Apart from the festivities of the world famous Oktoberfest the citizens of Munich demonstrate a cosmopolitan refinement as well as genuine passion for the region’s many traditions.

Located to the north of the Bavarian Alps, on the River Isar, Munich is Germany’s third largest city, and is where the country’s wealthy trendsetters like to ‘be seen’.
The city acquired the name München (‘home of the monks’) from its first monastery, founded in the eighth century. Monasteries have since played an important role in the history of the city, not least by starting the beer brewing traditions for which the city has received worldwide renown.

In the city’s six breweries beer quality is still based on the Reinheitsgebot (Purity Edict), introduced by the Bavarian Duke Wilhelm IV, in 1516, which forbids the use of anything other than the core ingredients of barley, hops and water in the brewing process.

Apart from the festivities of the world famous Oktoberfest the citizens of Munich demonstrate a cosmopolitan refinement as well as genuine passion for the region’s many traditions. With a strong cultural scene, richly endowed art collections and excellent shopping, the city, also home of BMW cars and centre of the German film industry, certainly has more to offer than just light entertainment.

When to travel to Munch

Munich is a highly weather-dependent city. Its elevation makes it bitterly cold in winter and breezy in the summer. Watch out, above all, for Oktoberfest (the last two weeks of September and first week of October), when the hotels are booked solid and the city invaded by hundreds of thousands of tourists from around the world.