Munich/Area suggestions

How many days will you have in the area? Are you going to other places on this trip and trying to decide how many days to devote to Munich? If so, where else are you going and how are you traveling?

I think two full days (3 nights) is sufficient for Munich, but I prefer the countryside. I actually prefer Salzburg to Munich for a variety of reasons. But if you’re set on Munich, you could spend a day exploring the old town, the market, the cathedral, a beer hall. The next day you could go to the BMW museum if you’re into cars, or do a half day trip to Dachau. If you would rather be in the mountains, check out the Garmisch Partenkirchen area. Mittenwald is very charming and there are lots of hiking opportunities nearby.

I just checked the Michelin Green Guide. It devotes 24 pages to Munich. It really is hard to give a thumbnail sketch of Munich. We have made a couple 3 day trips there. We studied a few guides and knew what we wanted to see before we arrived. We liked Munich but it was overwhelming, even to my wife who went to the Univ of Maryland extension there for 2 years.

We have also stayed in Freising and made a day trip into Munich. For us it was too difficult to get much out of day trip. We needed to re-learn the transportation system and reorient ourselves. Just doing that took up most of our time.

I have thought I might like a week there, giving us time to learn the communities and find a favorite Gasthaus. However, if I had a week, I suspect I would prefer 2 day stops in other cities not far away: Regensburg, Landshut, Augsburg, etc.

Just spent two weeks in Germany and one week was in Bavaria. Munich is great and very easy to navigate. It’s very organized, too. Some things we did (in order of ranking):

• FC Bayern game
• Salzburg
• Neuschwanstein
• Alte Pinakothek and Blue Riders for great art
• Viktualienmarkt for the market scene
• Palaces Nyphemburg and Residenz (though if you’ve been to some of Europe’s other great palaces you may not be impressed - we weren’t )
• Egyptian Museum
• Hofbrauhaus (fun but forgettable food)
• BMW museum (only if you love cars)

Also did Rick’s walk which was enjoyable. Easy to find great German food and there was pretty decent Indian and Italian food too.

Unlike most others I prefer Munich to Berlin probably because of the cleanliness If you like churches, there are many Baroque ones to explore. There are bike tours you can take, walking in the English Gardens. Seeing the palaces. For me there are too many choices for a 2 day trip.

Munich is a big city with a lot of greenery so hiking would be even possible in the city. The English Garden for example is one of the largest inner city parks in the world. Hiking along the Isar river, in the Nymphenburg Park or in the Olympic Park is always possible.

It is possible to enjoy art from every period and history from the founding of the city to the dark Nazi era. Countless museums from antiquity to modern times and from art to science and technology offer everything you can imagine. Many churches could be visited as well.

And visiting a beer garden in June is a must because this is the place in the city where you really understand what the Munich people are like :-)

My recommendation would be locate yourself in the old town in a nice hotel. To get an overview I would suggest use Rick Steves Audio Walking Tour.

I could certainly write forever, but maybe it's better to get a few tips here and to think about which museum fits and where the focus really is: https://www.munich.travel/en/categories/plan/things-to-do

Thank you. We are flying to Munich and then going on to Greece, where we will spend most of our time. We were trying to decide how many days we should plan for the Munich area (2 or 3). We like the countryside, especially the mountains; we absolutely loved Murren, Switzerland, as an example. What is the best way to get around this area and to Salzburg? Should we rent a car or can we rely on trains?

We like the countryside, especially the mountains; we absolutely loved
Murren, Switzerland, as an example.

If that's what you're looking for, do not bother with Munich proper. Munich is not a good travel base for outings into the Alps. It's better to just go there and stay there when your time is short.

Mittenwald might be the perfect spot for you. WHAT ARE YOUR TRAVEL DATES? This is important to know because the train trip to Mittenwald, normally an easy trip, will be seriously compromised in the latter part of June because of construction. Guide to Mittenwald. Nearby is Garmisch-Partenkirchen, with the Zugspitze, Germany's tallest alp, nearby (scroll through previous link for Zugspitze info.)

If you are not sure what places you would like to visit, or you want to wait 'til later on and play it by ear, I'd suggest the Chiemgau area an 1 hour east of Munich by train, or 1.5 hours from MUC airport by train. It's half way between Munich and Salzburg, and it's beautiful. Lake Chiemsee area towns with rail stations include Aschau (at the foot of the Kampenwand range, with a mountain lift for views and hiking) as well as Prien (lakeside town for touring Herrenchiemsee Palace, which is on an island in the lake,) Bernau, and Übersee. These last 3 towns are right on the main train line to Salzburg and Munich, so you can take reasonable day trips by train to either city in just one hour.

Aschau/Kampenwand

View of Alps from the Sonnenalm terrace, not far from the top of the lift

Lake Chiemsee with palace

Herrenchiemsee Palace

In this case I would skip Munich as well.

I’d head to Mittenwald and base there. We stayed twice. It’s the postcard perfect Bavarian village with an alpine backdrop.

FC Bayern game

That's great :-) The games are usually sold out. You were really lucky.

I would like to give that tip more often but it doesn't help if you don't get a ticket legally. But I think the stadium tour (Allianz Arena) and the FC Bayern museum are also very exciting if one likes soccer.

Thank you for all the great advice.

Getting Bayern Munich tickets through the club is possible. We started the process in Nov’22 and had tickets for a match in March’23. Well worth it!!!

We started the process in Nov’22 and had tickets for a match in March’23

Yes, that's exactly why I never recommend it. You have to be a real soccer fan to do that :-)

I've been to games in the Allianz Arena several times and thought it was great. It is also easier to get tickets for less exciting Champions League games than for a Bundesliga game. But FC Bayern is out of the Champions League and the DFB Cup for this season. So the only thing left are the Bundesliga games.