to the core. The trade-off is that it is largely residential and academic: less immediate buzz, and quiet in the evenings once the students disperse.

Isarvorstadt (Glockenbachviertel and Gärtnerplatz)

South of the centre, this is Munich’s nightlife and dining quarter, centred on the Gärtnerplatz and the Glockenbach streets: bars, restaurants, the heart of the city’s gay scene, and a young, moneyed crowd. Stay here to eat and drink well and be out late without a long trip home. The trade-off is noise — the streets around Gärtnerplatz stay busy well into the night, particularly at weekends — and prices that have climbed steadily as the area has become fashionable.

Ludwigsvorstadt and the Bahnhofsviertel

The blocks around and south of the Hauptbahnhof are the cheapest central option and the most practical if you are arriving by train, doing day trips, or catching an early airport S-Bahn. It is also Munich’s most multicultural district, with Turkish, Balkan and Arab food that is a relief from Bavarian heaviness. The trade-offs are real: the immediate station surroundings are the scruffiest part of central Munich, with the usual big-station mix of transience and late-night edges, and it lacks charm. Fine for a short, functional stay; not where you come for atmosphere.

Haidhausen

East across the Isar, this is a handsome, quiet residential quarter — sometimes called the French Quarter for its street names — with a village-ish feel, good neighbourhood restaurants. The Gasteig, the big concert-and-culture complex above the river, is shut for a general renovation with no announced reopening and its concert programme has moved across the city to Sendling, though the library stays in the quarter. It is a short tram or walk from the centre and near the Ostbahnhof. Stay here for calm, a more local rhythm, and better value than the Altstadt. The trade-off is that you are outside the tourist core: pleasant but sleepy, and you commute in for the main sights and nightlife.

When to go

Late spring to early autumn (May–September) is the city at its best: warm enough for the beer gardens and the Englischer Garten, where locals swim in the Eisbach and watch surfers ride the standing wave at its southern edge. Summer is genuinely warm and occasionally humid, but rarely oppressive, and the mountains are within reach for day trips.

The event that dominates the calendar is Oktoberfest, which despite the name runs from mid-September into the first days of October on the Theresienwiese. If you are not coming for it, avoid the city then: hotels sell out months ahead and prices double or worse. If you are, book far in advance and expect the whole centre to be busier and drunker than usual. December brings Christmas markets across the squares, cold and often crisp, with the Alps white and ski resorts an hour or two away. Deep winter is grey and cold; the occasional warm, clear Föhn wind off the Alps can make the mountains look startlingly close.

Getting there & around

Munich Airport lies well out to the north-east, and the standard way in is the S-Bahn — the S1 and S8 lines both run to the Hauptbahnhof and Marienplatz, taking around 40–45 minutes and meeting from opposite directions, so either works from the terminals. A taxi is expensive and not much faster in traffic; there is also an express coach to the Hauptbahnhof. Whichever you take, allow for the distance when planning a late arrival or an early flight.

Within the city, do not bother with a car — parking is dear and the centre is dense. The integrated network of U-Bahn, S-Bahn, tram and bus (under the MVV fare system) is fast, clean and covers everywhere you’ll want to go; buy a day pass rather than singles if you’re moving around. The Altstadt itself is best on foot. Cycling is popular and well provided for, with segregated lanes on most main roads.

The Hauptbahnhof is a major rail hub and the reason Munich makes such a good base. Day trips are the city’s strong suit: the Dachau concentration camp memorial is reached by S-Bahn (S2) to Dachau station and then a local bus, and is a sober half-day. Neuschwanstein castle takes a train toward Füssen and a connecting bus. The lakes — Starnberger See, Ammersee, Tegernsee — and the mountain town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen are all straightforward by regional train, and Salzburg and Nuremberg are quick by fast service.

Practicalities

Munich is safe and easy, with the usual mild caution warranted around the Hauptbahnhof late at night. The one habit to prepare for is cash: Germany remains far more cash-reliant than most of Western Europe, and while cards are increasingly accepted, plenty of bakeries, smaller restaurants and market stalls still expect euros, so carry some.

On food and drink: the one dish that is properly Munich’s own is Weißwurst, the pale veal sausage eaten with sweet mustard and a pretzel — traditionally before noon, and never with the skin. Beside it sit the Bavarian standards you are likelier to meet here than anywhere: Schweinshaxe (roast pork knuckle), Leberkäse, and Obatzda, a spiced cheese spread served in beer gardens. The Biergarten is a genuine institution: under the chestnut trees at the larger ones you may bring your own food and buy only the beer, which comes by the litre (a Maß). Order a Radler if a full Maß of beer is too much — it’s beer cut with lemonade. Tipping is modest: round up or add roughly ten per cent, handed to the server directly rather than left on the table.