World City Guide

Hotels

Munich entices both business and leisure travellers all year round and accommodation is among the most expensive in Germany, especially during the famous Oktoberfest, when prices hit the ceiling. However, it is always worth asking for special rates. Hotel prices usually include VAT at 16% and a buffet breakfast.

The hotels below have been classed into four different pricing categories (prices are for double rooms, including breakfast and VAT):

$ (up to ¬100 per night)
$$ (¬100 to ¬150 per night)
$$$ (¬150 to ¬200 per night)
$$$$ (over ¬200 per night).

Business

City Hilton
Like most hotels belonging to this international chain, including the older Park Hilton at Am Tucherpark, the City Hilton spoils its visitors with all the luxuries of a good five-star hotel. Franz Josef Strauss Airport is just 35 minutes away via a subway connection beneath the hotel. Catering for the hectic lifestyle of the business traveller, laundry, ironing and shoe polishing services are promptly available. Spacious rooms equipped with TV, mini-bar, air conditioning and modem point come as standard. The hotel is well geared up for conferences, corporate functions for up to 550 people and presentations of all kinds. After a hard day’s work, guests can enjoy the relaxing massage, fitness and spa facilities. If work gets in the way of using the hotel’s own restaurant, room service can be ordered around the clock.

Rosenheimer Strasse 15
Tel: (089) 48040.
Website: www.hilton.com
Price: $$$.

Hotel Advokat
The atmosphere of this exquisite and tasteful design hotel is calm, light and fresh, which attracts young and trendy professionals. Its bright rooms and elegant layout present a welcome haven from the hustle of the city. The colour schemes and furniture are kept in creams and whites, natural woods and plush fabrics. The hotel has 50 rooms, each with private facilities and Internet access. There are no conference facilities, although the hotel is just a short walk away from the Forum der Technik, which provides such facilities. Business travellers will enjoy the opportunity to relax on the quiet roof terrace; reading, resting, being spoilt by complimentary hot and cold drinks, fruit and snacks. Its impressive breakfast buffet is well suited for morning business meetings. Centrally located, next to the Isartor Gate, the start of Munich’s main shopping district, the hotel offers a great base from which to explore nearby galleries and museums.

Baaderstrasse 1
Tel: (089) 216 310.
Website: www.hotel-advokat.de
Price: $$.

Luxury

Bayerischer Hof
This prestigious residence houses a legendary institution on Munich’s hotel scene. Privately owned and run by one family for over 100 years, Bayerischer Hof welcomes an upscale international clientele. The industrialist Ernst von Siemens apparently rented one of the luxurious suites here for most of his life. The grand hotel boasts classical halls and foyers, a swimming pool on the top-floor terrace, designer shops, a theatre and a jazz nightclub all under one roof. Its opulent rooms vary in decorative style – some are very romantic and English, designed by Laura Ashley, others feature a south European country house theme or a French 19th-century palace ambience. Located in the heart of Munich, the hotel hosts many prominent functions and award parties for Germany’s high society. Nevertheless, special rates on rooms or wining and dining in its various restaurants and bars are regularly offered.

Promenadeplatz 2-6
Tel: (089) 21200.
Website: www.bayerischerhof.biz
Price: $$$$.

Kempinski Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten
This renowned hotel is one of the most luxurious and stylish places to stay in Bavaria’s sophisticated metropolis. Situated on the splendid boulevard of Maximilianstrasse, amid the finest art galleries, theatres and shops of the city, the hotel accommodates the rich, famous and beautiful. Each of its elegant rooms, which are divided into business, classic and deluxe categories, combine historic charm and magic with every possible high-tech comfort, such as telephone with voice-mail, modem point, TV with Internet and PlayStation games. The hotel’s restaurant serves award-winning traditional cuisine. If the budget is too tight for all of this, then at least the hotel bar is worth a visit, seeing as it claims to have the best pianist in the world.

Maximilianstrasse 17
Tel: (089) 21250.
Website: www.kempinski-vierjahreszeiten.de
Price: $$$$.

Moderate

Hotel Mercure Königin Elisabeth
Situated in the pretty but more remote quarter of Neuhausen, with the airport only half an hour away and Munich Hauptbahnhof within ten minutes, Königin Elisabeth is a traditional hotel that offers good value for money. All rooms are a comfortable size and come equipped with shower, TV and mini-bar; the ones facing the courtyard at the back are quieter. Leisure is also at hand, with access to the large fitness area featuring a sauna and solarium.

Leonrodstrasse 79
Tel: (089) 126 860.
Website: www.accorhotels.com
Price: $$.

Monachia
This fairly small hotel belongs to the mid-range Garni Hotel chain and is proof of the chain’s reliable and affordable reputation. The area might not be the most fashionable but it is conveniently close to Munich Hauptbahnhof, which is the hub for the urban as well as the national transport network. The hotel fulfils general basic standards, with TV and telephone in every room, so is for travellers with simple needs. There are 25 en-suite rooms (ten with baths and 15 with showers) and five rooms without en suite facilities. The professional team offers a friendly and generous service above expectation. The hotel also operates a special scheme for the young traveller on a low budget, called McBed.

Senefelderstrasse 3
Tel: (089) 555 281.
Website: www.monachia-hotel.de
Price: $.

Other Recommendations

Olympic
This is where spoilt journalists and actors love to stay – partly because of its beautiful and trendy location and partly because of the combination of English colonial style and traditional Bavarian architecture of this rather unusual hotel. Its 32 rooms are tastefully furnished and follow a unique design scheme throughout. Olympic is the perfect hotel for anybody who requires comfortable but stylish living – and will satisfy the modern traveller. Definitely a hotspot to be seen at but still kept a secret from all but the in-crowd.

Hans-Sachs-Strasse 4
Tel: (089) 231 890.
Website: www.hotel-olympic.de
Price: $$.

Opera Hotel
Only a short walk from the English Garden and the Bavarian National Museum, the perfectly restored and charming Opera Hotel profits not only from its central location but also from its style and originality. With attention to detail, the previous owner has decorated each room in a different colour and furnished all of them with original antiques. All floors are marble and add a majestic touch to this intimate little hotel that glows with a special private ambience. While the facilities are standard, such as TV, telephone and en-suite bathroom, the rooms are spacious and a concierge service can provide assistance for business or leisure arrangements. The Renaissance-style garden, with its shady arcades, provides peaceful shelter in hot summers, while the luxurious conservatory can be enjoyed on cold winter days.

St-Anna-Strasse 10
Tel: (089) 210 4940.
Website: www.hotel-opera.de
Price: $$$.