Munich snapshot

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Munich - or Munchen - is German's second city, located north of the Bavarian Alps on the River Isar. It was founded in 1158 and was long the capital of the kingdom of Bavaria until the end of World War I.

It got its name 'Home of the Monks' from a monastery founded in the 8th century. It was monks that began the brewing tradition for which the city is famous.

The breweries have now merged into four major players but beer quality is still based on an edict of purity of ingredients, drawn up in 1516.

The city is noted for its grand gothic, renaissance, baroque and neo-classical buildings and its world class museums. It is also notorious as the cradle for Nazism and the city suffered badly in the Allied bombing raids of World War II.

Oktoberfest attracts thousands

Munich's post-war economic success has supported a comprehensive rebuilding programme that has helped make the the city a popular tourist destination. The Oktoberfest beer festival attracts thousands annually to its beer halls.

Many of the city's main tourist draws are in, or close to, the city centre. Key sights are around Marienplatz, where merchants once plied their trade and which houses the famous Glokenspiel with its 43 bells and mechanical marionettes.

Nearby are the Old Town Hall and the 15th century cathedral Frauenkirche. The Munich Residence is a 14th century castle, much expanded into a complex of palaces and courtyards full of antiques, paintings and sculptures.

Old Master collections

The three Pinakotheks are home to the world's most important collection of old masters, a superb collection of modern international artists and a showcase for German 19th century painting. Nuremburg Palace is located on the outskirts of the city and the English Garden is the largest urban park in Germany.

Munich's comprehensive transport network consists of 20 tram lines, more than 80 bus lines, eight metro lines and eight railway train lines. There are daily rail services to Dortmund via Düsseldorf, Cologne and Mannheim; to Hamburg via Hanover and Kassel, as well as to Berlin via Frankfurt and Stuttgart or Nuremberg.

The A9 road runs north to Berlin via Würzburg and Nuremberg; the A96 from Lindau is to the west, connecting with the A1 to Zurich but traffic is heavy in the city centre and parking a problem.

Flughafen München Franz Joseph Strauss airport is located 28km north east of the city centre and is Germany’s most important international gateway, after Frankfurt. Approximately 200 destinations are served by scheduled and charter flights. Flight time from London is 2hrs.

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