If you want to plan a magical fairy tale trip to Germany, Munich is definitely one of the best places to base yourself for said trip. Especially if you’re like me, and you like coming back to the same place every night and not renting a car in a foreign country!

This 1 week Munich itinerary will take you to all the best sites to see, both in the city and nearby day trips, without the stress of renting a car or moving your luggage. We’re talking fairy tale castles, opulent libraries, gingerbread towns, and real life places that look straight outta Disney World (probably because Disney modeled his place after them).

Of course you can add to or change this itinerary to meet your exact needs, but if you want a guideline for how to plan a stress-free fairy tale trip to Germany, this is it!

Year visited: 2025

Time of Year: December

---

What’s in this Article:

• About Munich
• How to Get to Munich
• Where to Stay in Munich
• Munich Itinerary Day 1: Explore the City
• Day 2: Nymphenburg Palace
• Day 3: Neuschwanstein Castle Day Trip
• Day 4: Rothenburg Day Trip
• Day 5: Wiblingen Abbey Day Trip
• Day 6: Nuremberg Day Trip
• Day 7: Return Home

---

About Munich

Munich (or München) is Germany’s third largest city, with a population of about 1.6 million people in its city limits. It is located in south eastern Germany, in the region known as “Bavaria.”

Munich is famous for its beer halls and annual Oktoberfest celebration.

Historically, it was the home of the Wittelsbach Dynasty, the ruling family that includes Ludwig II, builder of the famous Neuschwanstein Castle. The Wittelsbachs are responsible for much of the architecture and development of the city.

It is a great place to base yourself for a week in Germany, as it is very easy to get to a lot of different tourist attractions from Munich, in addition to having plenty of its own attractions, and a major airport.

---

How to Get to Munich

If you’re already in Germany or Europe, you can take a train into Munich’s Hauptbahnhof, or central train station. If you’re coming from a bit farther away (say, the US), you can find many direct flights to Munich Airport. It is easy to get to the city center from the airport.

How to Get to Munich from the Airport

There are several ways to get into the city proper from the airport, but the most common way is just to take the S Bahn train.

Follow the signs with the green S on them to get to the underground train platform. You can purchase a ticket online ahead of time, if you want, or just one at the kiosk before you go outside. This video walks you through what to do.

• Good to Know: When you purchase a ticket at the kiosk, there is an option for a “pre-validated” ticket. It should automatically be on this option, which means you do not have to “validate” your ticket by stamping it before you get on the train.
• Tickets purchased online are already validated.

How to Get Around Munich

Munich is a big city! The most common way to get around is to take the subway, or U Bahn train.

Personally, we stayed at a hotel that was right next to the main train station, and about a 15 minute walk from the Marienplatz (old town city center). We walked to most of the sites we wanted to see, as well as the central locations where our tours would pick us up. To get to the further sites, we took the Hop On Hop Off bus tour.

---

Where to Stay in Munich

I always like to stay close to a main train station, as it makes getting around easy. Plus I hate dragging my bags any further than I have to.

We stayed right across the street from Munich’s central station, which isn’t like a nice cozy cutesy area to stay, but it was a great location for getting around, and it worked for us.

Because it is such a HUGE city, there are a ton of places to stay in Munich, and it can be overwhelming to try to choose (thus my strategy of looking at a map and seeing how possibly close to the train station I can get!). Feel free to browse all the Munich hotels, but here are a few suggestions to get you started:

• BATU Apart Hotel: This is where we stayed. It’s not fancy, but the room was very clean and comfortable, and, like I said, a perfect location for easy transportation access.
• 25 Hours Hotel The Royal Bavarian: This hotel is also right across from the central station. I had it saved to visit because, holy cow, the coffee shops/restaurant inside! So cute! It’s definitely worth stopping by for a drink, even if you’re not staying here.

---

Munich Itinerary Day 1: Explore the City

And now we come to it! Our one week Munich itinerary!

Now, this itinerary is not an exact, must-follow, word for word, step for step. If you want to take a few ideas from this, and then do something else too, feel free! If you want one less day trip and more time in the city, go ahead! If you want to follow this exactly… do that too!

This is here as a guideline, including my tips and thoughts from our personal experience, to help you plan the best trip possible.

That being said, let’s start to explore Munich, shall we?

Arrive in the City

What time you arrive in the city will depend on where you’re coming from. This itinerary is going to assume that you have most of the day here to explore. If you’re not arriving till late, you can just start counting “day 1” on your first full day in the city. If you arrive and leave on the weekends, you still will only miss one week of work, even with an extra day (or 2!).

We flew into Munich and arrived in the city about 10 am on a Sunday morning. We had plenty of time to visit attractions, though it should be noted that we were also exhausted, and kind of crashed after walking all around the Munich Residenz.

Which leads me to my first suggestion.

Hop On Hop Off Tour

Now, you do not have to do a Hop On Hop Off tour (or any tour, for that matter). But I find it helpful to orient myself to a new city (especially one as big as Munich). I usually like a simple walking tour, but I would suggest a Hop On Hop Off for a couple reasons. One, Munich is HUGE, so this let’s you get to sites that are not within walking distance. And two, if you’ve been traveling, you are going to be tired and not feel like walking!

You can book it for 24 or 48 hours. You’ll have to decide what your day 2 plans will be, but my personal suggestion is for 48 hours. That way, you can use these buses to get around the city on your first and second day, any time. You don’t have to book a specific time slot, and you have an easy way to get around. And not only is it easy transportation to Munich’s best sites, you also learn fun facts about the city while you’re there.

With this tour you can visit:

• Nymphenburg Palace
• Olympic Park
• BMW Museum
• English Garden
• Munich Residenz
• Marienplatz

There are three different routes that will cover all these locations. Or you can just do the city tour, that takes you to the main sites around the Marienplatz, but I would recommend if you’re going to book the tour, to get all tours, as the other locations are the ones harder to get to on your own.

Munich Residenz

The Munich Residenz is close to the city center, and easy to walk to if you’re not taking a bus tour. We walked here after stopping at the Christmas market in the Marienplatz when we first arrived in Munich.

Munich Residenz is one of the main sites to see in the city. It was the city home of the Wittelsbach Dynasty, so it’s basically like visiting a palace, except in the middle of a city. But don’t expect it to be small. It is like an infinite maze inside. Each room just keeps leading to more rooms…

• Good to Know: You can buy tickets in person or online ahead of time.

Marienplatz

Munich’s Marienplatz is the old town square. The spot you see in all the photos of Munich. It was the first place we stopped when we arrived in the city, but I’ve listed it lower here because it is close to the beer hall where you should go for dinner.

There is plenty to do in and around the Marienplatz. If you are here at Christmastime, there is a Christmas market in the square. Here are some of the things to see:

• See & tour the New Town Hall (iconic Gothic building)
• See the Rathaus-Glockenspiel show
• Tour Old Town Hall
• A little Toy Museum
• Lots of shops & restaurants
• Climb St. Peter’s Church tower for views over the city

Tour Munich Law Library

While you are in the Marienplatz, be sure to take a tour of the New Town Hall and Law Library. You can only visit the library on a guided tour, and it’s definitely worth checking out if you’re into the fairy tale vibe.

There are different tour companies that run tours at different times, so look to see which time works for you. You can also check in person at the information office located in the New Town Hall to see if there are any other tours available. When we visited, tours were only available in the evening, so we headed here at the end of the day (after having a late lunch/early dinner at Hofbrauhaus).

Hofbräuhaus Beer Hall

End day 1 with dinner at the famous Hofbräuhaus Beer Hall, near the Marienplatz. Visiting here is a quintessential part of any Munich itinerary. Although you should be aware, this famous beer hall is always crowded, and the food is underwhelming.

That being said, it’s a must-visit for the experience. You seat yourself at a table (probably with other people) and the servers will come for your order. They have menus in both German and English. Hopefully while you’re there, the band will strike up a tune!

• Pro Tip: Munich Hofbräuhaus is always busy. The emptiest it was was about 3:00 in the afternoon. We got there around 2:30, and eventually found a spot to sit. It was almost calm for a moment around 3, but that did not last long. The band was just starting to play when we left.

---

Munich Itinerary Day 2: Munich & Nymphenburg Palace

Now that we are on to day 2, we should be well rested, well oriented, and ready for a full day of sight seeing around Munich.

Nymphenburg Palace

I would suggest starting the day at Nymphenburg Palace, since it is HUGE (like, mind-bogglingly huge) and you’re going to need lots of time and energy to explore it.

You can choose to tour the inside of Nymphenburg Palace, or just wander around the grounds outside. If it’s good weather, there is plenty to see and enjoy without even paying to go inside!

In addition to the main palace, there are multiple museums housed around the grounds, like the Museum of Carriages & Sleighs.

If you booked a 48 hour Hop On Hop Off ticket (or if you just book it for day 2 and not day 1), you can take a bus from right outside the main train station to Nymphenburg Palace. It is possible to get here via public transportation as well, but we just took the Hop On Hop Off bus. It stops here about every hour.

• Good to Know: You can get tickets for Nymphenburg Palace in person or online ahead of time.

Olympic Park

Not far from Nymphenburg Palace is Olympic Park and the BMW Museum. Here you can see the famous BMW Welt, tour the museum, visit the SEA Life Aquarium, swim in the Olympic swimming pool, view the city from the Olympic Tower, or just wander around the grounds of the park.

The Hop On Hop Off bus will stop here after it picks you up from Nymphenburg Palace, before returning to the city center.

English Garden

The other main attraction in Munich is the English Garden. It is one of the largest city parks in the world. It is here you will find the famous river surfers, the Chinese Tower, several beer gardens, and a Christmas market during the holiday season. So no matter what season you are visiting Munich, the English Garden is always worth a wander.

If you’re doing the Hop On Hop Off tour, you can get a different bus from the main station to take you to the English Garden.

More Things to Do in Munich

That should easily fill up both of your 2 days in Munich. You can also do some of the day 1 activities on day 2 and vice versa. Or you can also visit one of the many museums near the Munich Residenz and Odeonsplatz.

---

Munich Itinerary Day 3: Neuschwanstein Day Trip

Now that we’ve hit up all the best things to do in Munich, it’s time to start taking day trips to all the magical nearby places. You do not have to do these in any particular order (note that some tours are only available on certain days!).

The most common and popular day trip from Munich is to Neuschwanstein Castle. This castle was built by King Ludwig II, who was also born at Nymphenburg Palace and lived in the Munich Residenz when he was in the city.

You can either take public transportation or book a tour. If you use public transportation, you will take a 2 hr. train to Fussen, and then the bus to Hohenschwangau. A tour will cost significantly more money, but it will be less stress, and some of them also stop at Linderhof Palace, another of King Ludwig’s creations.

My article about Neuschwanstein Castle explains in detail how to get to the castle, as well as what to expect when you visit.

---

Munich Itinerary Day 4: Rothenburg Day Trip

Another popular day trip is the little Medieval town of Rothenburg-ob-der-Tauber. This adorable little town is tricky to get to via public transportation, but you can book a day trip on a bus from central Munich. The tour will also stop at Harburg Castle, which is a nice castle to visit, but Rothenburg is the main attraction (and yes, it is worth it!).

• Good to Know: This tour is not available every day, so you might have to plan your trip around its availability.

The trip will take all day. We left at 8 in the morning and got back right around 7 at night, so it is a long day. But I think it is absolutely worth it to visit this little town that looks like a real life Disney World!

Some of the things to do on your visit to Rothenburg are:

• German Christmas Museum
• Medieval Crime Museum
• Eat a Schneeball
• Walk the city walls
• Visit all the little shops
• Take lots of pictures!

---

Munich Itinerary Day 5: Wiblingen Abbey Day Trip

A day trip to Wiblingen Abbey in Ulm is probably not one you’ve heard of before. This is not one of the common or popular day trips from Munich, but it is worth doing because of the beautiful library at the monastery. It looks like Belle’s library from Beauty & the Beast.

The monastery is located in Ulm, just over a 1 hr. train ride from Munich’s central station. Then it’s a short walk to the bus station, where you can take a 10 minute bus right to the monastery. There is a small museum in addition to the library here.

After exploring the library, you can also spend some time wandering around Ulm, home of the world’s tallest church (the Ulm Minster), and the cute Fisherman’s quarter.

This is a DIY day trip, but it is very easy to do if you want to see the library (though, I will say that the library was much smaller than I expected it to be). It also can be a shorter day trip, so you could have more time in Munich on this day, if you wanted.

---

Munich Itinerary Day 6: Nuremberg Day Trip

Our final day trip is another do it yourself visit from Munich. Nuremberg is a beautiful city to visit, and is only a one hour direct train from Munich. There are plenty of things to see and do here that make this a perfect day trip from Munich any time of year.

We visited at Christmastime and spent most of our day wandering the famous Nuremberg Christmas market. However, there are plenty of other fairy tale (or less fairy tale-y) things to do in Nuremberg:

• Tour Nuremberg Imperial Castle
• Nuremberg Trials Museum
• Nuremberg Toy Museum
• Take a gingerbread making class
• Wander through the Handwerkerhof
• Photograph the Weissgerber Street & Museum Bridge

---

Munich Itinerary Day 7: Return Home

If you have more time, you can do more things in Munich, take another day trip (like to Salzburg, Austria!), or add on another destination (like Stuttgart). If you have less time, you can pick and choose which day trips you want to do.

But if you just have a week, now is the time to head home. You will take the S Bahn train back to Munich Airport for your flight home.

• Fun Fact: If you visit Germany for Christmas, there is even a Christmas market at the airport! Of course, if you arrive at 8 am on a Sunday, it will not be open…

---

Any more questions?

If you have any more questions about planning a Munich itinerary, or any ideas of your own to share, please feel free to email me or comment below!

Planning to visit Munich?

Save one of the pins below for future trip planning:

You might also like:

• The Best Christmas Things to Do in Germany
• How to Visit Neuschwanstein Castle in Winter
• The Complete Guide to Train Travel in Germany
• Rothenburg Day Trip from Munich
• How to Visit Wiblingen Abbey Library
• How to Day Trip to Nuremberg

---