Munich

It is easy walking distance or you can go by subway.

Not addressing your question but do you think that Dachau (if you mean the memorial and ex cc) is a good starting point to experience a country you do not know so far? I suggest in your own interest to go for a different initial experience, e.g. Nymphenburg Palace.

Have a good journey.

Four-star hotels are generally too expensive for me, but there are some very convenient to Munich Hauptbahnhof (main station) (see on GoogleMaps or booking.com) and I had no issues staying in that area.

The Holiday Inn City Center might fit the bill. I have no idea how many "stars" it has. Despite its name, it is across the river from the city center at Rosenheimer Platz. You can get to it underground from the Rosenheimer Platz S-Bahn station.

That means you take the S-8 from the airport and it is the next station after Munich Ostbahnhof. After dropping your bags at the hotel, go back to the S-Bahn station and take the S-2 to Dachau, then the 726 bus to KZ Gedenkstaette (German name of the memorial). Trains go at 3, 23, 43 minutes past the hour and trip takes 48 minutes, train + bus. You can accomplish all of this, run from the airport, round trip to Dachau with a single Group Entire Network Day Ticket costing 24.30 EUR.

To go to the Haupbahnhof, take any S-Bahn toward the city center and get off at Haupbahnhof. They go every couple of minutes.

Very good breakfast at the hotel. https://www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/us/en/munich/muchb/hoteldetail#

Thank you all! We really aren't set on a 4 star hotel, I would also love a really clean and friendly B&B. Interesting that MarkK would mention Dachau... I was wondering the same thing. Maybe we should visit Dachau on our last day instead! ;-) The Nymphenburg Palace sounds cool. After Munich we are headed to Rothenburg, Fussen, Garmish..., and then back to Munich. We are thinking about Berchtesgaden if we have enough time. Is it worth entering Austria for a few short hours?

Does anyone know if AMEX is accepted generally?
Thanks again

No, AmEx is not widely accepted in Germany. Visa and MasterCard have more acceptance places.

We are thinking about visiting Dachau that first day since we can't check into a hotel until around 3:00. This will mean taking the train to Dachau.

A trip to Dachau KZ (the concentration camp) from Munich's main station means 1.) a trip by RB or S-bahn train to Dachau Bahnhof (the Dachau town station) PLUS 2.) a bus ride to the camp.

I am not encouraging you to visit, necessarily. IME, we Americans already have a solid understanding of what went on in the concentration camps (astounding cruelty, forced labor, starvation, torture, death, etc.) A camp visit will highlight the grisly historic details, if that's what you want, but I struggle to see the value of this dark experience for the average tourist. MarkK's suggestion - Nymphenburg - is not only closer but also presents a period of history that we from the New World are less familiar with. I think it's a very good choice.

We are thinking about Berchtesgaden if we have enough time. Is it worth entering Austria for a few short hours?

Another post of yours says you may have just 10 days altogether. I understand you will be visiting Würzburg, Rothenburg, the other Romantic Road towns, Munich, Garmisch, Füssen, the Füssen-area palaces, and Dachau. So I suggest that instead of adding another area entirely, you should visit the places you have already targeted more thoroughly.

For example... When you are in Garmisch, do you plan to also visit nearby Mittenwald? It's right in Garmisch's back yard. Check out this guide for spending a day in this lovely town. And if you just want to say you visited Austria, well it's easy to do that from Garmisch too - Innsbruck is quite close. From Garmisch there's also a scenic train route into Austria - the "Ausserfernbahn", which you might ride to Reutte or Vils and back - as well as the possibility of visiting Ettal Monastery, the Wieskirche, and Oberammergau.

And when you travel from Würzburg to Rothenburg, perhaps include some nice Main River wine towns on the way...
Sommerhausen
Marktbreit

I also think that visiting Dachau is not the best idea on your first day especially if you are tired. I don't know how many days you will spend in Munich. If you want to explore the city, landmarks, beautiful squares, parks, museums, Residenz, markets, beer gardens, restaurants, cafes etc it will take at least a week without any side trips. If you really need to get out of the city I recommend Linderhof Palace and Oberammergau.

I stayed at Hotel Metropol on Mittererstrasse about 3 blocks from the Hbf last May and it was one of the nicest hotel experiences I've had--spacious room, quiet, nicely decorated and clean, attentive front desk staff and the most incredibly varied breakfast I've ever seen. I second the recommendation for Nymphenburg, did that my first day there and it was a lovely place to explore, easy tram ride from the Hbf.

Thank you again for your help. Does anyone know anything about the Platzl Hotel in Munich? We have reserved a room there for one night, but could change if necessary. Is it in a nice quiet neighborhood? Within walking distance to Marianplatz and train station?

The Platzl is a few blocks east of the Marienplatz and several Kilometers (15 minute walk with no luggage) from the train station.

If you do go to the Dachau KZ and take part in a tour, pay attention if the response/reaction of US troops in seeing the horrors when liberating the camp is mentioned in the guided tour. .

My wife and I will be in Munich during May, we tend to stay in smaller European style hotels. We are staying at Hotel Bayer which has good reviews and is close to the train station and downtown.

I would not be overly obsessed with staying at a 4 star hotel. German hotel ratings (see DEHOGA catalog of criteria) are not the same as in the US. Here, ratings seem to be a subjective evaluation of the condition of the hotel; in Germany, it is based on an accumulation of points awarded for certain criteria, with some criteria being mandatory, depending on the number of stars.

All hotels, regardless of the number of stars, have to meet the same standard of cleanliness, sanitary condition, and maintenance. Where the hotels differ is for things like the minimum size of the beds, hours of room service (if any), hours the front desk is open, and silly things like whether there is a minibar in the room, whether it has heated towel racks, and whether there is a shoe shine machine on the floor.

All starred hotels must have beds at least 6'3" long (or you must be told before committing that they aren't). In 4 and 5 star hotels, 85% must be at least 6'7" long (or you must be told). Hotels with less than 4 stars can have longer beds, but it isn't mandatory. So, if you are very tall, at least 4 stars might be important.

Hotels with at least 3 stars must have someone on the staff who speaks English. I've stayed in a lot of no-star hotels with English speaking staff.

To have more than one star, a hotel has to accept credit cards, which is part of the reason, I believe, that there are so many no-star hotels. They don't want to accept credit cards, so they can only get one star, no matter how nice they are, so why bother. Again, I've stayed in a lot of very nice, clean, and well maintained no-star hotel in Germany. The Germans have very high standards.

Very good information (Lee) to everyone. Thank you!

@ kaptn.....Keep in mind that if a Pension , normally 2 stars, has a Visa logo out front, don't bet on the place accepting your credit card at check-out.

That may be totally misleading to the guest...too bad...since the proprietor in spite of that Visa logo really wants and insists on cash. I've seen this happen in Berlin at my (2 star) Pension. If the guest has not the sufficient amount of cash , thinking the credit card could be used instead...wrong, the proprietor will tell him/her to go the Sparkasse ATM down the block.

Due to a recent EU law, credit card companies in the EU can only charge 3/10% interchange fee to the merchant for a card payment, but I understand that the law only applies to cards issued by EU banks. Cards issued by non-EU banks can still charge whatever they negotiate (demand), which is usually, I believe, 4%. That could be a big reason that a pension would not want to take a US card. I don't know if the DEHOGA criteria says they have to take anything other than EU cards, and I don't think it says they can't charge you extra for doing it.

To add to Lee's informative post about the star systems with hotels, 4 star hotels have to offer room service and 3 star don't. I find this usually helps people get a feel for the level of service for which they are looking.

To the OP's last set of questions:

Does anyone know anything about the Platzl Hotel in Munich? We have reserved a room there for one night, but could change if necessary. Is it in a nice quiet neighborhood? Within walking distance to Marianplatz and train station?

Since you are only in Munich for one night I would recommend staying in the old city center and this hotel fits that requirement. Platzl Hotel is one block from HofBräuhaus in a pretty touristy area so I wouldn't classify this as a quiet neighborhood, especially during the day, but it should be quiet after 11pm. Also, the hotel seems to be modernized with AC and double pane windows so you won't hear much street noise anyway. It is within walking distance of Marienplatz but not the train station. The good news is you don't need to be near the station as the S-Bahn lines all run right across the city from the Main Station in the West to the East Station so as long as you are within walking distance to any of those stations, which include Marienplatz, you have easy access to transport.

DJ

kaptn- We stayed at the Marriott City Center and the accomodations were nice . It was within walking distance to the Hauptbahnhof if I remember correctly. We also did dachau, but not on the first day. You can buy tickets to take a tour bus there and back. Worked for us. You'll love Munich! My wife's favorite city

Dan

I am currently staying at Hotel Mercure Munich Altstadt, it is centrally located, very clean and the staff is wonderful. My stay also includes an amazing breakfast. It is also a very short distance to several train stations and is just west of Marienplatz. We arrived at 9am and didn't think that we could check in that early but our rooms were ready so they let us. That was a huge bonus! I highly recommend this hotel.

Coincidentally, I also visited Dachau today. I am very glad I went but it will make for a heavy, solemn day. We took the guided tour, which I also recommend but you should know it is 2 and a half hours long. We departed the hotel at 8:30 in the morning and didn't return until 2:00pm, so it is also a long day. After traveling to get to Munich, it might be a bit too much.

There is plenty to do while in Munich, particularly if you are only here for one day. I recommend visiting Victuals Market to see an amazing array of local foods, climbing St. Peter's Tower to get a great, 360 degree view of the city, visiting Asamkirche a hidden treasure of a church from the 1700's, Marienplatz to watch the Rathaus-Glockenspiel performance (check times), and even walk up to Eisbachwelle to watch the surfers in the river! That last one is a bit of a walk but worth it.

Of course, don't forget to try the food! White asparagus will still be in season and are amazing! My favorite place to try all things asparagus is Spatenhaus near the opera. Enjoy!

We stayed here a couple of years ago when we were in Munich. it is in a quiet neighborhood close public transportation and to Nymhenburg Palace, the botanical gardens and Hirschgarten. There were several good, non-touristy, restaurants close by. The staff was wonderful and very helpful. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187309-d279562-Reviews-Hotel_Laimer_Hof-Munich_Upper_Bavaria_Bavaria.html

4 star hotels have to offer room service and 3 star don't.

5 star hotels have to have 24 hour room service. 4 star hotels, only 14 hour. Criteria 224 & 225. But personally, I don't care. I don't use room service.

Also, 4 star hotels have to charge at least $200 per night; 5 star hotels, $300 per night. That's why I don't stay in these hotels.

Several years back, July 2011 or 21012, I stayed in a 4 star hotel in Hamburg since I decided not to go for the dorm in the HI hostel at Landungsbrücken. I didn't reserve, was a walk-in.

That hotel charged for a single 115 Euro with breakfast, so I took it, even though a bit pricey but big and very nice, and it was in the train station area.

That was most likely the highest I've ever paid for a single in Europe, other 3 or 4 stars where I've stayed definitely don't charge that high of a price, all the more so when I book the single on a non-refundable, no cancellation basis.

I am in Munich, staying at the Hampton by Hilton Munich City West @Landsberger Strasse 114, 80339 Munich, Germany. It is a 5 minute walk from the train station. I was able to check in at 11am on Monday. Look for the S signs at the airport (use Google maps "public transport" option to give you the train number and exact directions. I would recommend checking in here when you arrive, you can then get back on the train, go 4 stops to Marienplatz and explore Munich. I recommend Rick's Munich Walking Tour. After a long flight you may need some sunshine and German pastry.