Expensive, the weather - depending on the time of the year of your trip
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Most people who hear anyone saying 'I've been to Munich' associate this city, the capital of the federal state of Bavaria in Germany, with the famous 'Oktoberfest', 'Lederhosen' and 'Bier'.
But Munich is much more. And some of the attractions of this City I want to tell you about, as I lived in Munich from 1972 until 1993.
Munich has lost of scenic museums, parks and much much more.
** How to get there **
You may travel to Munich however you like most, but by ship as the river Isar is not navigable.
-by plane: Munich airport is fast growing and it's relatively new, it was opened in 1992. So you'll find a comfortable and clean site, with all you expect at an international airport, even if it's very far outside the city of Munich. To get to the City you may use the 'S-Bahn' (City Railway), a bus service to Munich Main Station and by Taxi. S-Bahn and bus take about 45 minutes and are about 10 Euro per person, but there possible discounts for more people using the S-Bahn (Group Ticket). A taxi will be about 40 to 50 Euro, depending on where and when to go (traffic jams are a standard at Munich) for all people who fit in :-)).
-by railway: Munich Main Station is located right in the middle of the city. It's not a very representative and comfortable place to spend more time as necessary, but as it's in the middle of the city of Munich it's a good place to start exploring the attractions of Munich. There are some hotels right next to the station but you should have a good look and a talk to the doorman before checking in, as some are the type 'pre paid and room rentable hourly' (I think you got what kind of hotel these ones are like).
-by car: Munich isn't different to all the other cities on the continent, left hand driving should be the only problem. Police and speed limit in general: The German Police are not that strict as they are in other countries, but avoid cruising more than 20 Kilometres an hour more than actually allowed, because the penalties starting from 20+ km/h will hurt your travelling budget. Speed limits: Highway - no general speed limit, Country roads - 100 km/h, city 50 km/h. Be aware of red-traffic-light flashing. The actual rate for speed limit violation to + 10 km/h is Euro 20. Parking: always look for a legal place to keep your car, as it will be towed away if you don't. Parking in downtown is easy if you use one of the parking garages, but during the office hours it may become a little stressful to get there. So you really should prefer public transport in the city of Munich.
** Getting around in Munich **
The best way to get to all the places I will tell you of is public transport (p.t.). The Munich public transport is very comfortable and easy to use, if you get one of the day-tickets for single persons or groups (of a maximum of 5 persons, that have to be together during the time of using p.t.). There are also tickets for the whole weekend and 3 days available. These are easy to use, as the usage of the normal p.t. tickets is not easy to understand. Normal p.t. is running from around 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. . There is some night service but these are rather in downtown.
For more informations please use http://www.deutsches-museum.de. All pages are available in English, too. The 'Forum der Technik' has it's own home-page http://www.fdt.de but this site is in German, only.
-'Englischer Garten' The most famous park of Munich, you'll find the 'typical Munich residents' here, lying in the grass or wasting :-) time at one of the beergardens.
-Munich downtown: Starting at Marienplatz up to 'Karlsplatz/Stachus' there is a pedestrian area with lots of shops. At advent season a Christmas market can be found starting at Marienplatz, that is not as famous as the one at Nuremberg is, but you have the chance to walk through it, as there are many people, but not too many, as it's in Nuremberg for my feeling. At Karlsplatz you'll find a fountain where many tourists meet (as I have noticed as I've been there waiting sometimes for someone to meet). This pedestrian area also is THE place for 'shopping' in Munich! If you're fed up with shopping you may spend some time visiting the churches 'Frauenkirche' (That's the famous with the two towers) and St. Peter.
--- Maybe interestings ---
-Munich Zoo: Making the best out of it's limited room, Munich Zoo has enhanced through the years from a asylum for animals to an international standard zoo. But there's still much work waiting to be done. The renovations of the 70ies are used up again, and so sometimes you feel sorry for the animals living in there. If you'd like to get there by car and the weather is fine, you should arrive before 10 a.m. as the parking lots are too small.
-Bavaria Filmstudios: Located between The City of Munich and Grünwald in the southern Munich region the 'Bavaria Fimstudios' can be found. But I didn't enjoy the tour. The only highlight is the short part of the making of 'Das Boot' and for people who love the film version of 'Michael Ende's "Neverending Story"'. Me for my own, I don't like this film so the 50 per cent of the tour were boring to me. And it's too much for getting bored (10 Eur for an adult). Sorry that's my personal opinion of it. This 'filmtour' cannot be compared to anything I had seen in the USA before.
-Hofbräuhaus The most famous beer hall, open all year. I've never been there as it's known for it's US-American and Japanese tourists. :-)) It has opened 1644 and lives up to its reputation: beer, food, tourists, oom-pah music, drunken revelry and Lederhosen.
BTW: The link to the tourist office, but THIS is in English :-) is http://www.muenchen-tourist.de/englisch/index_e.htm
This link also is the perfect start for looking for a place for the night :-) -- For sleeping, of course. :-))) -- Use this link for looking for the accommodation you prefer. A average hotel room is about 100 EUR a night, but it may differ if an international important tradeshow actually is taking place or it's the time of the Octoberfest.** Nightlife in Munich ** It depends on your interests, as always, but for general information I have to tell you, discotheques in Munich all have a doorman, who will make you your way in or not. There's no classical dress code, but he decides if you fit to their today's guests or not. I didn't like the possibilities of nightlife in Munich very much as once a doorman told me 'Your girlfriend is okay, but you stay outside' (My outfit couldn't had been the problem as we've been in 'partner-look'). That's barefaced and typical for many of these doormen in Munich. Maybe they are less rude to foreigners, I don't know but I won't give a cent on it. Admission starts from 5 EUR up to no limit, but the standard will be about 10 to 20 EUR).
Getting home afterwards: As long as you spend your time in downtown Munich it's no problem to get a taxi or even the night service of the p.t. Most people in Munich do speak English so you also can ask for your right way home. Outside downtown you may call a taxi by phone. But you should still know where you are right now :-))))) If you're too drunken, the taxi driver may not accept you. Better don't start fighting, as the police will be faster to get you for a night at the nearest policestation to become sober again.
****
As I don't want to copy the informations you can find yourself when surfing the tourist office link I left above I will stop here. I wanted to make you a little jealous about Munich at gerneral, and so I hope my opinion was helpful enough for you to see Munich is not only the City of Oktoberfest or Lederhosen. And for the one's who love the Bavarian beer and the culture of the Beergardens: http://www.biergarten.com :-))) But again, it's available in German only. :-(
The following criteria are a bit tricky to fill for me now... don't take them to serious.
very helpful
very helpful
This product has not yet been reviewed. 
