Hotel near HBF Munich - safe area?

[BethAnnBitt 2,959]

In mid-July my very “bestest” friend and hubby will end a Danube cruise in Passau.  We’re gonna meet ‘em there and all go to Munich for a 3-day weekend before they fly back to Denver.  😊  Any idea what area near public trans is best to stay in?  Not renting a 🚘.  Any suggestions for “must see” places, hidden gems, walks/hikes, coffee & cake places, fun restaurants where the locals go, … ?  The one really touristy thing they wanna do (and I confess that I do too 😂) is to visit crazy Ludwig’s castle.  So we will, probably on Saturday, and I’ve gotta work on those logistics too.  Other than that it’s a wide open plan.  🙏   

[PandaMunich 16,704]

Do not stay near the Hauptbahnhof, that region is seedy.

Stay in the Altstadt instead, any stop on the airport train lines S8 and S1 will do just as well for your friends when it comes to going to the airport.

And for you, any stop will do for coming from/going to the central train station for your train.

 

I would suggest (in descending proximity to Marienplatz, which is at the centre of the Altstadt):

1. Beyond by Geisel: https://www.beyond-muc.de/en
    
2. Platzl Hotel (round the corner from the Hofbräuhaus): https://www.platzl.de/en/
    
3. Mercure Altstadt (join the Accorhotels free loyalty program to get an extra 10% off): https://all.accor.com/hotel/3709/index.en.shtml
    
4. Louis Hotel (directly at Viktualienmarkt, which is my favourite place in Munich. Big rooms with wooden floors): https://www.louis-hotel.com/en/
    
5. Hotel Torbräu (first mentioned in 1490. Especially beloved by Americans, since the staff there is US-type friendly and the tourists therefore don't get a culture shock): https://www.torbraeu.de/
    
6. Hotel Blauer Bock (first mentioned in 1572): https://hotelblauerbock.de/
   They offer 10€ off per room is at least one person in that room is over age 65 (see at the bottom of the page "Special rates" --> tab "Seniors": https://hotelblauerbock.de/general-information/#preisinformationen-en/
   Just off the Viktualienmarkt and opposite the Eataly Italian market, they have Italian staff, so the cappuccino in their small café is excellent, also try their tiny tartelette alla frutta (butter shortbread base, vanilla cream and a raspberry or blackberry on top), here's the recipe if you like it so much you want to try it at home: https://www.eataly.net/it_it/magazine/ricette/dolci-e-dessert/tartellette-crema-pasticcera-frutta-fresca
    

7. Hotel Bayerischer Hof (built in 1841): https://www.bayerischerhof.de/en/a-world-of-its-own/the-hotel/history.html
    

8. Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten (built in 1858): https://www.kempinski.com/en/hotel-vier-jahreszeiten
    

9. Hotel Splendid-Dollmann (built 1870): https://splendid-dollmann.de/en/gallery/
    

10. Hotel Opéra (built in 1898): http://www.hotel-opera.de/en/hotel-amenities/history/early-history
     

11. Motel One Sendlinger Tor (very small rooms, unless you book one of the 6 Komfortzimmer on the top floor, but they cost 30€ more per night. This is the best value choice and where I put up my relatives when they come to Munich): https://www.motel-one.com/en/hotels/munich/hotel-munich-sendlinger-tor/

 

Map of Munich public transport: https://tinyurl.com/munich-metro2023

 

Map of recommended restaurants: https://tinyurl.com/munich-restaurants

Have a look at the Ratskeller and at the Pfälzer Weinstube (excellent wine, for food, stick to their cheese) and I'm also particular to the Spatenhaus.

A visit to Munich is not complete without a visit to the Hofbräuhaus, who are also the only ones with live Bavarian brass music.

 

Map of recommended cafés: https://tinyurl.com/munich-cafes

A must-go is the Café Luitpold and its Luitpoldtorte.

 

**************************************************************************

 

Foodies' tour of Munich:

1. Walk from your hotel to Marienplatz (or take the S-Bahn).
   If you get there at 11am or noon, stand on the Marienplatz and watch and listen to the carillon in the facade of the town hall: https://www.muenchen.de/en/sights/attractions/new-town-hall
    
2. Then you stroll across our local farmers' market, the Viktualienmarkt (closed on Sunday!): https://www.muenchen.de/en/sights/attractions/viktualienmarkt-top-sight-munich
    
3. Walk to the Hofbräuhaus (built 1589) and have the standard glass of 1 litre of beer (in Germany, everybody age 16 or older is allowed to drink beer) and listen to the oompah brass band: https://www.hofbraeuhaus.de/en/welcome.html
    
4. Then walk through the historic city centre to the city palace of the Bavarian kings, the Residenz.
   Buy a ticket and go for a tour.
   http://www.schloesser.bayern.de/englisch/palace/objects/mu_res.htm
    
5. Now walk over to one of Munich's famous cafés and relax from all that sight-seeing:
   Dallmayr cafe (expensive!) inside the Dallmayr delicatessen store: https://www.dallmayr.com/deen/delicatessen/
   At least take a turn in the delicatessen store on the ground floor, it's a not to miss sight. I can recommend the apple puff pastries at 2.50€ to take away, from their cake counter: https://www.dallmayr-versand.de/Apfelrolle
   cake counter: https://s3-media2.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/Id8axrNgpJ4FJlagrt2cSA/o.jpg
   Photos of Dallmayr: https://www.yelp.de/biz_photos/alois-dallmayr-m%C3%BCnchen-2
   Dallmayr have been purveyors to the Bavarian kings since 1870.
    
6. Café Luitpold: Modern, sleek café that has been Munich's best café since 1888. Try the chocolate and white wine cream Luitpold-Torte named after the Prince Regent Luitpold.
   https://www.cafe-luitpold.de/confiserie-cafe/

[BethAnnBitt 2,959]

Thx a bunch @PandaMunich!  Just the sort of ℹ️ I was looking for.  And I remembered that you had once suggested a famous 🍰 place too!  😃

[fraufruit 42,185]

Wow! What a great tour guide Panda is!! Is there anything she can't help with?

 

If you guys will be going around with public transportation, I highly recommend the MVGO app. Very easy to use - even I can use it.

[PandaMunich 16,704]

At Dallmayr, I also recommend the Rum-Trüffel-Torte, it's at the left and right of this photo: https://www.dallmayr.com/fileadmin/_processed_/f/0/csm_bild3_1f275b8888.jpg

It now costs 26.50€ for an entire small 18cm diameter Torte, or 4.50€ for a slice of a standard-sized Torte: https://www.dallmayr-versand.de/Rum-Trueffel-TorteStueck

 

It has its own Toytown thread, it's that good 

[keith2011 2,648]

I concur with Panda that the area around the Hbf is seedy and is not helped by the major works going on and around the station itself but there are some nice hotels there and it is safe. Pre Covid I did a couple of night shifts counting people using the night trams at the Hbf it was pretty quiet even before midnight and very dead after 2 am with just a blip with numbers of good looking young smartly dressed ladies with small suitcases appearing between 4-5 am and it took us a little while to figure out they were the dancers from the strip and table dance joints going home at closing time!

I also recommend the Hofbräuhaus if you and your friends have never visited, if you go mid morning you can have Weisswürst for breakfast and still get music when the band starts up at midday and if you prefer and it's a nice day you can sit outside in the hof, evenings are also fun but can be rowdy.

If you like fish for lunch or snack I recommend Fisch Maier on the Vikmarkt, it has a steh cafe (now with stools) not the adjacent sit down places (which are the much more expensive)  their prices for fish semmels, soup and fishcakes are very civil as is their wine by the glass or bottle.

[yesterday 2,022]

Panda hotels look very nice they are some of the best in Munich, When the US president comes to stay in Munich, they stay at the   Bayerischer Hof   or the  Vier Jahreszeite, but you can be paying more than 500 Euro for a room for 2 per night with breakfast, most people living in Munich would only need to spend 4 nights there to pay for a nice apartments' in Munich for a month

 

My company normally puts people up at this place  DESIGN HOTEL STADT ROSENHEIM MÜNCHEN | AU-HAIDHAUSEN | PREISE VON €203 (munichbesthotels.com)

Its still a bit expensive but it is nice, in an area with lots of bars and restaurants, and you can get into the center in  5mins with the U-bahn and S-bahn or ( slower ) on the tram.

 

Maybe try  Hotel München East Side Motel One | Design Hotels München East Side (motel-one.com) , this is a bit further away, but its a short walk to the main East train station and you can sometimes get a double room for around 80 Euro's. Its a new hotel so it should be in good condition, its not too far away from the above hotel and the area is not seedy

 

If you want to go to Neuschwanstein, I would recommend you do get car, so you can also visit either 1 or 2 off his other castles, one on herrenchiemsee and the other called linderhof.  You can get to Neuschwanstein by train and bus, but it will be quicker to go by car, and you do not have much time in Munich - so you are going to have to choose things you want to  do.

 

3 days, will not cut it, but the main tourist attractions include, Nymphenburg Castle, English Garden ( make sure you see the surfers), Olympic site, Residence,  Marienplatz and Hofbrauhaus. There are many many other things to ...

 

[optimista 5,887]

Hotel St. Paul, Paulsplatz, for a lower budget fine place to sleep joint.

Never understood the attraction of the Englisher Garten. I would rather send you to the much underrated West Park at the far end of which there is a rose garden and Biergarten amongst its other charms. Just follow the water.

 

 

[fraufruit 42,185]

5 hours ago, BethAnnBitt said:

Thx a bunch @PandaMunich!  Just the sort of ℹ️ I was looking for.  And I remembered that you had once suggested a famous 🍰 place too!  😃

 

I don't see where they are looking to go on the cheap.

[optimista 5,887]

Hidden gem, anyone ?

[Santitas 589]

We stayed at relaxa hotel München back in 2018 and really enjoyed our stay. The beds were ginormous and really comfy and the room was spotless and didn’t look like Oma, like many hotels in Germany 😅

The breakfast was also really good.

Would definitely stay there again!

 

[yesterday 2,022]

On 04/02/2023, 19:29:08, fraufruit said:

 

I don't see where they are looking to go on the cheap.

 

Dont see where they indicated that they needed to be treated like the US president either

 

Just trying to give choice, which is always important

[BethAnnBitt 2,959]

Thx a bunch to each one of you that responded.  I looked at every single hotel that was suggested, and more, and you all helped me get a good feel for the layout.  I even considered Airbnb stuff.  In the end I just now booked 2 basic rooms, 16 sq meters (unfortunately no upgrades were available anymore), at the Motel One Sendlinger Tor for 3 nights in mid-July for 119€ a night.  I need to decide if we should add on Frühstück at 16€ a head, but am inclined to wanna hit cafes and have variety.  According to my research I got a good price given the location and season, and that budget hotel gets high marks for cleanliness, a tick for me.  😂  I was very lucky to get something decent, at a reasonable price, this late.  🙏 
 

I’m leaning towards booking a tour with bus that hits all the castles instead of car rental.  It appears there are better worse, larger/smaller tours, and with the hotel savings I can splurge for a nicer tour.  But that decision is for later.  👋 and 🙏 again folks!

[PandaMunich 16,704]

21 hours ago, BethAnnBitt said:

Motel One Sendlinger Tor for 3 nights in mid-July for 119€ a night.  I need to decide if we should add on Frühstück at 16€ a head, but am inclined to wanna hit cafes and have variety.  

You will like it there 

The only downside is how small their standard room is. They even have air conditioning, which may come in useful in July.

 

Yes, the breakfast at the Motel One isn't good value.

I suggest just going across the street to Woerner's Café at Herzog-Wilhelm-Str. 29 (no. 13 on the map), they also have tables in front, on their terrace.

 

I've gone through the café map, two of the locations didn't survive the Corona lockdowns. No. 2 has been changed to Café Maelu (with the most expensive cakes in Munich, but their cappuccino is excellent and normally priced) and no. 15 is a French Pâtisserie which actually risked opening during Corona, a gamble that paid off (a bit expensive, but very good pastries and café au lait): https://tinyurl.com/munich-cafes

And I've updated the breakfast menu at Dallmayr's café 

 

Café am Salvatorplatz's (no. 11 on the map) gedeckter Apfelkuchen (it's big and heavy squares of buttery Mürbteig with not too sweet fresh apple filling with almonds in the filling and a Zuckerglasur on top) is the best in Munich, but it sells out fast. This café is located on the ground floor of the Bavarian Ministry of Education, and they also appreciate that apple cake. Should the Apfelkuchen be sold out, their Apfeltasche is actually the same as the one sold at Dallmayr (Dallmayr sources it from them).

Their quiche is also good.

They have daily lunch specials at 7.20€, see "Speisen und Getränke" at "Café am Salvatorplatz" (scroll down): https://www.muenchner-freiheit.de/standorte

This week's menu: https://muenchner-freiheit-strapi-production.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/Wochenkarte_Salvatorplatz_20230206_eec15275d2.pdf