Mr ESLT first visited Munich back in 2014 with his friends for his 40th birthday. He didn’t see much more than the inside of the Hoffbrauhaus and the Allianz Arena (tut). Therefore, when it came to deciding where to take him for his birthday last year, Munich seemed like the perfect place. This time in the hope that he would see what great things the city has to offer. We, therefore, booked a 4-night city break to Munich in mid-September. Vicky’s cousin, Hannah joined us on the trip to celebrate her birthday too – did someone say double celebration? Having visited Germany a lot in recent years, we had high hopes for the capital of Bavaria. We were all eager to visit and see what the city had in store for us.
Here are the top things we found to see and do on our recent (double) birthday break in Munich.
Hop On Hop Off the Bus
As massive fans of hop on hop off bus tours, booking tour tickets in Munich was a must. We opted for the City Sightseeing Munich tour which cost $15,90 online ($18,00 on the day) for a day ticket. We’d say a one day ticket is ample unless you plan to jump off at every stop that is. The ticket covers the three routes City Sightseeing offer including the city tour, Nymphenburg-Olympia Tour and Schwabing Tour. Each tour takes 1 hour (without hop offs) with regular departure times throughout the day. The centre/Old Town of Munich is all very walkable as for a major city, it’s not actually that big.
However, there is a lot to see and do on the outskirts and the surrounding area. Therefore the hop on hop off bus allows you to cover a lot of ground and see a lot of sites. Especially if your time in the city is limited. As with most, if not all hop on hop off buses you are provided with earphones. These allow you to listen to the running commentary (available in a range of languages) and learn about the city in depth.
Take A Walking Tour
As mentioned above, the city centre/Alstat (Old Town) of Munich is very compact making walking around it very easy. We opted for the Sandeman’s Free Walking Tour of Munich. We have used this company in a number of cities around the world and have never been disappointed. The walking tour we took in Munich was no different. The tour in English (other languages are available) runs every day from 10.45am and 2.00pm. Each tour lasts 2.5 hours. It’s a great way of seeing and learning about the key sites in central Munich. Even though it is a ‘free’ tour, it’s important to prebook a place. This is to ensure the group is a manageable size.
We heard about the darkest days of the Third Reich, including Kristallnacht and the Beer Hall Putsch. Learnt the stories of the Bavarian royal family at the Royal Residence. Together with discovering the origins of Oktoberfest amongst many other things. Our tour guide was very knowledgable and answered all questions with ease. Even though its called a ‘free’ tour the idea is you tip what you think the tour is worth. The guides work for tips only.
Drink (and Learn About) Beer
Let’s start with the most important thing – beer! Munich is synonymous with beer, especially 1-litre steins. As we visited a week or so before the annual Oktoberfest festival, the specially brewed Oktoberfest beer, which is a more than respectable 6%, was on sale at most of the bars and restaurants in the city. We, therefore, had to indulge in an al fresco stein or two (ok it was a lot more) during our time in Munich. Especially as the weather was amazing. We also took an organised behind-the-scenes brewery tour which gave us a great insight into how beer is brewed in Germany. Plus we got to sample it – which is always a bonus.
There are a number of beer gardens around Munich which are extremely popular. Locals pack a picnic including the obligatory table cloth and providing they buy at least one drink, they can stay there as long as they like. They are a great place to spend a weekend afternoon or a couple of hours during the early evening after work. The same rules, of course, apply to tourists too.
Eat All The Food
Traditional German food is notoriously stodgy. But then again we guess it has to be to soak up all of the beer that is consumed. There are so many different dishes to try in Munich and as lovers of German food, we were up for the challenge of sampling them all. The most staple of staples in Germany is the pretzel. Their salty goodness goes hand in hand with an ice cold stein. Cheap, filling and readily available – pretzels for the win. Menus are often very meat heavy and usually include Schweinshaxe (pork knuckle), schnitzel (breaded veal or pork) and of course sausages – lots and lots of sausages including the anaemic looking weisswurst (white sausage).
All dishes are more often than not offered with either a side of sauerkraut or potato salad or both. A great vegetarian option and Vicky’s go-to dish is Käsespätzle which is basically the German version of mac and cheese. There are so many restaurants in and around Munich, NOT just the Hoffbrauhaus (which is just ok, it’s nothing spectacular), our favourite being Donisl, a traditional Bavarian tavern located in Marienplatz.
Spend Some Time In Marienplatz
Taking of Marienplatz (St Mary’s Square), no visit to Munich is complete unless you swing by and spend some time in the Marienplatz. It is the main square in the city, located in the heart of the Old Town and full of beautiful buildings. The square dates back to the 12th century, Marienplatz and was founded by Henry the Lion, Duke of Bavaria. Originally home to traditional markets, events and celebrations. It is now a popular meeting point for locals and tourists, in fact, we started our Sandemans Free Walking Tour of Munich from here, together with the oldest Christkindlmarkt (Christmas Market) in the city.
The main attraction of the Marienplatz is the Neues Rathaus (New Town Hall) which is home of the Mayor and the city council. The neo-gothic building is stunning, especially the Glockenspiel in the tower balcony. Every day the figurines which depict Munich’s history dance and twirl for 12 minutes at 11.00am, 12.00pm and 5.00pm (apart from between November and March). Get there early to get a good spot to watch it from.
Learn the History of The Frauenkirche
The Frauenkirche (Cathedral Church of Our Lady), sometimes referred to as the “Münchner Dom” is an iconic building on the Munich skyline. It can be seen from afar. It is, in fact, the tallest structure in the city and probably always will be as no buildings may be built in Munich over 99m high, the height of the cathedral’s domed twin towers. The Gothic style church was originally built in the 1400s with the Renaissance style towers not finished until 1525. Catholic Mass is held regularly and the cathedral is home to artwork by a number of respected artists which are worth checking out.
The Frauenkirche was a stop on our walking tour. Our guide informed us about the main reason why a lot of tourists visit it – the Devil’s footprint. Inside the church, there’s a black ‘footprint’ on the floor. If the legend is to be believed Jorg von Halsbach, the architect who designed and built the cathedral, ran out of money so made a deal with the devil. The devil funded the project on the understanding that there would be no windows allowing light into the building. Von Halsbach built pillars to hide a window. The devil found out about the deceit and stamped his foot leaving the footprint.
Munich Residenz Royal Visit
Another stop on our walking tour was the Munich Residenz which is located in the heart of the Old Town of Munich, just a ten-minute walk from Marienplatz. The complex of buildings contains ten courtyards and displays 130 rooms and has an extremely rich history. The first buildings on the site where built in 1385, it was then subsequently added too over the years. It was the royal palace of the Wittelsbach monarchs of Bavaria until the monarchy was abolished in Germany in 1918. It’s now a museum and has been since 1920.
As with a number of building in Munich and Germany in general, it was catastrophically damaged during World War II. The city did not have the money to restore it to its former intricate glory. Therefore if you look at it closely you’ll see that the columns and ornate details are actually only drawn on. The Residenz is the largest city palace in Germany with one of the halls (the Herkulessaal – Hercules Hall) now being the primary concert venue for the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. It’s a very popular attraction with more than 300,000 visitors per year.
Chill Out In The Englischer Garten
The Englischer Garten (English Garden) is a large public park in the centre of Munich which was first created in 1789. In fact, measuring 3.7 km2 it’s one of the largest public spaces in the world. It’s even bigger than Hyde Park in London and Central Park in New York. It’s also where the annual Oktoberfest festival is held. It is open all year round and is home to a number of attractions that are worth checking out. These include the Japanese tea house and garden which was built in 1972 and the Schönfeldwiese (“Beautiful field meadow”) where nude sunbathing is allowed (if that’s your thing). Together with a number of other interesting structures and sights.
The Englischer Garten is definitely worth a wander through, especially if the weather is nice. As you can imagine it becomes very busy in the summer months with locals and tourists alike. The Chinese Tower (Chinesischer Turm) beer garden is the place to head if you fancy a cold beverage as it’s the second largest in Munich with 7500 seats. Also because of it’s closeness to the university, it attracts a youngish crowd. With regular events, festivals and even a Christmas market the Englischer Garten is a great place to head regardless of the time of year.
Summary
We had a great time in Munich and we’re really glad we got the opportunity to visit (well revisit in Mr ESLT’s case). Even though one afternoon was written off because of one too many steins and one full day we headed out of the city to visit some beautiful castles, the rest of the time we did not stop exploring. Luckily Munich was not as big as we thought it was going to be. Therefore, we got to see the majority of the main attractions. Even though it a cosmopolitan city, it has a friendly and welcoming vibe and there is so much more to see an do then just Oktoberfest which is the main reason a lot of people visit Munich.
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