Munich Attractions: How to Make the Most of Interrailing

Is it possible to mix hostelling and hiking into 1 trip? That was the question I attempted to solve when planning a European Interrailing trip for myself and housemate, Shaun. Despite both of us having travelled to Munich and Vienna independently many years earlier, we thought it would be adventurous to add a short Alps hiking trip in the middle. The 8-day itinerary was a budget trip, staying in hostels and using trains to travel between the 3 locations, so maximising what’s possible in early June. This blog is split into three Parts for the different locations with planning tips, itinerary and must-do activities. Discover the best Munich Attractions and why Munich is one of my favourite European cities.

Munich

Overview: Capital of Bavaria and Germany’s third-largest city, Munich blends tradition with innovation. There is a wide range of Munich Attractions from sport, history and of course, Beer. The world-famous sports teams, Bayern Munich, play at the Allianz Arena, which has a great Stadium Tour or try watching a football game there! The Bavarian Beerhalls and Beer Gardens are famous around the world, with tourists flocking to enjoy these all year round. Hofbräuhaus, originally opened in 1589, is the most visited hall, so be patient in getting a table! Oktoberfest runs from late September to early October, when around 6 million people visit for the celebrations. If you’re planning on visiting for Oktoberfest, book well in advance and be prepared for the increased prices. The Bavarian food is very traditional with Pretzels, Sausages and Cheeses to try.

Munich isn’t all about drinking, with a fascinating history linked to politics, art, and war. The Old Town has several Munich attractions near Marienplatz, such as the impressive Neo-Gothic Town Hall and Frauenkirche. Outside of the city, there are popular day trips to Neuschwanstein Castle and the Bavarian Alps. Unfortunately, I haven’t visited the Castle yet. However, Berchtesgaden is a picturesque Alpine town worth visiting, next to Königsee and Eagle’s Nest. The mix of sport, nature and Bavarian lifestyle appeals to me with enough Munich attractions for multiple visits. And with a big car industry, it was high on my list of potential places to live abroad, with the BMW Welt and Museum a must-see for car-lovers!

Munich Attractions:

• Famous for Oktoberfest, beer gardens, and historic architecture.
• Home to cultural institutions like the Deutsches Museum, Pinakothek galleries, and BMW Welt.
• Sporting heritage of the Munich 1972 Olympics and Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena.
• The old town features landmarks like Marienplatz, Frauenkirche, and the Residenz Palace.
• Day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle

Vibe: Cosmopolitan yet deeply rooted in Bavarian heritage, with a high quality of life and strong economy

Trip Planning

Flights

• We managed to get cheap flights from Heathrow to Munich with Lufthansa (only £59 each). Then had a return from Vienna to Heathrow with British Airways costing £46 each. The bargain flights made this trip very affordable in 2022.

Hostels

• I used HostelWorld to research accommodation, as well as using Shaun’s previous experience. In Munich, we stayed at Wombat’s City Hostel near the Hauptbahnhof for its great central location. Hotels and Apartments were the main options in Myarhofen. Hostel Chillertal was much more affordable and located next to the river, a short walk from town. Finally, in Vienna, I took Shaun’s advice to stay in Hostel Ruthensteiner, which turned out to give great social vibes.

Transport

• From Munich Airport to the centre, there is a fast and reliable metro system costing only 4 euros. And similar to Vienna, there is cheap public transport out of the city to the Airport. We spent 11euros for both airport trains; however, the Interrailing trains were much more. Munich is a very walkable city, but there are U-Bahns (underground metros) and S-Bahns (trains) to help move around the city quickly. A single ticket cost €3.70 and a Day ticket, inner zone, costs €8.80.
  
  From Munich to Mayrhofen cost us 44 euros (£38) for the 3-hour scenic trip into the mountains. First changing at Jenbach and then onto Mayrhofen im Zillertal on the local train. Then from Mayrhofen to Vienna had a change a Jenbach and only 3 hours. It cost us 106 (£91), which was steep, but it was a late booking and took half the day. Also, we took buses from Mayrhofen to Schliesgiss Reservoir, costing 12 euros return, and the Munich train to the Allianz was only a few Euros.

Kit List

• For this Hostelling Interrailing trip, I used my trusted Hostelling Packing List in my Osprey Farpoint 40 Travel Pack. As we planned 2 days hiking, the additions were my much loved La Sportiva TX4 GTX approach shoes and a small compact 10L Quecha hiking pack (which doubled as a day-pack in the cities). This gave me sufficient quality hiking gear to safely hike out of season.

Activities

• For the Munich Attractions, we planned to visit the Allianz Arena for a Stadium Tour thanks to our shared love of football. We debated visiting the BMW Welt, but needed another day in Munich, so we visited the Englischer Garten (English Gardens) instead (for free). And we would soak up the Old Town, markets and Beer Halls as well. After the busy city, Mayrhofen would give us 2 incredible alpine hikes with a surprise visit to the Water Park and Swimming Pool on Day 3. In Vienna, we planned to visit the famous Schönbrunn Palace and Belvedere Palace. Then spend the rest of our time enjoying the incredible architecture on foot.

Day 1 – Munich

City Centre

As per usual, we flew early from London Heathrow to give us the most time in Munich. The International Airport is outside the city, so a metro train takes around 40minutes to reach the Central Station (München Hauptbahnhof). The trains are every 10 minutes and have plenty of luggage space. Our Hostel (Wombat’s City Hostel Hauptbahnhof) was a 5-minute walk from the station, which saved us from carrying our bags across the city. We dropped them off in the luggage room at the Hostel before leaving with just our daypacks. As Shaun and I had both previously been to Munich independently, we both had a sense of the city to navigate and see all the Munich attractions in the 2 days there. The first stop was the Old Town to see Marienplatz and Frauenkirche.

Marineplatz is the heart of the city with the St. Peter’s Church, Townhall and central square offering convenient transport links. Frauenkirche is an iconic church with the 2 domed towers seen above most of the city skyline. I would recommend doing a Free Walking Tour if you’re interested in learning about the fascinating history of Munich, such as GuruWalk. We didn’t fancy a tour, given I had done one several years before when I did my First Solo Trip. Next, we walked around the Viktualienmarkt Market Stalls (which have been running since 1807!) in search of lunch and picked up a coffee whilst we browsed. In the end, we went to Ruff’s Burger, which provided fast and delicious burger combo deals with several vegetarian options for me!

Englischer Garten

The afternoon was spent walking around the beautiful Englischer Garten. It is a 20-minute (1.4Km) walk from the market to the start of the park. At Eisbachwelle, there is all year round surfing to observe from the bridge. Yes, you read that correctly, surfing in the middle of Munich! It’s easy to watch the skill of the surfers ride the waves and then drift downstream along the river. Englischer Garten is an expansive urban park with over 78Km of cycling, walking and running trails to explore. Locals flock to the park to play sports, relax and visit a beer garden.

And it was the Beer Garden (Biergarten am Chinesischen Turm) we walked over to next after climbing up the Monopteros for views across the city. The Beer garden has hundreds of benches and tables to relax at with the famed Hofbräu beer and food being served. The main attraction is the Chinesischer Turm above the garden, which becomes illuminated at night. We skipped the beer this time as we had to walk back to the hostel to check in. The nicest route to the Old Town is via Hofgarten and the Munich Residence to see the landscaped gardens. After meeting some fellow backpackers at the Wombats hostel, we hit the town in search of dinner. Fortunately, we got a table at the Ratskeller München at Marineplatz. The beer flowed as I enjoyed a Käsespätzle (German Cheese Spaetzle) and Shaun a pork knuckle. Overall, a tasty and not too pricey meal!

Day 2- Munich

Allianz Arena Tour

The main attraction for us was to visit the Allianz Arena for a Stadium Tour and the Bayern Munich Museum. After spending lockdown together, Shaun and I had made Bayern our unofficial 2nd team to support when the Bundesliga restarted the season. I had previously done the tour, but for €25, I was more than happy to return. We pre-booked an early tour and got the U-Bahn over to Fröttmaning, then a short walk to the imposing futuristic arena.

The guided tour lasted 1 hour with a recommended time in the Museum of 1 to 1.5hours. The Tour was great in seeing how a modern stadium was constructed and getting to see the Changing Rooms, Media Room and walking the tunnel to the pitch itself. The Allianz Arena holds 75,000 people and made us want to return on a match day to experience the famous German football atmosphere. After the tour, we walked through the museum where we learnt about the origins of Bayern Munich and the success over the years. It is incredibly informative and gives a broad insight into different aspects of the club on and off the pitch. There is a Club Store at the end where we picked up some discounted merchandise before returning to the city centre on the U-bahn.

Hofbräuhaus 

The plan for the afternoon was to relax at the iconic Hofbräuhaus Beer Hall. It has become a tourist hotspot with large steins of beer, Bavarian music and traditional Dirndls and Lederhosen being worn. Tables are not reserved, so it is difficult to find spare seats. We were lucky to grab a table in the courtyard, but after waiting too long with no service, we left. Instead, we went to a supermarket, picked up some Hofbrau bottles for much cheaper and walked along the river. It’s worth visiting a Bavarian Beerhall to enjoy the atmosphere with a huge Stein in hand, listening to traditional music. I did this on my first visit to Munich, so I was happy to skip it this time. There are quieter beer halls, such as Augustiner-Keller and Paulaner (my preferred beer).

We walked alongside the Isar River, chatting about life and Munich, then found a quiet spot to enjoy the beers on the banks. The weather was turning as we took shelter in a graffiti-covered underpass near Angel of Peace. We decided it was smart to get back to the hostel as neither of us had waterproofs. But first, we found a stray football, so we couldn’t miss the opportunity for some street football in the pouring rain. Now, we were soaked but cheery, so we quickly got back and into some warmer clothes. For dinner, we stayed very local and went into a cheap kebab shop, which served a purpose but wasn’t much to write about. The 2 days in the Bavarian capital gave a whistle-stop tour of the main Munich Attractions apart from the BMW Welt or Olympic Park. I would have liked a day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle.

See Part 2 for the rest of the Interrailing Trip to Mayrhofen and Vienna. And find out how we made the most of this 8-day trip over the 3 amazing locations.

Budget

We planned for this to be a cheap budget trip and tried to save as much money as possible. We stayed in hostels instead of hotels or AirBnBs, and we found great prices for return flights, which helped. The biggest surprise cost was the Vienna trains at over £80, but these took 5hours respectively and were booked late. The hostels cost on average £25 per night, which is a bargain! Also, we kept our costs down by using supermarkets for breakfast and lunches instead of eating out every day. In total, for the 8-day trip, we spent £86 a day, which safely qualifies for a budget trip.

Food & Drink

The food in Munich was nice, but to be honest, I struggled being vegetarian. The German cuisine focuses on meat dishes mainly with Spätzle (Cheesy pasta), Burgers and Pizza being much safest options. Munich isn’t the cheapest location, and the Beer Kellers are notably more expensive. A pint of beer costs around €5, whereas coffees cost around €3. For food, the Burger with fries cost around €10 comapred to the restaurant meal, at closer to €15-20 each. To keep costs down, we used supermarkets and cheap bakeries to buy pastries and breakfast. There are many Pizza places which offer slices for a couple of euros too.

Art

Final Thoughts

Upon reflection, this interrailing trip managed to combine 2 cities with alpine hiking using only trains as transport. We almost optimised each day and made the most of each city, apart from the hungover last day in Vienna. And even though the trains were the largest cost, it’s possible to offset the inter-destination transport tickets by cheap hostels, flights and food. Munich is a great city with so many popular Munich Attractions possible to walk to in a day. It has effective and affordable public transport to see all the must-see attractions and is close to the Bavarian Alps for day trips. I would recommend 3-4 days in Munich if you plan on doing the museums, BMW Welt, and Allianz, along with a day trip.

What is your favourite part of Munich? Please read Parts 2 and 3 of the Munich, Mayrhofen and Vienna Interrailing trip to see how we made the most of each place.