Munich (German: München) http://www.muenchen.de/home/60093/Homepage.html is the capital city of Bavaria, the largest federal state of Germany (by area - not by population). Within the city limits, Munich has a population of more than 1.3 million, making it the third most populous city in Germany. The urban area, which sprawls on the foothills of the Alps, has a population of about 2.7 million.

Munich is noted for its architecture and culture, and the annual Oktoberfest beer celebration is world famous. Munich's cultural scene is second to none in Germany, with the museums even considered by some to outrank Berlin in quality. Many travelers to Munich are absolutely stunned by the quality of the architecture. Although it was heavily damaged by allied bombing during World War II, many of its historic buildings have been rebuilt and the city center appears mostly as it did in the late 1800s.

Get in

By plane

Munich International Airport http://www.munich-airport.de/EN/ (IATA: MUC; ICAO: EDDM) is the second biggest German airport and has two terminals. Terminal 2 is used by Lufthansa http://www.lufthansa.com and its partner airlines from Star Alliance http://www.staralliance.com. All other airlines use the older Terminal 1. The Munich airport is located outside of Munich in a northeastern suburb. Due to the increased number of flights, the airport has expanded and now offers connections to most domestic airports in Germany, as well as many international airports elsewhere. Intercontinental destinations include Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Chicago, Delhi, Mumbai, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Seoul, Dubai, Doha, Bangkok and many others. If you are unable to fly to Munich directly, you can arrange a transfer via Frankfurt. Flight time from Frankfurt to Munich is about 35 minutes.

Munich Airport has been named the winner of the "Best Airport in Europe" award for the third year in a row in an international survey of close to eight million passengers worldwide. Passengers also ranked Munich #4 in the worldwide rankings behind Asian hubs.

The airport connects to central Munich by S-Bahn (commuter train) on the S1 and S8 line. The journey (single) costs €9.20 (or €10.40 for a day pass) or €18.80 for a partner ticket which is valid for upto five people, a train runs every 5 to 20 minutes and it takes about 40 minutes to get to the central station. For more information see the get around section. Lufthansa also offers an hourly bus to/from the main train station that is comparably priced (travel time can vary as subject to traffic).

By train

Most major European cities connect to Munich by rail. Munich's Hauptbahnhof http://www.hauptbahnhof-muenchen.de/(main station) is conveniently located in the center of Munich. The Deutsche Bahn http://www.bahn.de uses Munich as one of its main German hubs and has good connections to neighboring countries (Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Slovenia and Italy) and to all southern German cities.

The main station is west of Marienplatz (two S-Bahn stations) or a short walk away from the city center. The main station also has a traveler-friendly infrastructure including several restaurants, a tourist's bureau and a Deutsche Bahn ticket and travel agency office.

By car

Highways from many directions lead to Munich, however they often get congested at peak times and on weekends, especially during the ski season. For day trips to Munich, it's probably best to leave your car in a Park&Ride car park (see the Get around section).

Get around

The best way to travel around Munich is the Tram (streetcar), bus, S-Bahn (metro railway) and U-Bahn (subway) system. You can get individual, group, day and week tickets. The metro (U-Bahn) stations are signed with a white capital "U" on a blue background. S-Bahn stations are signed with a white "S" on green background. All S-Bahn lines come together in a tunnel in central Munich.

The Munich MVV website http://mvv-muenchen.de/en/index.html has maps of the U-Bahn and the S-Bahn network that shows the zones and rings, and maps of the Park&Ride car parks attached to U-bahn stations (under the Pläne menu), as well as timetables. The official urban rail network map http://mvv-muenchen.de/en/home/fahrgastinformation/mvv-netz/netzplaene/schnellbahnnetz/index.htmlis indispensable.

Single trips in a single zone such as the city center cost €2.30, but the four-zone journey from the airport is a whopping €9.20. Thus, if you arrive at the airport and intend to explore Munich by the public system, the best option is to buy a €10 Gesamtnetz whole-network day ticket. If you are not travelling alone, then purchase the group version ("Partner") of the ticket, allowing up to 5 adults to travel. This ticket will let you travel to and from the airport and all the S-Bahn and U-Bahn stops, as well as on the buses.

A day ticket is worth buying if you plan to take more than two trips on the same day. It's available in single person and group ("Partner") versions, the latter for up to five adults traveling together, and is valid until 6AM the next morning. The day card is available for four areas:

If you are staying longer than 3 days in Munich, a good option is to buy a weekly ticket. The week ticket is valid from Monday to Monday. The price of the week ticket depends on the number of rings you want to travel during the week (starting from the center of the city). Almost all U-Bahn stations are within the rings 1-4.

For several journeys on different days the blue strip card (Streifenkarte), with 10 strips, is a better value than buying lots of individual tickets. The cost is €11.50, and may be purchased at dispensing machines at every station. You need to use two strips for each colored zone on the map. If you are making several trips a day, the day ticket is a better option.

If you plan to explore Munich and see all the sights and tourist attractions, buy the Munich CityTourCardhttp://www.citytourcard.com/english/munich-citytourcard/. It is a ticket valid for all public transport services in Munich and a discount card for many tourist attractions like museums, sightseeing, shopping or gastronomy. It is available in six versions (single and group tickets) and with validity for one or three days.

For individuals:

• valid for 1 day in the inner area of Munich for € 9.80
• valid for 3 days in the inner area of Munich for € 18.80
• valid for 3 days in the entire area of Munich for € 29.50

For groups up to five people:

• valid for 1 day in the inner area of Munich for € 16.00
• valid for 3 days in the inner area of Munich for € 29.90
• valid for 3 days in the entire area of Munich for € 48.00

A leaflet with information about the discount offers of the partners and a map of the city center and a plan of the metro-, suburban railway- and tram-network are included. It is available at the ticket vending machines in all suburban railway, metro, tram and bus stations. Furthermore you can buy the Munich CityTourCard at the MVG customer centrer as well as in selected hotels and online. https://www.ctc-secure.de/shop/de/muenchencitytourcard

All tickets, except for the weekly tickets must be stamped to be valid; without a stamp the ticket is invalid and you are can be fined €40 if you don't have a valid ticket. Stamping machines (Entwerter) are found at the entrance to the S-Bahn or U-Bahn platforms, and on the buses and trams. In most other German cities, passengers can validate tickets on the train; however, this is not the case in Munich, so be sure you validate your tickets before boarding any U-Bahn or S-Bahn train.

Public transportation operates with only limited service from 2AM to 5AM. The U-Bahn (subway) doesn't operate at all, and the tram and some buses operate only on the hour from Monday to Friday, and on the half hour on the weekend. On Friday, Saturday and nights before public holidays, there is a single S-Bahn on each line between 2:30AM and 3AM. So if you're staying out late, try to get the schedule of the so called Nachttram (night tram) in advance or don't leave the place before 5AM (or you can take a taxi of course).

If you plan on exploring Munich and Bavaria via regional trains, consider getting a Bayern Ticket http://www.bayern-takt.de/public_main_modul.php?ses=&page_id=299&document_id=380&unit=482731bfed755, good on all regional trains within Bavaria, all Munich MVV transportation, and trains to Salzburg for up to five people for only €28 a day. The Bayern Ticket is good on any weekday after 9AM and on any weekend day (all day).

If you plan to travel on a weekend, exploring Munich and taking a regional Deutsche Bahn train to another city anywhere in Germany in the same day, consider getting a Deutsche Bahn Schoenes Wochenende ticket. This ticket covers all DB regional train travel and all Munich S-Bahn travel for up to five people for a single weekend day for €37.

Schönes-Wochenende-Tickets and Bayern-Tickets are only valid on regional train services (red) but not on IntercityExpress and Inter/Eurocity trains (white). Additionally, both tickets are valid on trains run by the BOB (Bayerische Oberlandbahn) and ALEX (Arriva-Länderbahn-Express).

By bike

With over 200km of bike trails, one of the very best ways to explore the city is on a bicycle. Guided tours are available, or for the independent-minded, rentals and maps are available at the main train station (Hauptbahnhof) and other areas of the city.

Bikes can also be rented by the Call-A-Bike system, which is run by Deutsche Bahn (national rail service). You need to call a number listed on the bikes from your mobile phone and register with the callabike.de website in order to use them. The service is convenient, as you just spot an available bike throughout the city and just leave it at your destination. However, this is not an economical alternative if you are planning many trips in a single day. In that case, it is better to get a day or multiday rental from one of the rental services located throughout central Munich.

• Mike's Bike Tour http://www.mikesbiketours.com, located near the Hofbräuhaus, offers historical tours of the city.
• Discover Munich http://www.discovermunich.net offers free bike tours around Munich's old town and the Engish Garden.
• Free Bike Tour with Lenny- meet at Marienplatz everyday in the summer at 11 and 4 next to fountain.

Munich is a bike-friendly city that assigns many paths (especially along river Isar and in the parks, even in the city center) for joint usage by pedestrians and bikers alike. This is a notorious source of trouble since strollers tend to ignore the bike traffic to the detriment of everybody involved.

Virtual Tour

You can take a virtual tour to view the points of interest on City Panoramas Munich http://www.panorama-cities.net/munich/munich_germany.html.

Get out

The trains S8 and S1 both go to the airport from Marienplatz S-Bahn station, but be careful because the S1 line splits into two separate trains at "Neufahrn" just before the airport so be sure that you are riding in the section that is actually going to the airport, which is always the last part of the train. If you find yourself in the wrong car, just wait until Neufahrn and change into the last part of the train.

The Bayern Ticket is an amazingly cheap way to do day trips from Munich. With it you can travel anywhere in Bavaria on the regional trains all day (only from 9AM weekdays). It costs €28 for a group of up to 5 people, and €20 for a single http://www.bahn.de/p/view/international/englisch/travelservice/laender_tickets.shtml. Make sure you buy it from the machines as there is a €2 surcharge if you buy it from the ticket office. There is also the Schönes Wochenende Ticket which is valid everywhere in Germany and even a fair way into the Czech Republic, but it is only valid on weekends. It costs €37 for a group of up to 5 and is also restricted to the regional trains.

• Dachau and Starnberg make for great day trips. Starnberg offers a great lake, where the King Ludwig II and his psychiatrist mysteriously drowned.

• Andechs Monastery— If you miss the Oktoberfest, it is worth travelling to the holy mountain of Andechs. It's a monastery up a hill from the Ammersee. Take the S8 from Munich to Herrsching and then either hike up the hill or take the bus. When you are there have a look at the old monastery church and the gardens before focusing on the excellent beer and Schweinshaxen in the beer garden or in the large beer hall. Makes a great day trip which can also be combined with some swimming the Ammersee. The hiking trail is unlit, and a good 30-45 minutes. After dark, a flashlight is mandatory.

• Garmisch-Partenkirchen at the foot of Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze. About 1.5 hours by regional train (from the Munich Hautpbahnhof) or by car via Autobahn. The cog railway train to the top of the Zugspitze leaves regularly from the Garmisch-Partenkirchen train station.

• Salzburg, Austria, is an easy day trip from Munich. Trains run from the main Munich station just about every hour, and take about 1.5 hours. The Bayern Ticket is valid all the way to Salzburg.

• Nuremberg — It was here that the some of the leaders of the Nazi regime faced justice. Nuremberg offers a lot of history for visitors. (Comment by a "local": when asking for it, preferably use the German name Nürnberg, the English name Nuremberg is usually unknown).

• Füssen is nestled in the Alps of southern Bavaria. A train from Munich's main station will take about two hours with one transfer at Buchloe (purchase the Bayern-Ticket option mentioned above which is valid for the train and bus journey to the castle). The town is famous for King Ludwig II's "fairy-tale castle" Neuschwanstein. It also houses the castle where Ludwig II grew up (Hohenschwangau). If you go there, buy a combined ticket for both castles. Neuschwanstein is a must-see, but Hohenschwangau is historically more interesting, and the tour is so much better. Not only because there's less tourists and ergo more time, but also the guides are more knowledgeable and speak better English. There's a third castle, Linderhof, but it's further away and difficult to reach without a car (about 1h drive, passing through Austria). If you have a rental car, it's definitely worth the trip, and the trip itself is spectacularly beautiful, landscape-wise.

• Oberammergau is a small town of unusual houses with brothers Grimm fairy-tale paintings on the walls.

• Bad Reichenhall— A lovely spa town near Munich.

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