3 Days in Munich

3 days in Munich is a good amount of time to see this beautiful and amazing city in Bavaria, Germany.

It’s the second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and you won’t be short of things to do in Munich while you’re there.

You can check out the beautiful Marienplatz in the centre of the city, take a sobering trip to the nearby Dachau Concentration Camp and visit the home of one of the world’s biggest football teams Bayern at the Allianz Arena.

This Munich itinerary will let you know the best places to visit in the city, where you should stay, rough estimates of costs and much more!

Whether you’re visiting Munich for 3 days or more, it’s somewhere you have to visit while you’re travelling around Germany!

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3 Days in Munich Itinerary

My Experience in Munich

Munich is a city I had wanted to visit for a while, but it was somewhere I knew little about. Apart from Bayern, the local football team, and the annual Oktoberfest, I didn’t know an awful lot about Munich.

As my bus approached the city and we slowly snaked our way to the central station I marvelled at the sights all around me.

One thing that caught my eye, in particular, was the sight of surfers near a bridge! I had seen this artificial stream on social media before, I just didn’t realise it was in Munich.

Turns out it’s in the city center and you can even jump in the stream! From that point on, I knew I was going to like Munich. After I spent 3 days in Vienna, Munich felt similar, but distinct also.

The sign of a good city is asking myself whether I could live there and the answer for Munich was yes.

That said, I did visit during the summer, I know it gets colder during winter, but I would still live there regardless! I would have to make sure I include my warm jacket on my packing list for Germany!

There is just so much to do in the city, and if you want you can go further afield to places such as Salzburg and the Bavarian countryside.

It’s easy to get around and I am a fan of cities that have extensive bike lanes, so Munich had me there too!

All in all, I think Munich is a great city. It’s considered one of the best places to live in Germany and it’s not hard to see why after spending some time in the city.

Whether you’re visiting for 3 days or longer, or whether you’re visiting in summer or winter, you’re bound to have a great time.

Here are a few things I liked about Munich and a few things I didn’t:

Good

• Munich is an amazing city with a lot of great architecture, especially in the old town. I’ve visited three times now, and I still marvel at the buildings when I walk around. Munich is, without a doubt, one of the nicest cities in Germany.
• You won’t run out of things to do in Munich. You can see everything in the city center in three days and you’ll probably need all of those days to see them. If you want to go further afield to Ammersee and Neuschwanstein Castle, you’ll need four or five days minimum.

Bad

• The weather can turn quickly in Munich, so you’ll need to be prepared for all eventualities when you visit. There’s also a big difference in temperatures depending on the time of year you visit. I visited in July and it was roasting, while my most recent visit in October, was much colder and wetter.
• While Munich is a walkable city, you can’t walk between all the sights. I tried that on my most recent trip and burnt myself out walking from the Bavarian National Museum to the BMW Museum. Use the S bahn and the U bahn to get around if you’re going far, as you can’t walk to northern Munich from the centre and back without destroying your legs!

What To Do in Munich in 3 Days

3 days in Munich should give you enough time to see everything the city has to offer. If you can squeeze an extra day in that’s great. Otherwise, 3 days should suffice.

One of the things I would recommend getting is a Munich City Tour Card.

The card gives you free access to a number of the top attractions in Munich. It also provides you with free public transport for the entire inner-city area.

The pass will make your time in Munich a little bit cheaper and easier!

Below are some of the best things to see in Munich in 3 days that you should do during your visit.

• English Garden – The English Garden is one of the best spots in Munich and a perfect place to go on a sunny day. You can watch people surfing by the bridge, check out one of the numerous beer gardens, or just relax in the sun!
• Dachau Concentration Camp – It’s weird putting Dachau Concentration Camp down as one of the best things you can do in Munich, but it is important to visit the camp to understand what happened there. Dachau was the oldest concentration camp used by the Nazis during their reign in Germany. It is horrible what happened there and humbling to walk around and take everything in.
• Marienplatz – Marienplatz is a square right in the heart of Munich’s city center and full of magnificent buildings, such as the New Town Hall. Its name is derived from the Mariensäule, a Marian column erected in 1638 to celebrate the end of Swedish occupation.
• Olympiapark – The Olympiapark isn’t far from the English Garden and is the sight of the 1972 Sumer Olympics which were held in Munich. The stadium is worth the visit alone, and you can get some amazing views of the city from Olympiaberg Hill too.
• Nymphenburg Palace – The palace is located just outside of Munich but it’s worth visiting as it’s one of the most impressive sights in the city. It was the summer home of former Bavarian rulers and an impressive building!

Munich Itinerary – Day 1

Free Walking Tour

One of the best ways to see a city when you first arrive is to either walk around yourself or go on a free walking tour. I used to favour the former, but recently I have begun doing the latter.

Walking tours allow you to get to grips with a city and find out where everything is. While you can do this yourself, you are missing out on the expertise a tour guide brings.

They can let you know about Munich’s history, which you will struggle to discover by yourself. Often, you will learn about the best spots in the city too, such as where to eat and where to get a coffee.

A lot of hostels offer a free walking tour, so check with your accommodation to see if they do. If they don’t, you always have the option of paying for one.

While it may seem like an unnecessary expense, I think it’s well worth it to find out more about Munich’s fascinating past!

English Garden

The English Garden is somewhere you have to visit while you’re in Munich. It’s one of the biggest urban parks in the world and a beautiful place to go exploring.

My favourite part of the garden is the artificial stream that flows through the garden. It’s an ingenious idea and provides you with a unique and quirky thing to do in Munich. You can also surf the stream close to a bridge on the edge of the park which looks like a lot of fun! 

It’s not all adrenaline in the garden. There are plenty of places you can relax and wander in peace. This is what makes it such a great place to visit.

The garden has the best of both worlds, you can have a lot of fun if you want, or you can sit back, relax and bask in your surroundings!

There is also a beer garden in the garden, which is worth checking out if you to experience something that is quintessentially Bavarian!

Olympiapark

The Olympiapark is an Olympic Park constructed for the 1972 Summer Olympics. It’s located in the Oberwiesenfeld neighbourhood of Munich. To get there you can either walk or take the underground. It’s a long walk so I would recommend taking the underground.

The park is gigantic!

You could walk around for an hour and just about see everything. Checking out the stadium is a must as it’s a striking piece of architecture, and you can’t miss the huge Olympic Tower either!

To get the best view, you should head to Olympiaberg Hill. The view from the hill is great and it gives you a brilliant perspective of the stadium, park and Munch itself.

The park is often used for cultural and sporting events as well as numerous festivals. If you’re in Munich while one of these events is taking place, you should check them out!

BMW Museum

The BMW museum is a great place to visit for car lovers.

Munich is home to the company and it’s just a short walk from the Olympiapark to the museum, where you can about the company’s history.

It costs €10 to enter and you get to see a range of exhibits of cars, that include a variety of models and some of BMW’s motorsport cars too.

Visiting the BMW Museum is probably not for everyone but it’s an interesting place to visit, and there’s also BMW Welt next door which you can visit for free too!

Munich Itinerary – Day 2

Nymphenburg Palace

The Nymphenburg Palace is a baroque palace located just outside of Munich. It was the main summer residence of the former Bavarian rulers, the House of Wittelsbach.

The palace takes up a gigantic area and is an impressive sight. It’s a beautiful and historic building and the grounds it’s set in are just as breathtaking.

You will have to pay to get into the grounds and there is a range of tickets available. If you want to see everything, including going inside the palace, tickets cost €9. While you can pay €4.50 to enter the grounds and walk around for a bit.

The palace is similar to Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna. If you’re familiar with that palace, then a visit to Nymphenburg Palace will be right up your street.

New Town Hall

The New Town Hall is one of the most prominent buildings in the old town of Munich.

It was built in 1874 and is hard to miss when you’re walking around Marienplatz. There are over 400 rooms in the town hall and the scale of the building is huge.

The building is home to the mayor and the city council and is also where receptions are held in the event of a local team or athlete winning a competition for example.

The Old Town Hall is also nearby and worth checking out. It’s a lovely building that now houses a toy museum, which is a good place to visit if you’re visiting with kids.

Viktualienmarkt

Viktualienmarkt is Munich’s main outdoor food market. It’s located close to Marienplatz and the old town, making it an ideal place to explore while you’re in the city center.

There is a range of food to choose from as you wander around. You have stalls selling fruit and veg, sausage, pretzels and traditional German food! There are also several cafes dotted about the area.

It’s nice to wander around and see what food you can buy, as well as sample some of the local Bavarian delicacies. There are Beer garden areas under the chestnut trees, which is a good place to try some local beer and delicacies!

Another option is to book a culinary tour, which will take you to all the best spots in Munich’s old town and let you know the history behind some of the food you’ll try!

Museum Quarter

The Museum Quarter is a space containing five museums. Also known as the Kunstareal, the museums in the quarter each focus on a specific period of art. 

The Alte Pinakothek details art from the 14 to the 17th century. The Neue Pinakothek has pieces from the Impressionist period and has some Van Gogh paintings too!

The Pinakothek der Moderne is about modern art as the name suggests. 

The two remaining museums are the Glyptothek and State Collection of Antiquities, which hold artwork and pieces from the Roman and Greek periods. 

You have two options when visiting the quarter. You can buy a combined ticket allowing you to see all five museums, or you can pay to see the museums that you are interested in. 

Depending on how much time you have it may not be feasible to see all the museums, so it may be better to choose which museums you want to see instead.

Munich Itinerary – Day 3

Third Reich Tour

One part of the dark history of Munich is that the city played a key role in the rise of Hitler and the Nazis to power, which eventually led to the outbreak of World War II. Hitler arrived in the city in 1913 as a 24-year-old after failing to become an artist in Vienna.

Following the end of the First World War, the Nazi party slowly grew a base of power in the city which led to the failed Munich putsch in 1923 and Hitler’s imprisonment. The city is also where the infamous SS was formed.

With all of these places across the city, such as Munich Residenz near Odeonplatz, it’s overwhelming to try and find them yourself and understand the significance of what happened. My advice is to book a walking tour that will take you to all these places.

The guided tour will be able to give you all the detail about what happened here and how the Nazis were able to rise to power. 

Bavarian National Museum

The Bavarian National Museum is one of the largest museums in Germany and a great place to go if you’re an art lover.

It’s one of the most comprehensive art galleries in Europe with the museum divided into two collections, the historical collection and the folklore collection.

There’s a wide range of exhibits here with art dating from the medieval period to sculptures by famous German artists such as Erasmus Grasser.

The Bavarian National Museum is one of the hidden gems on this Munich itinerary and a place you should definitely check out while you’re in the city.

Dachau Concentration Camp

Dachau is one of the most humbling places I have ever visited. It may not have the same power as Auschwitz, but what happened there is still barely believable.

The Dachau Memorial Site is located outside of Munich. You will need to get the S2 in the direction of Dachau/Petershausen until you reach Dachau Bahnhof. From there, you take the 726 bus towards “Saubachsiedlung” to the entrance of the memorial site (“KZ-Gedenkstätte”).

Entrance to the site is free, however, you do have the option of paying for a tour. This may be a good idea if you want to know more about what happened as the guides have a lot of in-depth knowledge about the atrocities that occurred at Dachau.

Walking around the camp is an eerie experience. Just thinking about what happened here during World War II and that you are walking in the footsteps of this is very profound.

I found it an emotional and grounding place to visit, and as a former history student, it was fascinating to read the stories of what took place here.

Even if you’re not a history buff, a visit to Dachau is something everyone should do when they come to Munich!

Allianz Arena

The Allianz Arena is the home of Bayern Munich, one of the most successful football teams in the world. Even if you’re not a fan of football, I still recommend visiting as Bayern is inexorably tied to Bavarian culture and Munich.

The ideal scenario would be to coincide your visit with a match at the ground. Taking a tour of the ground is nice, but it’s not the same as watching a match in the stadium.

Another thing you should do is to visit the club’s museum. It costs €12 to enter and you will learn a lot about the club and how it rose from humble beginnings to become the powerhouse it is today.

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to the Allianz Arena, if you’re a football fan like me then you have to visit during your 3 days in Munich!

Other Places to Visit in Munich

As you can imagine there are a lot of places to see in Munich, as well as plenty more outside the city. If you’re in the city for longer than 3 days, I’ve listed some of the best day trips from Munich below.

• Neuschwanstein Castle – This is the castle that supposedly inspired the famous Disney castle. Neuschwanstein Castle is located in the Bavarian countryside and was the home of King Ludwig II, who turned a little bit mad during his time. It’s an amazing place to visit on a day trip, especially if you longer in the city. Click here to book your tour!
• Zugspitze – Zugspitze is the highest point in Germany and isn’t far from Munich. It’s a spectacular, but challenging hike to the top, however, you can ride a cable car to the top. another option is to visit as part of a tour that will help you get to the peak! Click here to book your tour!
• Oktoberfest Experience – It’s virtually impossible to get a ticket for Oktoberfest, which is a shame because it would be a lot of fun. However, you can book a tour and be guaranteed a seat at the festival. This is worth doing if you want to experience the festival while it’s in Munich! Click here to book your Oktoberfest Experience!
• Deutsches Museum – Another great museum in Munich, the Deutsches Museum focuses on science and technology and has plenty of fascinating exhibits. You can learn about the history of technology and industry in Germany here.
• Salzburg – You can spend the day in the Austrian city that’s not far over the border and is the birthplace of Mozart. Or you could spend 3 days in Salzburg after you’ve visited Munich and spend more time in this beautiful city!

Click the link below to discover more tours and activities you can do during your trip to Munich:

Munich Travel Tips

You’ll find a range of tips in this section from where to stay, rough estimates of costs in the city, and how to get around to help you plan your trip to Munich!

Where to Stay in Munich

As the second-biggest city in Germany, there are plenty of places to stay in Munich. You have a wide range of choices from budget hostels to more upmarket hotels. There is something for everybody depending on your budget.

One decision you have to make is where you want to stay in the city. Do you want to be near the centre?

Or would you prefer to be further near the Olympiapark for example? By staying further out you will need to use the underground more, but it will be quieter than in the centre.

I’ve listed several hostels you should consider staying at during your trip to Munich in the table below.

Accommodation	Description	Link
HI Munich-Park	This hostel is located in the south of Munich, but it’s a nice place to stay if you’re travelling with your family or want a chilled vibe.	Book Now
Wombats City Hostel Hauptbahnhof	A hostel with clean and comfortable rooms that’s a great place to socialise and meet other travellers.	Book Now
Jaeger’s Munich	A good hostel that’s located in the heart of the city. The onsite bar makes it a good place to socialise.	Book Now

Cost of Travel in Munich

One thing to bear in mind when you visit Munich is that it can be an expensive place to travel. Similar to a trip to Berlin, the costs in Munich are not on the cheap side!

Germany is one of the most expensive countries in the world. If you’re not careful you can easily blow your budget.

The cost of visiting Munich will increase further if you go on several tours around the city too. My advice would be to set aside some money for these tours before you go.

The same applies to eating out. If you do this all the time while you’re in the city, you will spend a lot more than you would if you cook the majority of your meals.

The following prices are for the average travel budget. That is someone who is not going to splurge, but someone who will not be travelling on an ultra-frugal budget either.

They don’t include prices for extras such as nights out at a bar/pub, club entry fees, souvenirs/clothing purchases, tours. etc. You will have to budget extra for these purchases as they are ‘non-essential!’ 

Here’s a rough breakdown of essential travel costs in Munich:

Best Time to Visit Munich

If you want to visit Munich when the weather is at its best, then you want to visit during the summer. I was there during July and the weather was hot.

There were a few days, where it got uncomfortable, but on the whole, the weather was fantastic.

The contrast with visiting during winter is quite large. Temperatures plummet at this time of the year with the average hovering around zero. 

If you visit during this time, Munich will be a lot quieter, but you run the risk of getting caught in the rain and walking around in freezing temperatures.

However, if you want to check out the Christmas markets, then going to Munich in winter is a good idea.

An alternative is to visit Munich during Spring or Autumn. Temperatures won’t be as extreme during summer and winter, and there should be fewer tourists during these months too.

The best time to travel to Munich comes down to personal preference. However, if you want to make the most out of your visit I would recommend visiting from April to October.

If you want to visit when there are fewer tourists and potentially see the Christmas markets, visiting outside of these months is when you should go.

Here’s a quick guide to what to expect from visiting Munich during each season:

Munich in Spring

Depending on what part of spring you visit, it will be either chilly or reasonably warm. March is cold and it warms up more as the weeks progress. Bear in mind, that the city will likely be quieter in the early months of Spring.

Average temperatures from low to high: 1.7°C – 19.4°C / 35.1°F – 66.°F

Munich in Summer

Summer is the best month to visit if you’re looking for good weather. The temperatures will be in the 20s for most of the summer and you’re less likely to get rain. But there will be more tourists during this time of the year.

Average temperatures from low to high: 12.9°C – 24.9°C / 55.2°F – 76.8°F

Munich in Autumn

September isn’t too bad in Munich, but the temperature starts to come down in October and November. I visited Munich in October during my last visit and it was much colder than before. Be sure to bring warm clothes, you’ll need them.

Average temperatures from low to high: 2.1°C – 19.6°C / 35.8°F – 67.3°F

Munich in Winter

winter is the worst time to visit the city if you want decent weather. The temperatures will be very cold and there’s a high chance of snow too. However, you also get to experience Munich during Christmas if you visit in December which makes up for the weather.

Average temperatures from low to high: -1.8°C – 5.6°C / 28.8°F – 42.1°F

How to Get Around Munich

The good thing about Munich is that it’s a walkable city. There is a downside to this, however. If you want to visit the Olympiapark, for example, it is at least an hour-long walk from the centre.

But that is no reason to despair. Munich has an excellent public transport system. There are numerous buses, trams and an underground system too.

You can take advantage of this to see a lot during your stay in the city!

The underground system makes it easy to get around Munich and it’s not too hard to figure out which trains go where.

One downside is that it can be a bit pricey, so I would either use it sparingly or buy a Munich City Tour Card before you go, which gives you free access to the inner city area.

Otherwise, it can cost a lot to get around. I paid €6.70 for an all-day ticket for all the zones on Sunday, but the price on Monday soared to €15 for the same ticket!

By getting this pass, you will save yourself money in the long run if you want to use public transport to get around.

To get to Munich airport, you want to take either the S-1 or the S-8 Bahn from the city center. Tickets cost about €13.00. Another option is to get the Lufthansa Express Bus from Munich Central Station. This costs a bit less at €10.50.

One thing I wouldn’t do is get a taxi from Munich airport to the city centre or vice versa. You will be looking at a hefty bill of around €70 if you do!

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