Foreign drivers require proof of insurance and their national driving licence – a Green Card is strongly recommended. A country identification sticker must be displayed on the vehicle.

By Air

Flughafen München Franz Joseph Strauss – Munich International Airport (MUC)
Tel: (089) 97500 or 9752 1313 (24-hour flight information).
Website: www.munich-airport.de

The airport is located 28km (17 miles) northeast of the city centre and is Germany’s most important international gateway, after Frankfurt. Approximately 200 destinations are served by scheduled and charter flights.

Major airlines: Lufthansa (tel: (01803) 803 803; website: www.lufthansa.com) is German’s principal airline serving the airport. Munich is also served by major international carriers including Air France, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, Go, Hapag Lloyd, Iberia, KLM, Ryanair, Thai Airways International and United Airlines.

Approximate flight times to Munich: From London is 1 hour 45 minutes; from New York is 7 hours 45 minutes; from Los Angeles is 14 hours 40 minutes; from Toronto is 8 hours 20 minutes and from Sydney is 21 hours 55 minutes.

Airport facilities: Facilities include banks, bureaux de change, tourist information, an automated hotel reservation service, a 24-hour medical emergency centre, pharmacy, post office, duty-free and other shops, bars, restaurants and executive lounges. Car hire is available from ADAC, Avis, Europcar, Hertz, National and Sixt.

Business facilities: Located in the Munich Airport Centre (MAC), the Municon Business Service Centre, Conference Centre, Nord Ebene Level 08 (tel: (089) 9759 3200; fax: (089) 9759 3206; website: www.municon.de), has well equipped conference rooms. The main Service Centre is in the central area, MAC Level 03, and offers credit card phones, as well as fax and copying services. There are also a number of airport executive lounges.

Arrival/departure tax: Included in the price of the flight ticket.

Transport to the city: Autobus Oberbayern (tel: (089) 323 040; website: www.autobusoberbayern.de) runs a bus service to the Hauptbahnhof every 20 minutes, daily 0620-2140 (journey time – 45 minutes), costing EUR9 one way or EUR14.50 return. During large exhibitions, another service runs to the Messe München every 30 minutes, 0800-1800 (journey time – 45 minutes) and is free with a valid exhibition entry ticket (otherwise EUR9-14.50). MVV (tel: (089) 4142 4344; website: www.mvv-muenchen.de) commuter trains S1 and S8 run daily, every 20 minutes 0435-0015, Saturday and Sunday from 0535 (S1) and 0405-0105 (S8) to various stops, including the Hauptbahnhof (journey time – 40 minutes) and cost EUR8 (concessions are available). A taxi from the airport to the city centre costs about EUR50.

By Rail

Deutsche Bahn – DB (tel: (01805) 996 633; website: www.bahn.de) is the national service provider. Information and reservations are also available from DB’s UK office (tel: +44 (0870) 243 5363; website: www.deutsche-bahn.co.uk) and from Rail Europe (website: www.raileurope.co.uk).

Germany’s rail network is modern, extensive and highly efficient. National and international services include high-speed InterCityExpress (ICE) trains, which run between major cities in Germany and further afield, InterCity (IC) and EuroCity (EC) trains, which serve cities in Germany and Europe respectively, and InterRegio trains, which link different regions of the country. DB offers a number of rail passes including the Bayern-Ticket, valid for one day’s travel on local trains throughout Bavaria and on the MVV public transport system. The ticket costs EUR21, for up to two adults and three children.

Munich’s Hauptbahnhof (Central Station) is situated at Bahnhofsplatz 2, in the centre of the city. The main ticket office is open Monday to Friday 0600-2200 and Saturday and Sunday 0630-2200. Information on pan-European rail travel is available in English from the EurAide office (tel: (089) 593 889; website: www.euraide.com), in room three, along platform 11. Facilities at the station are extensive and include a hotel, shops, travel bureaux, left luggage, cafés, restaurants, bicycle hire, a children’s museum, Internet café, showers, a pharmacy, hairdressers, bureau de change, newsagents, a bank, chapel and first aid.

Rail services: There is an ICE service daily, from Dortmund via Düsseldorf, Cologne and Mannheim, from Hamburg via Hanover and Kassel, as well as from Berlin via Frankfurt and Stuttgart or via Nuremberg. The ICE-Sprinter between Frankfurt and Munich takes 3 hours 15 minutes. A sleeper service – InterCityNight (ICN) – runs between Munich and Berlin or Hamburg (journey time – 7 hours). InterRegio trains run from Dresden to Munich. International services arrive from Salzburg, Lindau and Venice, via Innsbruck (journey time – 7 hours). The fastest EC service to/from Paris takes 8 hours 30 minutes.

Transport to the city: The Hauptbahnhof is at the heart of the urban transport network, with connections to most U-Bahn lines, all S-Bahn lines and several bus and tram lines. Taxis are also plentiful.

GETTING AROUND

Public Transport
The comprehensive transport network is run by the Münchener Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund GmbH – MVV, Thierschstrasse 2 (tel: (089) 4142 4344; website: www.mvv-muenchen.de). This consists of an integrated system of 20 Strassenbahn (tram) lines, 83more than 80 bus lines, 8 U-Bahn (underground) lines and 8 S-Bahn (suburban train) lines. The area covered by the MVV is divided into concentric zones.

All transport runs daily 0500-0100, with additional hourly services on night buses and trams 0100-0500. Tickets can be purchased from blue ticket machines marked with the MVV logo and from other ticket outlets. Tickets must be validated in blue Entwerter machines, marked with the letter ‘E’, upon boarding – except on new trams, for which pre-validated tickets are available. Passengers found without a valid ticket are subject to a EUR30 fine. Single fares start at EUR2 for one zone – the cost of a Kurzstrecke (very short journey) is EUR1. Strips of ten tickets (Streifenkarten) are available for EUR9 – two strips must be validated for each zone travelled through.

A one-day pass (Single-Tageskarte) costs between EUR4.50 for the central area and EUR9 for the entire network. Three-day tickets for the central zone cost EUR11. All of the above are available as Partner Tickets, valid for up to five adults and costing a little less than two single passes.

Taxis
Taxis are usually beige Mercedes and can be safely hailed on the street. Taxi-München (tel: (089) 21610 or 19410) is the central dispatching service. The flat rate is EUR2.60, if ordered by telephone, or EUR1, if entered at a taxi stand or on the street, plus EUR1.35 for every kilometre travelled. A tip of 5-10% is common practice.

Limousines
Rent-a-limousine, Anselweg 2 (tel: (089) 1799 8787; website: www.rent-a-limousine.com), charges from EUR150 for an E-Class Mercedes sedan for three hours, including Rent-a-limousine, the first 60km (37 miles). Alternatively, SEL Limousine Service, Neufahrner Strasse 5-9 (tel: (089) 3293 3222; fax: (089) 3293 3100; e-mail: sel@limousines.de; website: www.limousines.de), charges from EUR180 for three hours, including 75km (47 miles), plus EUR1.50 for additional kilometre.

Driving in the City
Traffic can be heavy, particularly during rush hour (roughly 0700-0900 and 1600-1800) and parking is often problematic. Drivers should note that trams always have priority in the city, although driving on their tracks is permissible and usually unavoidable. Buses have priority when leaving stops.

The most useful car parks include those at Karlsplatz, particularly towards the Hauptbahnhof, and at Färbergraben, just south of the pedestrianised Kaufingerstrasse. Parking is generally around EUR1.50 for half an hour, EUR3 for an hour or EUR15 for the day, although prices vary.

Car Hire
Drivers need to be at least 21 years to hire a category one car. Nevertheless, small cars, such as a Smart car, can be hired at 18 years. Insurance in Germany is mandatory and drivers must hold a valid national driving licence.

There are numerous car hire firms, both at the airport and in the city. Central locations of representative major providers, with late hours, include Hertz, Bahnhofsplatz 2 (tel: (089) 550 2256; website: www.hertz.de), and Avis, Im Hauptbahnhof (tel: (089) 550 2252; website: www.avis.de); Autoverleih Sander, Leopoldstrasse 107 (tel: (089) 348 046; website: www.sander-autoverleih.de) is a local alternative. The average price for a small car is EUR45, plus EUR20 insurance per day, although prices do vary.

Bicycle & Scooter Hire
Call A Bike (tel: (0800) 522 5522; website: www.callabike.de), run by DB, has bikes spread over Munich. By ringing the (above) number, a credit card account is set up, which enables customers to release the electronically locked bike by inputting a pin code. When finished, the cyclist returns the bike to a bike rack, which are situated near any major intersection. The appropriate fee is then deducted from the credit card. Charges are EUR1.80 initial rate, plus EUR0.03 per minute – after the total reaches EUR15 (after 8 hours 20 minutes), rental is free until 24 hours, when the process starts again. Once an account and pin code are set up, any available bike can be used at any time.

Bikes can be hired in the ordinary way for EUR17 per day, from May to October, at Radius Touristik in the Hauptbahnhof, opposite platform 32 (tel: (089) 596 113; website: www.radius-munich.com). They offer maps and advice and can organise tours if reserved beforehand. Spurwechsel, Sankt-Martin-Strasse 9 (tel: (089) 692 4699; website: www.spurwechsel-muenchen.de), also hires out bicycles. Allround Auto- und Motorradvermietung GmbH, Boschetsriederstrasse 12 (tel: (089) 723 2343; website: www.allroundrent.de), hires cars, motorbikes and scooters – the latter cost EUR20 for 24-hours.

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