Places to visit in Munich

With Munich Airport being so close to the city centre (17.7 miles in fact), it’s easy to come to Munich for a long weekend, since little time is wasted before one gets to the main Munich tourist attractions.

A metro line connects Terminal 1 with the city centre, but there are also busses, taxis and car hire on offer for arriving passengers. It’s not a bad idea to hire a car for a day or for the entire stay, since the Alps and the Austrian border are within 4 hours’ driving distance. In spring and summer hikers, climbers and mountain bikers flock to the Alps for their summer holidays, but in winter the area is alive with cross-country and downhill skiing, thanks to Bavaria’s fairly reliable snow fall between end of November and the beginning of April.

Two of Munich’s most famous events – the beer festival and the Christmas Market – attract hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. The Oktoberfest and the wonderful Christkindl Market are partly responsible for the huge number of visitors that flood the city every year, but there are plenty of other Munich tourist attractions, such as the historic city centre, with the Marienplatz, a plaza from which the splendid palaces, Town Halls and various monuments can be viewed and visited. There’s even a famous carillon (Glockenspiel) that lures tourists into the Old Town at 11am, at noon and at 5pm to hear and see the charming display and chime.

When the Oktoberfest beer festival is not in full swing, visitors can sample Bavaria’s beer brewing skills at the Hofbräuhaus in the heart of the Old Town, a famous pub serving traditional Bavarian lagers in huge “Steins”, a litre at a time. The pretty waitresses wear traditional costumes and there are the for the area typical brass bands playing until the early morning hours for tourists and locals to enjoy a dance or two.

Among the most famous landmarks in the city centre is the Residenz Palast, once the Kings of Bavaria’s very own residential palace in the heart of Munich. Here Bavarian rules enjoyed their time in the city during 1385 and 1918, when the First World War put an end to such frivolities in general and Bavarian Kings in particular. Not only does the Palace contain some of Europe’s greatest art treasures, fine porcelain, jewellery and paintings, it also houses one of Europe’s finest Rococo theatres, where from time to time performances can be enjoyed.

One of Munich’s tourist attractions is the River Isar, which traverses the city. There are many opportunities to join a river cruise and discover Munich from the comfort of a cruise ship, seeing its splendid architecture from a very different angle.

The most famous shopping district in Munich is located in Schwabing. Here the rich and famous go shopping and show off their wealth in the many trendy cafes and wine bars. At night Germany’s TV personalities hang out in nightclubs and restaurants in Schwabing, where pretty much anything goes!

It’s hard to see everything over just one weekend, since the Bavarian National Museum, the Toy Museum as well as the Old and New Town Halls in the Old Town offer so many cultural riches.