Although I don’t quite love Planning my trips quite as much as being on them, travel planning comes a very very close second. I love putting together itineraries, even if I don’t eventually go on them (what I mean is, I often travel plan for my friends too). Endless google searches and saved instagrams and pinterest boards plant themselves firmly in my internet history, although my favourite way to plan is through using well loved guide books.

Hey, I’m a child of the 80s after all.

And what I’m planning for right now is so exciting – four whole nights in Munich, Germany. In the unofficial capital of southern Germany and heart of Bavaria, I’m planning incredible day trips, gorgeous views, plenty of walking and of course lots and lots of beer It would be rude not to.

Now I’ve officially started the planning process with my well thumbed guide book, I thought I’d share with you some of the things I’m planning to do when I touchdown over Easter. I’d love to know your top Munich tips in the comments too!

A fairytale visit to Neuschwanstein Castle

Visiting this castle has been at the top of my agenda for many many years, not just because it is probably the absolute prettiest castle I’ve ever seen, but also because it is said to be the inspiration behind Disney’s famous princess castle. And looking at the pictures I can see why!

Set deep in the Bavarian forest, it is actually quite a distance from Munich, but Munich is the closest big city so we extended our usual city break trip length by a day to make sure we could fit in seeing this wonderful castle and of the amazing views we’ll have! We are planning to catch a train there and back, but I’d love any tips from those that have been there about the best way of visiting.

Bar-hopping around Munich’s many Bavarian beer halls

So it wouldn’t be Germany, Munich or Bavaria if we didn’t have a beer or five. I feel like Munich is best known for the annual beer festival of Oktoberfest, and seeing as we are visiting at March I definitely want to uncover a different side to the city. But I also want to drink great beer, as I’ll have Mr S in tow.

We visited an incredible old Bavarian style beer hall in Prague, so I definitely want to find more of the same in Munich. We are already planning a meal at well known brewery Weisses Brauhause and the Hofbrauhaus is really well known by tourists so I’m sure we won’t be able to resist a visit. However I also want to make sure we head to somewhere super traditional so Augustiner Keller is on our list, and if the weather holds out a trip to Munich’s largest beer garden (holding 8,000 people!), at Hirschgarten will be on the cards!

Getting my culture on in Munich’s many fantastic museums

Munich has so many incredible museums, and whilst I might not be able to visit them all in a short break, I’ve definitely made a big list of those that I definitely want to pop in to. On my list so far is:

• The Munich Residence (the former royal palace of the Bavarian monarchs)
• Deutsches Museum (the largest science and technology museum in the world
• Kartoffel Museum (yep, a museum dedicated to potatoes. And I’m here for it)
• NS-Dokumentationszentrum (dedicated to the history of anti-semitism and racism)

This is quite the eclectic collection, and I’m sure we’ll come across many others on our trip but I think these four museums will give us some of the best things Munich has to offer. And potatoes. I’ve already made a decision not to visit the Dachau concentration camp having already seen both Sachsenhausen in Berlin and Auschwitz in Poland but if you are planning a trip to Munich I’d definitely suggest you go.

Taking a self-guided walk around Marienplatz and Munich’s Old Town

Regular readers of my city guides and itineraries will know that I often book myself on a free walking tour on the first day of my trip. Well this time, I’m mixing it up a little and taking us on a self guided walk using the new Marco Polo guide that they have released for Munich. The guide includes four fantastic discovery tours (with an awesome touring app to go with them), and the “Munich at a Glance” tour is perfect for a history and architecture lover like me.

We are going to start at Munich’s most famous square (the Marienplatz), and from there visit markets, climb the oldest church tower in the city, watch the Glockenspiel and visit the English Garden. I’m really excited to see how I get on during a self guided tour, and I’ll definitely report back in my city guide next month.

I’m so excited to be visiting Munich (not least because it’s going to be an overwhelmingly different vibe to Berlin and I really want to see a different side to Germany). Please let me have any of your attraction, food and drink recommendations in the comments!

**This post was sponsored by Marco Polo, but my hype for a Munich city break is 100% mine!

ENJOYED THIS POST? PLEASE PIN IT!

The post Planning an incredible Easter in Munich, the Bavarian capital appeared first on As The Sparrow Flies.