Day trips from Munich

Great ideas for Day-trips from Munich

Just in case you weren't sure, Munich is the capital city of Germany's largest state, Bavaria (German: Bayern).
Regional Bavaria is very well connected to the capital, so Munich makes an excellent base for days-trips and excursions.
Here are some great ideas for exploring Bavaria, your portal for exploring this beautiful region!

Map of day trips from Munich

Every pin on this map is a day trip I’ve written up. Click one and you’ll get a link straight to the page. Munich is pinned too, so you can see at a glance how far out each one is.

DAY TRIPS MAP: click a pin for the guide. Open the map full screen

1. The factual fairytale

Think of romantic Germany and one indelible image comes to mind – Neuschwanstein Castle.

It’s the stuff of fairytales, an old oddball’s dream, a majestic mix of structure and landscape and one of Europe’s biggest tourist magnets.

Destination Munich has six pages on Neuschwanstein castle including practical info, opportunities for organised tours from Munich and, of course, plenty of photos,

• Go to the main Neuschwanstein Castle Germany page
• Pictures of Neuschwanstein Castle

Bavaria’s most beautiful lake

Emerald water, cliffs on every side and a boatman who plays his flugelhorn to the mountains. My guide to doing the Königssee near Berchtesgaden as a day trip from Munich:
• Koenigssee

Bikes, a tent and a monastery

Painted houses, the Passion Play village, a bike ride to Linderhof Palace and a Baroque abbey whose monks brew their own beer. Plus the rules for taking your bike on German trains:
• Oberammergau and Ettal

A town hall in a river

UNESCO-listed Bamberg, under two hours from Munich on the ICE. Little Venice, Venetian gondolas, a pope’s tomb and beer that tastes of smoke:
• Bamberg

A palace fit for a bishop

Tiepolo’s enormous staircase fresco, a Hofgarten that turns gold in autumn and, on the way home, Aschaffenburg’s red castle and a Roman villa built for Ludwig I:
• Würzburg Residenz

Baroque over the border

Mozart’s home town is just over the border in Austria, and you can get there on a Bayern-Ticket. Domes, fountains, a fortress on a rock, two hills to climb and the Sound of Music gardens:
• Salzburg day trip
• Salzburg pictures

The postcard town

Half-timbered houses, a town wall you can walk all the way round, the Master Draught clock and Schneeballen pastries. Rothenburg is a long day trip but a famous one:
• Rothenburg ob der Tauber

A hidden gem on the Danube

A Renaissance palace with a painted courtyard, grand Baroque squares and a lovely stretch of the Danube, without the crowds:
• Neuburg an der Donau

Castles, sausages and Christmas

Franconia’s big city has an imperial castle, a riverside old town, finger-sized sausages, the most famous Christmas market in Germany and the Nazi Party Rally Grounds:
• Nuremberg

Two thousand years on the Danube

A 12th-century bridge the devil helped build (or so the legend goes), a Gothic cathedral, a Roman gate and the world’s oldest sausage kitchen. Regensburg is a UNESCO World Heritage town:
• Regensburg

2. Climb every mountain

Strap on your hiking boots and explore the mountains behind Neuschwanstein Castle. Let me show you the way to the top of the:
• Tegelberg

3. A sacred mound of fine beer

On a hill about 40km south-west of Munich you'll find Kloster Andechs. It's home to a Benedictine monastery, a church and one of the most loved beer gardens in the whole state.
Make your own pilgrimage to this most holy spot.
• Kloster Andechs

4. Bewitching town in Bavaria's north

Discovering Amberg is like finding a $50 note in your coat pocket you didn't know you had - wonderful, unexpected and oh so welcome. Here you can get a taste of "untouched" Bavaria.
• Amberg

5. Natural wonder

The Partnachklamm is a natural gorge near the Bavarian Alpine town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
Walk its length and soak up the natural beauty - as well as the spray from the waterfalls overhead.
• Partnachklamm
• Partnachklamm picture gallery

6. Home on the range

Bavarian King Ludwig II had an unusual ritual for his birthday celebrations: He’d go high into the Alps and lounge about an extravagant Oriental parlour. You can reach his Königshaus am Schachen (King’s House on the Schachen) on a day hike from Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
• Kongishaus am Schachen
• Konigshaus Picture gallery.

7. The top 10 biggest cities in Bavaria

There are a lot more quaint urban landscapes out there in Bavaria beyond Munich.
Get some day-tripping ideas from this illustrated guide to the top 10 biggest cities in Bavaria after the Weisswirst Capital.
• Cities in Bavaria

9. Herrenchiemsee Palace - Ludwig's Versailles?

Ludwig's most expensive creation sits on an island in lake near the Alps. Bold and beautiful, the Herrenchiemsee Palace is a fantastic day-trip from Munich.
• Herrenchiemsee Palace
• Herrenchiemsee pictures
• Fraueninsel in winter, the little island next door, with its Christmas market

8. Linderhof Palace - Work of a genius?

Former Bavarian King Ludwig II is known by many names: The Mad King, the Swan King, the Fairytale King, the Gay King, the Night King.
You'll be calling him the Brilliant King after seeing the Alpine palace he designed
• Schloss Linderhof
• Linderhof pictures

10. Popuar ski resorts near Munich

Where are best places to ski in Bavaria? Find out here. Skiing enthusiast Steve Rout has put together this great story so you'll get the most out of your Bavarian skiing adventure.
• Ski resorts near Munich

Germany's top 21 attractions

Most of these aren't doable as day-trips from Munich but it's a fascinating list nonetheless. The top 21 cool attractions in Germany - as voted by you in a German National Tourist Board survey - will surprise you.
• Germany's top 21 attractions

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Take an organized tour

Want an organized tour into Bavaria? Here's one I can recommend. It'll take you up to Bavaria's second city, Nuremburg, a city famous for its beauty and historical importance. One of the most interesting day trips from Munich I can think of!