Munich in 4 Days: Marienplatz, Palaces & Bavarian Opera

“thumb | 300px | Hofbräuhaus is very touristy * Oktoberfest is the huge event held over 16-17 days in Theresienwiese in Ludwigsvorstadt. You need to feel comfortable in dense crowds. * Beer halls serve the product of a particular brewery and are often within their historic brewing and cellar premises, cleared when production moved elsewhere. Concentrated in Altstadt, there's typically a ground-floor "brown table" area, an upstairs swankier "white table" restaurant, and suites for events and functions. Outside if space permits is a beer garden. The beer hall in which Hitler launched the infamous Munich putsch of 1923 has been demolished. * Beer gardens may be summer-only but several are year-round, albeit weather-dependent. They may be self- or table-service, and all serve traditional meals or snacks such Riesenbrezn (big pretzels) and Steckerlfisch (cured fish). You're allowed to bring your own food but not drink. Drinks are typically litre mugs (Maß) of beer or of Radler, a shandy of beer and lemonade. Beer gardens are family-friendly (with play areas within parental sight) and diverse, welcoming a motley crowd including well-behaved dogs. There are over two dozen around the city, good examples being Hofbräuhaus in Altstadt (very touristy), Viktualienmarkt in Altstadt (with beer from all the major breweries), Chinese Tower in English Garden, Paulaner and Bavariapark in Ludwigsvorstadt, and Löwenbräukeller and Augustiner in Maxvorstadt. Paulaner am Nockherberg in Haidhausen hosts a strong beer festival in March. * Bars number over a thousand, so you can but make a start. Some oddities worth seeking out are Goldene Bar in Lehel, Minna Thiel (with a DJ in an old railbus) and Bar Sehnsucht in Maxvorstadt, Cronlein (in a former rest room) and CCC Container Collective in Haidhausen, and Alte Utting (a lake steamer perched on railway tracks) in Ludwigsvorstadt. There are also numerous rooftop bars in Munich. thumb | 300px |...”

Wikivoyage: Munich · Wikivoyage

“Boasting one of the lowest crime rates of any major European city, Munich is a very safe city, and violent crime is rare. Walking around, day or night, is not an issue, and you will most likely not encounter any crime at all, though you should still take the usual precautions against pickpocketing (especially in the central districts of Altstadt-Lehel and the Ludwigsvorstadt area immediately south of the central station), such as not leaving your camera unattended or venturing alone through parks at night. While some of Munich's boroughs like Neuperlach and Hasenbergl have a reputation for seediness among locals, crime levels are actually average. Munich is an open-minded, international city with a large number of immigrants and expatriates living in the city (almost 40% of residents have a foreign origin, mostly from Turkey, the Balkans, and Poland), so you are very unlikely to encounter any problems because you are a foreigner. Gay and lesbian people should not experience any issues either: Munich has a large gay and lesbian community, and the Rosa Liste, a gay rights party, was part of the city government from 1996 to 2014. A safety hazard in Munich is the local beer-drinking culture in combination with the high accessibility of alcohol. Think twice before trying to keep up with the locals or looking for your maximum level of alcohol intoxication; being drunk will sharply raise your chances of injuring yourself. You should also keep your distance if you see drunk people fighting, such as in the bars around the central station. Of course, heavy drinking at the time of Oktoberfest will inevitably make people lose control and result in some violent behaviour. Another issue for people not used to driving or walking on ice or snow is wintry road and pavement conditions. If you've been to other major cities outside Bavaria before the encounters with the Munich police might be a bit of a culture shock, who mostly follow the "law and order" ideas of the regional...”

Wikivoyage: Munich · Wikivoyage

“thumb | 300px | Traditional Bavarian food * Bavarian cuisine is the main offering, majoring on sausages and other pork. Munich specialities are Weißwurst (a breakfast sausage served until noon and not a second later, washed down with Weissbier), Schweinsbraten (roasted pork) or Schweinshaxe (roasted pig's knuckle). Other trad dishes such as schnitzel are popular but not specifically Bavarian. Beer gardens and beer halls serve heaps of all these. * Leberkässemmeln is a white roll filled with a thick warm slice of "Leberkäse" — which, despite its name, contains neither liver nor cheese. It's a mix of veal, pork, spices and a hint of lemon zest baked in an open pan and served with a sweet and grainy mustard. Buy these filling, inexpensive snacks at butchers rather than bakers. * alt=Plate with pretzel, sausage, and brown mustard|thumb|Brezel (pretzel) with weisswurst (white sausage) and sweet mustard is a traditional breakfast in Munich.Bavarian / Austrian cakes and tortes can be bought by the slice at countless bakeries and cafés. There's also a great array of bread: one local snack is pretzels, "Brezn". * International cuisines are widely available, especially Italian, with a strong showing also of Chinese, Turkish, Arab and Japanese. * Vegetarian, vegan and GF food is found in many restaurants, and there are specialist vegetarian cafes. * Bakeries sell bread, pastries, sandwiches, salads and sometimes broader offerings such as soup. One Munich-only bakery chain is Rischart. * See "Buy" above for fresh and seasonal food markets.”

Wikivoyage: Munich · Wikivoyage

“Camping: there are four regular sites around the city fringes. The Hauptbahnhof area has the densest concentration of accommodation, with hostels, budget hotels (not all of them vice-dens) and upscale hotels like Le Meridien and Sofitel. There is major construction here until 2027, so expect some noise, mud and street disruption. The other main areas for budget to mid-range are Schwabing and the university quarter, and around Ostbahnhof. They hike their prices in summer, during trade fairs at Messe, and of course during Oktoberfest. Prices drop as you move further out along the S- and U-Bahn routes, but all are within the same inner city fare zone. Upscale accommodation is close to Altstadt but there's little within the medieval centre, which is cunningly designed to keep out taxis and hire cars. The best is along its northeast edge in Lehel. Oktoberfest (last two weeks in September) jam-packs not only Munich in all price ranges, but everywhere within an hour or two travel time, if only you could find room on the overcrowded trains. There are several pop-up campsites around the city edges, look especially in east and southwest districts. Visitors not aiming for the beerfest should come another time.”

Wikivoyage: Munich · Wikivoyage

“The early 19th-century kings of Bavaria spent fortunes that they didn't possess to transform Munich into a noble city of arts, science and fine architecture. They would be mighty vexed to learn that so many tourists know only of their one-day wedding festivity of 1810, Oktoberfest. Still they would be gratified at how their legacy stands, in spite of so much that's happened since, and best of all to see that in many respects their city still outshines Berlin. thumb | 300px | Inside the Nationaltheater The Nationaltheater, where several of Richard Wagner's operas had their premières under the patronage of King Ludwig II, is the home of the Bavarian State Opera and the Bavarian State Orchestra. Next door the modern Residenz Theatre was erected in the building that had housed the Cuvilliés Theatre before World War II. Many operas were staged there, including the premiere of Mozart's "Idomeneo" in 1781. The Gärtnerplatz Theatre is a ballet and musical state theatre, while another opera house, Prinzregententheater has become the home of the Bavarian Theatre Academy. The modern Gasteig Center is the home of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, though its closed until 2027 for re-building. Many prominent artists and writers worked in Munich. Nobel laureate Thomas Mann lived here and wrote ironically in his novella Gladius Dei that up to 1914 "Munich shone". It remained a centre of cultural life during the Weimar period with figures such as Bertolt Brecht and Lion Feuchtwanger. It continues to pour out books, plays and TV programmes.”

Wikivoyage: Munich · Wikivoyage