One day in MunichTowers, kings and dragons in a single day
Start early with “The best of Munich”: the Frauenkirche, the Marienplatz Glockenspiel and the Viktualienmarkt before the crowds arrive. As you pass Odeonsplatz, stop at Zum Franziskaner for Weißwurst, which tradition says must be eaten before noon, then finish at the Eisbach wave. In the afternoon, the history route takes you from the Alter Hof to the Feldherrnhalle and the quiet of Königsplatz. In the low evening light comes the legends route, from the Asamkirche to Alter Peter, and from there it is five minutes to the Hofbräuhaus for a Schweinshaxe dinner.
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Morning
The best of Munich: from the Frauenkirche to the Eisbach wave
- Frauenkirche, the towers that define the skylineTwo brick towers with green domes that no skyscraper in the centre may outgrow: Munich’s symbol was raised in just twenty years.
- Marienplatz, the heart of MunichA column for a city spared by war, a town hall that looks like a cathedral and figures that dance high up on the tower.
- Viktualienmarkt, the open-air marketMore than a hundred food stalls, a colourful maypole and a beer garden that takes turns serving the beer of every brewery in the city.
- Hofbräuhaus, the court breweryFounded by a duke for his court, opened to the people by a king and famous across half the world: Munich’s best-known beer hall has more history than froth.
- Odeonsplatz and the yellow Theatine churchAn Italian princess promised the most beautiful church if an heir was born. He was, and Munich gained its first Italian Baroque church, as yellow as the southern sun.
- Eisbachwelle, surfing in the centre of MunichHundreds of kilometres from the sea, on the edge of the Englischer Garten, surfers ride a wave that never moves.
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Lunch
Try Weißwurst with pretzel at Weisses Bräuhaus. Tal 7, Múnich
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Afternoon
From the emperor’s castle to the ‘capital of the movement’
- Alter Hof, the emperor’s castleThe first emperor with a permanent home lived here, and this is where Bavaria’s capital began. And on its corner, legend says, a monkey once carried off a prince.
- Max-Joseph-Platz, the first king’s squareNapoleon turned a duke into a king, and Munich built him a square to match: a Florentine palace, a Greek-style theatre and a monument the king himself did not want.
- The outline of Kurt EisnerA metal outline in the pavement marks the spot where they killed the man who ended seven centuries of monarchy in Bavaria.
- Feldherrnhalle and the shirkers’ alleyA Florentine loggia dedicated to two generals where Hitler’s putsch collapsed in under a minute. And behind it, an alleyway that became a small act of disobedience.
- NS-Dokumentationszentrum, on the site of the Brown HouseA white cube stands on the site of the Nazi Party’s former headquarters. From its windows you can see the buildings the regime put up all around.
- Königsplatz, the Athens of Ludwig IA king in love with Greece built three temples here. A century later, the Nazis paved it with granite for their parades, and it took the city forty years to give it back its lawn.
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Early evening
Devils, dragons and Wolpertingers: legendary Munich
- Asamkirche, the Asam brothers’ private churchAn artist built a church next to his house so he could see the altar from his window. It is dedicated to a saint who, legend says, died for keeping a secret.
- Michaelskirche, the fairy-tale king’s tombA bronze archangel crushes the devil at the door. Down in the crypt lies Ludwig II, the king whose death in a lake no one has ever been able to explain.
- The Wolpertinger at the Hunting MuseumA hare with antlers, duck’s wings and webbed feet: Bavaria has its very own fantastical creature, and in this former church they display it stuffed.
- Frauenkirche: the devil’s footprintBeside the cathedral door there is a black footprint in the floor. Legend says the devil left it in a rage when he discovered he had been tricked.
- Wurmeck, the town hall dragonA copper dragon climbs the corner of the town hall. Legend says it brought the plague to Munich; the records suggest it may all have started with a family coat of arms.
- Alter Peter and the saint with the jewelled skeletonIn Munich’s oldest church, a skeleton covered in jewels, brought from the catacombs of Rome, lies in full view.
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Dinner
Try Schweinshaxe at Hofbräuhaus am Platzl. Platzl 9, Múnich