Late flight arrival in Munich

There is regular S-Bahn service until 0:44 (S1 and S8 alternating every 10 minutes), followed by two S8 trains at 1:24 and 1:44. If your flight arrives on time, you should have no problem catching the train at 23:04 or 23:14. You will be in the city center about 40 minutes later. And if you stay at a hotel near Marienplatz or Rosenheimer Platz, you can practically get off right outside the door.

Hotels at the airport are pretty pricy. If you don't want to take the time going all the way into town the night you arrive, Hotel-Gasthof Maisberger is only a 10 minute S-Bahn (S1) ride from the airport S-Bahn station next to the Neufahrn Bahnhof.

Also, there are a few hotels in Freising, a 20 minute bus ride from the airport. But then, you have another bus ride or a walk to get to any of the hotels in Freising. By that time, it might not be much longer to just go into town. I've stayed several times in a Gasthaus in Freising before my flight out of MUC the next morning, but that was just my personal preference.

There are also some hotels within walking distance of the Ostbahnhof. From there you can catch the S-bahn to Marienplatz and Dachau Bahnhof, or with a change to an U-Bahn, the BMW museum, and from there a direct train (no S-Bahn and change) to Salzburg.

Thank you, Fritz for your reply. I see that there are two train stations in Munich. Which train station does the train from the airport go to? Thank you again!

The S bahns are more likely a subway, with many stops. The main train station stop is the Hauptbahnhof (Hbh). But check the location of your hotel, and see if they mention the closest S1 or S8 stop. It might be Hbh, but it could also be Karlsplatz, Marienplatz, or Isartor if your hotel is in the center.

You can access airport from either train station .

My vote is for the previously mentioned Hotel Gastof-Maisberger. We stayed here due to high prices in central Munich during Oktoberfest and fell in love with this hotel. Rooms are large, staff are friendly, restaurant is excellent. Directly next to S1 station 10 minutes from airport. The commute into central Munich was not that long and we enjoyed staying in a less touristy location at the end of the day.

You can access airport from either train station.

First, there are more than two train stations in Munich. The main station, of course, is the Hauptbahnhof (Hbf), which is roughly in the middle of town. Most Regional and Long Distance trains originate or pass through the Hbf.

On the east end of town is the Ostbahnhof (East Bahnhof). On the west end of town is Pasing Bahnhof (Pasing-Muenchen). Most trains (Regional and Long Distance) coming into/out of Munich from the west or east also stop at Pasing or Ostbahnhof.

There are a lot more stations in the MVV, mostly for regional trains. For instance, one regional train goes into the S-Bahn station at the airport, but it doesn't go through the Hbf. It goes north, to Regensburg, with stops at Freising and Moosburg.

Second, the "trains" to/from the airport are actually S-Bahns (S1 or S8). Most S-Bahns travel on a trunk line that goes between the Hbf and Ost, with stations (S-Bahn only) at Karlsplatz (Stachus), Marienplatz, Isartor, and Rosenheimer Platz. The two stations to which Carol referred are the Hbf and Ost, but you can also access an S-Bahn to/from the airport from any of the S-Bahn stations in between, for example Marienplatz.

Here is a map of the entire MVV system of S-Bahn and Regional trains.

Thank you, Fritz for your reply. I see that there are two train stations in Munich. Which train station does the train from the airport go to? Thank you again!

There are two S-Bahn lines from the airport to the city center. One (S1) goes around the city in the west, the other (S8) in the east (cf. the map provided above by @Lee). The S1 stops first at the Hauptbahnhof and then at the Ostbahnhof, while the S8 does the opposite. In between, they stop frequently at smaller stations.
The most convenient option for you would be to find a hotel near one of these smaller stations. For example, at Rosenheimer Platz or near Marienplatz. You can easily find the nearest S-Bahn station for any given hotel on Google Maps.

One more thing about the S-Bahn trains. They depart from the airport alternately every 10 minutes, and if your hotel is in the city center, it's easiest simply to take just the next train. Don't be confused by the terminus indicated on the train, which is somewhere in the boondocks of the greater Munich area: the overhead displays in the station always indicate the Hauptbahnhof as an intermediate stop. Exception: once an hour, a train goes directly to Regensburg and on to Nuremberg (in which case the terminus is indicated as Regensburg or Nuremberg) – obviously, you don't take that one. ;)

Download the MVGO or MVV app to your smartphone (it doesn't matter which one, they are almost identical). This gives you complete timetable information and, above all, the “swipe in/out” function: When you board an S-Bahn (or an U- Bahn, tram, or bus), you log in, and when you get off, you log out again +) — no hassle with buying tickets, and at the end of the day, you always get the best fare, so you don't pay too much.

Unfortunately, I can't say much about the hotels because, as a resident of the greater Munich area, I seldom do need one, understandably. However, I am familiar with the Maisberger mentioned above because I sometimes use it for very early departures to the USA. I like it and it offers much better value for money than the city hotels, but in my opinion it's not suitable as a base for Munich because it's always an hour's ride to the center and back.

Welcome to Bavaria.

+) More precisely: once you have completed your entire journey, even if you have changed between the S-Bahn and tram, for example: the ticket is always valid for the entire trip.
Example for your trip to Dachau – assumed departure point Marienplatz: You log in before boarding the S2 to Dachau; in Dachau, you change to bus #726 to the memorial site. Only when you arrive there do you log out.

I used to live in Munich (Haidhausen) and traveled frequently to the airport and back, here is my advice: Pick a hotel on the S-Bahn trunk line between Marienplatz and Ostbahnhof (the Hauptbahnhof is a construction zone so I recommend staying further East). Trains to Salzburg depart from Ostbahnhof and there are a lot of hotels in that area (many of them fairly new). Rosenheimerplatz S-Bahn station also three chain hotels very near as well (Hilton, Holiday Inn, Novotel). As other have said the S-Bahn will still be running so no point in staying near the station. The S8 is a 33 min ride from the Airport to Ostbahnhof.

DJ