Munich (München) is the state capital of Bavaria. The Bavarian Palace Administration says the Munich Residenz was the residence and seat of government of Bavaria's dukes, electors and kings from 1508 to 1918.
Country
Germany
Type
City
Understand the place
Not only where to go, but what to eat, what things cost, what visitors get wrong, how accessible Munich is, which scams to recognize and what is genuinely worth your time.
The complete guide
Start with the parts of Munich that matter most to your trip, then move into the practical details.
Experiences & attractions
Attractions, experiences and places actually worth your time.
Eat like you understand the place
Signature dishes, local drinks, markets and eating well.
Where to stay & explore
Where to stay, wander and choose the right area for your trip.
Beyond the destination
Nearby places worth a day out from here.
Bring home the right things
What is genuinely worth buying and where to look.
After dark
What the evenings are like, and where to spend them.
Family travel
Family logistics, strollers, transport and practical planning.
When to go
When to visit and what the seasons really feel like.
Know before it happens
Common tourist traps and how to avoid them.
Money & budgeting
Budgets, payments and everyday prices.
Transport
Public transport, taxis, walking and common pitfalls.
Travel for more people
Mobility, transport and sensory accessibility.
Understand before you arrive
Local expectations, religion and visitor etiquette.
The details that matter
Connectivity, health, photography and useful local details.
Find your fit
Solo, women alone, older visitors, LGBTQ+, pets, remote work, budget and luxury.
Travel that holds up
Tourism pressure, supporting local people and animal welfare.
Traveler experiences
Traveler reviews will appear here after moderation.
Worth the drive
Distances are straight-line, not driving time — mountain roads in this region are often twice as long as the map suggests.
Market · Altstadt-Lehel, Bavaria
The Viktualienmarkt is the permanent food market in Munich's old town near Marienplatz, run by the city's Märkte München, where more than 100 traders sell on 18,591 square metres.
Church · Bavaria
The Frauenkirche (Dom zu Unserer Lieben Frau) in Munich is the Catholic cathedral of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising, a late-Gothic brick hall church begun in 1468.
Historic site · Bavaria
The Munich Residenz was the residence and seat of government of Bavaria's dukes, electors and kings from 1508 to 1918; the Bavarian Palace Administration runs it, and its Residenz Museum, Treasury and Cuvilliés Theatre are in the palace.
Museum · Ludwigsvorstadt-Isarvorstadt, Bavaria
The Deutsches Museum is a museum of science and technology on the Museumsinsel in Munich; its branches are the Verkehrszentrum transport museum and the Flugwerft Schleißheim aviation museum in the Munich area and Deutsches Museum Bonn and Deutsches Museum Nürnberg.
Gallery · Bavaria
The Alte Pinakothek is the Bavarian State Painting Collections' museum of European painting from the 14th to the 18th century, on Barer Straße in Munich.
Park · Bavaria
The Englischer Garten is a public park about five and a half kilometres long in Munich, joining the Isar meadows to the old town, created by an electoral decree of 1789 and cared for by the Bavarian Palace Administration.
Explore deeper
7 guides
The Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site stands on the grounds of the camp the Nazi regime opened in March 1933, in the town of Dachau. This guide sets out, in the memorial's own words and from its own pages, how a visit works: entry, guided tours, audio guides, the film and exhibitions, the rules of conduct, and what the memorial says about children.
The EU register lists 98 German food and drink names as protected designations of origin or protected geographical indications, from Nürnberger Lebkuchen and Dresdner Christstollen to Münchener Bier and Kölsch. This guide reads the register's own files to say what each label ties to a place, and where XTOUR could not read the file.
A Dom is not always a cathedral, a Münster sometimes is, and the same German building can be filed as both a Schloss and a Burg by the body that runs it. This explainer defines each word through the pages of the buildings that carry it, from Freiburg Minster and Cologne Cathedral to Heidelberg Castle and the Munich Residenz.
XTOUR's Germany coverage is built around twelve cities and towns, from Berlin and Potsdam to Munich, Füssen, Dresden, Cologne, Nuremberg, Heidelberg and the Hanseatic north. This guide sets out what each base is for on XTOUR, which sights reached from a base are not in it, and which country-wide guides apply wherever you stay.
King Ludwig II of Bavaria commissioned four retreats: Neuschwanstein, Linderhof, Herrenchiemsee and the King's House on Schachen, inscribed together as a World Heritage site in 2025. This article sets out what each one is, which he saw finished, how the Bavarian Palace Administration lets visitors see them, and where official accounts of their history disagree.
None of the palace operators XTOUR read runs sites across Germany: each works within one or two states, and some well-known castles belong to a separate public-law foundation or a private association. This article sets out who runs what, according to the operators' own pages, and why a pass or a children's rule from one operator says nothing about another's sites.
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