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Borough of Munich, Germany
Photo: Burkhard Mücke, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Ludwigsvorstadt-Isarvorstadt is the district of Munich immediately south and west of Altstadt ("Old town"), which is the historic centre. It's where most visitors arrive, as it's the transport hub, with trains from all parts of Germany, S-Bahn commuter lines from the airport and elsewhere in the city, and the central bus station. It's crowded with budget accommodation, and its Theresienwiese park is the site of Oktoberfest.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
Kindermuseum
It's perhaps a misnomer, it's more like a crafts & play space, but could save the family sanity one wet day.
German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology
Enormous museum of science and technology, needing a full day, and even then you need to prioritise which galleries to explore - though half the fun is discovering the secrets of technology you'd never considered. Themes include natural sciences (from atom physics to music), materials and energy (including robotics), transport including aerospace, environment, health, agriculture and food, IT, communications and photography. At any time, some galleries are closed for refurb (these are indicated by the ticket booths), some are fresh and exciting, and some are getting tired. The museum is very popular, buy online to avoid queuing in the rain. Verkehrszentrum is the branch museum for transport west edge of this district, Flugwerft Schliessheim exhibits aviation north of the city, and there are branch museums in Bonn and Nuremberg.
In a prominent position on the banks of the Isar, this Roman Catholic parish church was mostly complete by 1908, though the sacristry was only added in 1938. It was bombed during wartime but restored by 1953. It was again closed for restoration during 2021. The mighty organ and church bells will get your attention when they sound off, and the church sometimes hosts concerts. Since 1993 the pastor has been the flamboyant Rainer Maria Schießler (b 1960), who used to serve beer at Oktoberfest. No, not in a low-cut dirndl.
Alter Südfriedhof
This was established in 1563 when plague overfilled the church graveyards, and bodies needed to be interred beyond city limits. St Stephan's church at its main north entrance was built at the same time. From 1788 to 1868 it was Munich's single collective burial ground, becoming non-denominational, so it's the last resting-place of some 14,000 citizens. The roll-call includes Josef von Fraunhofer, Friedrich von Gärtner, Leo von Klenze, Justus von Liebig, Georg Simon Ohm and Carl Spitzweg. Also here are many of the 1100 victims of "Sendling's Night of Murder" (Sendlinger Mordweihnacht), a peasant rebellion against Austrian rule in 1705. The cemetery is studded with elaborate gravestones and crypts, and you can find particular graves on the city cemetery website. It was gradually closed down during the early 20th century but is maintained as a cultural relic and green space.
Paulskirche
Massive Roman Catholic church in neo-Gothic style, completed in 1906. It was bombed out in 1944 but rebuilt, albeit with a simpler interior. Its best known feature is the 97 m main tower. In 1960 a Convair C-131 transport plane lost power on take-off, clipped the tower and crashed into the street, killing all 20 on board and 32 in a passing tram. The tower can be climbed to a viewing platform but only during Oktoberfest (donation, and weather dependent), commanding a view from the Wiesn festivities below to the Alps.
Striking modern Roman Catholic church completed in 1953. Even more striking are the five bells, which are trying their best to be heard in Hamburg.
Early 19th century Bavaria was a pawn in conflicts between Austria and Napoleonic France, so when Ludwig I came to the throne in 1825, he sought an iconic statue to symbolise Bavaria's strength and independence, and a hall of fame to celebrate its heroes. There was a design competition, and since Ludwig was a great admirer of classical Greece, that was the style that won. The ensemble was completed in 1850, and casting the 18.5 m female statue in bronze was a huge engineering challenge. A stairway within ascends to a viewing platform in her head, so you can see what she sees. It's mobbed and claustrophobic during Oktoberfest (when it opens late), as it looks onto the nearby Wiesn grounds. The Hall of Fame was bombed out in the Second World War but re-opened by 1972. The display of famous Bavarians is not static but evolves to recognise new stars. The Hall of Fame is closed during Oktoberfest.
This branch of Deutsches Museum is about transport of every kind. The main themes are urban transport, travel, and mobility and technology. The building was the halls of Münchner Messe, the trade fairs, until they moved out to the eastern suburbs.
Gärtnerplatztheater
Opulent theatre-house opened in 1865 and mainly showing opera, with occasional operettas, musicals, and ballets.
Grand theatre opened in 1896, the style is called neo-baroque but in this upmarket district the building doesn't greatly stand out. Early fare was music hall, popular comedy and light theatre. Nowadays their programme is mostly musicals, with some theatre, ballet and operetta. The theatre was extensively refurbished 2008-2014.
The theatre left its old venue on Brienner Straße in 2021 and now dwells down near the southside railway tracks. They offer an eclectic mix, often contemporary takes on the classics.
German fast-food, dishing up sausages, fries, beer and rock music late into the night. Reviewers continue to praise their Currywurst.
This Japanese restaurant continues to delight.
Reliable Turkish eatery with good menu selection.
Traditional German food with modern flair, plus popular but un-touristy beer garden.
Bistro with affordable Bavarian and international cuisine. There's seating outside and the indoor area has an Art Nouveau ceiling; the sports bar is mobbed during big matches.
This hotel restaurant caters to non-residents and gets great reviews. Look for the row of flags, including an LGBT flag to mark the hotel's history in the gay community, and usually a platter of raw mushrooms outside the main entrance. Sometimes they display a poisonous mushroom saying that it's for the mother-in-law, that's how inclusive they are.
Trad Bavarian restaurant with a theatre and cinema in the backyard: this was film director Fassbinder's favorite restaurant.
Comfy café-bar with 70s decor in homage to Munich's 1972 Olympics.
Japanese restaurant with a modern atmosphere and freshly prepared sushi and sashimi. They also have a large assortment of cocktails and Japanese whiskeys. Pricey, and some reviewers aren't convinced it's worth the extra.
Trad Bavarian fare, right by the station but doesn't feel tourist-trappy.
Beer garden and restaurant serving Augustiner with 1500 seats, on the park between Deutsches Museum Verkehrszentrum and the Bavaria Statue. It's also next to Theresienwiese the venue of Oktoberfest, but if you come out of there in need of a beer something's amiss.
Beer garden with 800 seats at the site of the original Paulaner brewery. Decent food and slick service, but some street noise from the busy intersection, so you can't imagine you've been hiking in the Bavarian forests.
This ship was a steamer on a Bavarian lake until 2016. It now perches on a railway bridge, an offbeat venue undecided whether it's The Flying Dutchman or The Flying Scotsman. It has beer, grills, live music, cabaret and disco, a beer garden, and from the upper deck surely the most unusual view over Munich.
Once a corner pub, this tiny venue has turned into a trendy bar and afterhours-club with disco feeling and live electro DJs.
Guests sit in comfy couches or at the long bar in this cozy place. They have over 100 varieties of gin. The club remains closed in 2022.
This rooftop bar on top of the Deutsches Museum, named after the science fiction silent movie by Fritz Lang from 1928, offers a view to the south over the Isar river and events with live DJs.
Perched on the tip of Museum Island, this is a bar with various live events. It compares itself to the urban beach of Paris Plage, it's more like a terrace overlooking the sandbanks as the Isar divides.
Lively weekend late-night bar, refurbished in 2022. The place downstairs, Mucki & Floyd, is no longer a night club.
A cozy bar specialising in gin. No food.
They bill themselves as a New York cocktail bar, which won't wash if you know New York, but mostly they get good reviews.
Bland modern exterior, within is a very chic cocktail bar. No table reservations so get there early, and cash only.
Techno club and alternative cultural centre that resides in graffiti-covered pile of ship containers. The inventory of the club includes many curiosities such as discarded subway cars, trams, construction cranes or carriages. The venue also has an outdoor rave area where the DJ resides within the cab of a decommissioned subway car. The operators also run the Alte Utting lake steamer which has somehow ended up on a railway bridge only a few minutes walk away and has become a bar.
Techno club in the former historic congress hall of the Deutsches Museum. One of the main venues for techno in Munich with a regular international DJ lineup. It also offers a series of gay events called Cruise. Note that the club has a strict ban on photography and filming.
formerly Cord
Live music club in city centre, mostly R&B.
Tiny art bar turning into an electro club at night.
Techno and house club with a wooden dance floor at Sendlinger Tor.
You're not drunk (yet), the dance floor really does careen at that angle. Clutch your drink firmly while balancing on worn out couches or wooden chairs in this long narrow music venue.
Small club and live music venue in the basement of an old business house with a focus on indie rock and post-punk.
Temporarily Closed. This club hosts indie bands. house or hip-hop music, and shows TV sport.
Venue that consists of several old circus tents and hosts techno club nights, indie rock concerts and wild fashion shows.
Clean hostel with good breakfast and friendly service.
Clean friendly convenient place.
Right by the station, cleaning erratic.
Basic but acceptable place southeast of station.
Right by the station, cleaning erratic.
Friendly lively central place.
Clean and comfortable lodgings, good place to meet other travellers.
Buzzing hostel, great central location. They have another in Werksviertel.
Basic central place, noise from station and street.
formerly Deutscher Kaiser
Good location and service, the decor is chain-bland but you'll be too busy in town to notice.
Great value for its location right by the station.
Good mid-price place close to Old Town.
Now part of ANA chain, this is a decent mid-price place.
A typical mid-range Courtyard property just south of Hauptbahnhof, good comfort and service.
Good value simple hotel.
Ugly slab of a building but very central. Mixed reviews for comfort.
Comfy central place, most rooms are small but they also have spacious family rooms.
Above-average comfort for this chain, if you can live with the lurid orange-tiled bathrooms.
Meliá, formerly Tryp
Small convenient mid-price place.
Friendly hotel 200 m east of main railway station.
Welcoming hotel, great location.
Marriott chain hotel, great location and comfy enough, but only mid-range quality for what you're paying.
This was the main post office, with a grand facade, but the inside is modern and efficient, and it's now part of Accor chain. Some noise and disruption from nearby construction.
formerly Karlstadt
This department store, built in 1904/05, fills the block between the railway station and Karlplatz S- and U-Bahn. It's got everything, and is very busy on Saturdays.
Shops for vinyl records are everywhere disappearing but Optimal record store, founded in 1982, is still going. These are new records, they don't run an exchange, and they also stock CDs, mags, books and wine. So that's your nostalgic weekend sorted. The stock is mostly techno, house and electro vinyl, and famous names from the vinyl era are occasionally seen here.
Record store dealing in electro, techno, house and disco vinyl and with artistic merchandise.
Hauptbahnhof: The main railway station has connections across Germany and beyond. See Munich#Get in for services and station facilities.
Read in the guideWalking is usually the best option, as most sights are in a compact area.
Read in the guideChoose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
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