About

The Bavarian capital city: Munich (München or written also as: Muenchen in German) is Germany’s 3rd biggest urban city with almost 1.5 million inhabitants. Located in southern Germany it rates is consistently amongst the best cities to live in the Europe. It has an enviable climate, thanks to its strategic position in southern Germany with the Alps on one side which skiing easily accessible, whilst at the same time making other central European countries also easily reachable, for example the lakes of Switzerland and the Italian coast are within reach by car.

The city of Munich hosted the Olympic games back in the summer of 1972.

Things to see and do

As well as being an economic and commercial center, the city of Munich is rich in museums and culture. The German Museum for example, is one of the biggest science museums in the world. There is a great deal of movement on the art scene; with new temporary exhibitions popping up at different times during the year, as well as the permanent art galleries many of which can be found in and around the Kunstareal district, including the old, new and modern Pinakotheks (old, new modern painting gallery) featuring works by amongst others: Rubens, Dürer and Raphael.

On a more somber note, the infamous Nazi concentration camp of Dachau is a short distance outside the city, approximately 15mins by taxi, which marks a poignant stop on any visit to the city.

Munich makes a perfect destination for a short weekend break, both in the summer as well as the winter. In addition to year-round cultural activity, during the summer months, the city spills out outdoors and offers a variety of outdoor activities organized by the city hall. Amongst other things, it is even possible to go river surfing! In winter the slopes of the Alps are within easy reach by car or public transport.

The district of Schwabing is a thriving neighborhood, which acts as a hangout for students. The city has a lively nightlife scene, thanks in part to its student population. When tourists think about Munich, the first thing that springs to their minds is no doubt the famed Munich Oktoberfest.

The Hofbrauhaus is the beer hall most commonly associated with the city and its annual Oktoberfest is located in the center of Munich. Ironically the Munich Oktoberfest is celebrated during the 2 weeks of September, not October when millions of people pour into the city to take part in the biggest and most famous beer-drinking gathering in the world.
The gay scene in Munich is in the Glockenbachviertel and is in the area around the Staatstheatre.

Getting there and away

Munich International airport (Code: MUC – Franz Josef Strauss – named after the famous composer whose native city this is) is one of the busiest airports in Germany and is a thriving hub for indirect flights all over the world, but especially linking Germany to many destinations in Eastern Europe.

The airport is a mere thirty kilometers from the city center and as you’d expect well connected with public transport. There is an overland train as well as a tramline (Which can be recognized by the “S” before the number – the “s” stands for Strassenbahn or Street train literally translated. Journey time is approximately forty minutes and the main lines to the city center are tramlines S1 and S8.