Munich Area Travel Guide

Planning to visit Munich (München)? Start your trip planning here!

Keep reading this page for an overview of what to do and see in the Munich area. Or check out one of our more in-depth guides:

Ok, let’s a take a look at the beautiful Munich area and everything you can do and see here!

Near the Bavarian Alps, Munich (München) is a must-see for many visitors to Germany. Home of Oktoberfest, ornate Baroque churches, and legendary beer gardens, you’ll never run out of things to do in and around Munich.

I’ve visited Munich several times and even spent a summer near there during one of my shorter stints in Germany. This part of Germany is what most people in the US imagine when they think of Germany and nearly everyone wants to visit at least once.

What to Do and See in Munich

Whether you’re into food, history, architecture, nature, art, or spontaneous adventures, you’ll find plenty to see, see, and experience in and around Munich! Here are a few ideas to get you started!

READ our guide on what to do in Munich.

Marianplatz
Beer Gardens
English Garden
Nymphenburg Palace
St. Peter’s Church

BMW Museum
Viktualienmarkt
Rathaus (town hall)
Glockenspiel
Alte Pinakothek

Glyptothek Museum
Tollwood Festival
Oktoberfest
Munich Residenz
Neue Pinakothek

Munich Accommodations Guide

Most recently I’ve stayed in an apartment in a quiet neighborhood near the old town and at the Hotel Am Viktualienmarkt close to Marianplatz. If you’re only in Munich for a couple days, I recommend a hotel near the Altstadt because you’ll be close to everything!

READ our guide on the best places to stay in Munich.

On a summer trip when I was in Munich for only a couple days I opted for the convenience of the Hotel am Viktualienmarktmarkt. It was an easy walk to/from the train station, had comfortable (and very clean) rooms, and a delicious breakfast buffet.

I chose this hotel because the location was fantastic! The hotel was just a short walk to Marianplatz but was located on a quiet street. I really enjoyed my stay there and would definitely stay there again.

TIP: Book your room in advance! They tend to fill quickly during peak travel times so I recommend seeing what’s open for your travel dates!

Munich Tours & Tickets

Munich has so many tours and special tickets to make your visit extra special, not to mention extra easy by booking in advance.

READ our 1 Day in Munich Guide here!

3-Hour Guided Bike Tour

Evening of Bavarian Beer and Food Culture

Historical Third Reich Tour

Viktualienmarkt Gourmet Food Tour

FC Bayern München Football and Allianz Arena Tour

Hop-On Hop-Off City Bus Tour

Munich Day Trips

One of the best things about making Munich your home base while visiting Bavaria is that you have countless day trip options!

Neuschwanstein

Dachau Memorial

Zugspitze

Salzburg, Austria

Romantic Road

Berchtesgaden &
Eagle’s Nest

More Munich Guides

Neuschwanstein Day Trip Planning

How to Visit Neuschwanstein in the Winter

What to Wear to Oktoberfest

Getting To Munich

Munich is in southern Germany in the German Bundesland (state) of Bayern (Bavaira). It’s located just a few hours from Switzerland, Austria, and the Czech Republic.

Munich is easy to reach via train, bus, car or plane. If arriving from the US, consider flying directly into Munich International Airport (the second busiest airport in Germany). I found flying right into Munich (instead of Frankfurt) easy and stress free. You can take public transportation into the city (it takes about an hour) or arrange an easy airport transfer here.

Getting Around Munich

The majority of tourist sites are located in downtown Munich. If you stay in the city center, you should be able to walk to most sites. For the sites that are further away (e.g., Nymphenburg Palace, Dachau, BMW Museum) you can hop on a tram, bus, U-bahn or S-bahn.

Best Munich Travel Guides

These are our two favorite travel guides. We typically buy a Rick Steves guide whenever there’s one available. And I highly recommend the Culture Smart books – I always read one before visiting a new country because they have so much useful cultural information (I usually read it on the plane). You can get a hard copy or Kindle version.

Munich Basics

Population
1.46 million

Munich is capital of and the largest city in Bavaria, and 2nd largest in Germany.

Airport
Munich International Airport

Bundesland
Bavaria (Bayern)

Train Travel Times to Munich
Berlin > Munich = 4.5 hours
Frankfurt > Munich = 3 hrs 15 min
Hamburg > Munich = 5 hrs 45 min
Salzburg > Munich = 2 hours
Paris > Munich = 7-8 hours
Rome > Munich = 9.5 hours
Prague > Munich = 5 hours

Fun Facts
The name Munich comes from the Old/Middle High German word Munichen, which means “by the monks.”

You can sunbathe nude in (parts of) the English Garden.

ULTIMATE GERMANY TRAVEL RESOURCES
We’ve gathered some of our essential travel guides, websites, and other information to help you plan the best vacation! We use these resources ourselves and share them to save you money, time, and stress so you can focus on enjoying and making the most out of your time in Germany. GERMANY TRAVEL BUNDLE: Our Ultimate Germany Travel Bundle gives you the best tools, up-to-date tips, and expert insights to easily and efficiently tackle the travel planning process. You’ll get our custom Trip Planning Map, which shows you the best sights, hotels, castles, and more – because seeing where things are in relation to each other makes trip planning SO much easier! You also get our Trip Planning Spreadsheet, City Cheatsheets, How-to Videos, Germany Trip Planning Guide, and Trip Planning Spreadsheet! BOOKING FLIGHTS: To find the the best flights deals, we recommend checking Kayak, Skyscanner, Expedia, Travelocity. These websites are also great for getting rental cars. ACCOMMODATIONS: We recommend using Booking.com since they have widest range of accommodations available from hostels, boutique hotels, luxury chains, aparthotels, at the best prices. For vacation homes, we suggest checking VRBO. We also have accommodation guides on different destinations (Hamburg, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart, and more to come!) in our website. TRAINS & BUSES: For point-to-point or regional train tickets (great for day trips or groups) within Germany, or tickets originating in Germany to other European destinations, we recommend buying them on the Deutsche Bahn (German Rail System) website. If you want to buy a rail pass for Germany (or elsewhere in Europe), buy them on Rail Europe. For buses, FlixBus offers tickets for routes within Germany and to other European countries. FlixBus is often cheaper than trains but can take longer. TRAVEL CREDIT CARD: One of the best ways to make travel to Germany more affordable is by booking free flights. Using the points accrued with our Chase Ink credit card (and a few others), we haven’t had to pay for flights to Europe in the past 10 years! TICKETS AND TOURS: We always recommend exploring a new city for the first time with a Hop On Hop Off Bus tour (ride it all the way around for the entire 1.5-2 hour tour). Here is our guide on the best Hop On Hop Off Bus tours for different German cities. For guided walking tours, day trips, private tours, and skip-the-line tickets, Get Your Guide is our go to! WHAT TO PACK: Not sure what to bring to Germany? Check out our 2-week minimalist packing guide for tips on traveling light, and our Germany packing list for our must-pack items. Bonus: check out our guides on finding the best travel purse and best travel scarf with a hidden security pocket. TRAVEL CONSULT: If you feel like you need more help and guidance beyond these resources, book a travel consult with us! We offer personal live sessions where we’ll help you with things like planning your itinerary, showing you how to book train or skip-the-line tickets, and answer any other questions you have about traveling to Germany.

ULTIMATE GERMANY TRAVEL RESOURCES

We’ve gathered some of our essential travel guides, websites, and other information to help you plan the best vacation! We use these resources ourselves and share them to save you money, time, and stress so you can focus on enjoying and making the most out of your time in Germany.

GERMANY TRAVEL BUNDLE: Our Ultimate Germany Travel Bundle gives you the best tools, up-to-date tips, and expert insights to easily and efficiently tackle the travel planning process. You’ll get our custom Trip Planning Map, which shows you the best sights, hotels, castles, and more – because seeing where things are in relation to each other makes trip planning SO much easier! You also get our Trip Planning Spreadsheet, City Cheatsheets, How-to Videos, Germany Trip Planning Guide, and Trip Planning Spreadsheet!

BOOKING FLIGHTS: To find the the best flights deals, we recommend checking Kayak, Skyscanner, Expedia, Travelocity. These websites are also great for getting rental cars.

ACCOMMODATIONS: We recommend using Booking.com since they have widest range of accommodations available from hostels, boutique hotels, luxury chains, aparthotels, at the best prices. For vacation homes, we suggest checking VRBO. We also have accommodation guides on different destinations (Hamburg, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart, and more to come!) in our website.

TRAINS & BUSES: For point-to-point or regional train tickets (great for day trips or groups) within Germany, or tickets originating in Germany to other European destinations, we recommend buying them on the Deutsche Bahn (German Rail System) website. If you want to buy a rail pass for Germany (or elsewhere in Europe), buy them on Rail Europe. For buses, FlixBus offers tickets for routes within Germany and to other European countries. FlixBus is often cheaper than trains but can take longer.

TRAVEL CREDIT CARD: One of the best ways to make travel to Germany more affordable is by booking free flights. Using the points accrued with our Chase Ink credit card (and a few others), we haven’t had to pay for flights to Europe in the past 10 years!

TICKETS AND TOURS: We always recommend exploring a new city for the first time with a Hop On Hop Off Bus tour (ride it all the way around for the entire 1.5-2 hour tour). Here is our guide on the best Hop On Hop Off Bus tours for different German cities. For guided walking tours, day trips, private tours, and skip-the-line tickets, Get Your Guide is our go to!

WHAT TO PACK: Not sure what to bring to Germany? Check out our 2-week minimalist packing guide for tips on traveling light, and our Germany packing list for our must-pack items. Bonus: check out our guides on finding the best travel purse and best travel scarf with a hidden security pocket.

TRAVEL CONSULT: If you feel like you need more help and guidance beyond these resources, book a travel consult with us! We offer personal live sessions where we’ll help you with things like planning your itinerary, showing you how to book train or skip-the-line tickets, and answer any other questions you have about traveling to Germany.