What you'll hear
A walk through Munich’s beer history: from the Wittelsbach court brewery and the Hofbräuhaus via the Tal, the Viktualienmarkt and the Augustiner Stammhaus to the Theresienwiese and the Bavaria statue, ending in a beer garden under chestnut trees. About two and a half hours and roughly five and a half kilometres on foot. For anyone interested in history, city culture and traditions – no one needs to drink beer to enjoy it.
On the way
Alter Hof – the first court brewery
We begin in the courtyard of the Alter Hof, the first residence of the Wittelsbachs in Munich, where the court’s beer was born. From here we head east along Pfisterstraße, and in a couple of minutes the little square called Platzl opens up in front of us. We’re standing in the courtyard of the Alter Hof, the old town residence…
Hofbräuhaus am Platzl
We’re on the Platzl, at the most famous beer hall in the world. Next we walk south to the broad street called Tal, turn left towards the Isartor gate, and then into little Sterneckerstraße; about five minutes. In front of us is the Hofbräuhaus. In sixteen hundred and seven Duke Maximilian the First moved the court’s wheat-beer brewery here to…
Beer and Oktoberfest Museum
We’re in a quiet lane by the Isartor, in front of one of the oldest houses in the city, now home to the beer museum. We go back to the Tal and follow it towards Marienplatz as far as number seven, the Weisses Bräuhaus. This modest house on Sterneckerstraße is one of the oldest surviving dwelling houses in Munich: its…
Weisses Bräuhaus in the Tal
We’re at the house of wheat beer in the Tal, one of Munich’s oldest streets. We carry on to the Heiliggeistkirche, the Church of the Holy Spirit, walk around it, and behind it the Viktualienmarkt opens up; the beer garden is right in the middle of the market, by the maypole. We’re in the Tal, in front of the Weisses…
Viktualienmarkt beer garden
We’re in the heart of Munich’s main market, by its maypole and beer garden. Now we cross Marienplatz and head west along the pedestrian Kaufingerstraße, which becomes Neuhauser Straße; about ten minutes, and the next chapter will keep us company on the way. In the middle of the market rises the maypole, a tall pole painted with a white-and-blue spiral…
Augustiner Stammhaus
We’re on the old town’s main pedestrian street, at the house of Munich’s oldest brewery. Ahead lies the longest stretch, about twenty minutes: we go through the Karlstor gate to Karlsplatz, head south-west along Schwanthalerstraße, and at the end turn left to the Theresienwiese. On Neuhauser Straße stands the Augustiner Stammhaus, the ancestral home of Munich’s oldest brewery. It traces…
Theresienwiese – the Oktoberfest meadow
We’ve arrived at the Theresienwiese, the meadow where the Oktoberfest has been held for more than two hundred years. From here we cross the meadow westwards to the foot of the big bronze statue on the slope; about five minutes. In front of us lies the Theresienwiese, a huge open field that turns into a city of tents in September.…
Ruhmeshalle and the Bavaria statue
We’re on the slope above the Theresienwiese, at the Bavaria statue and the Ruhmeshalle – the last stop on our route. For the free walk we head north to the Hackerbrücke bridge over the railway tracks, and beyond it turn right along Arnulfstraße to the Augustiner-Keller beer garden; about twenty minutes. Above the meadow towers the Bavaria, a bronze woman…
Free walk: Augustiner-Keller
Our route is over. In front of us is the Augustiner-Keller, one of Munich’s largest beer gardens, spread out under old chestnut trees above the former beer cellars. From here, go wherever you like: sit in the shade, stroll to the main station or head back into the old town. It’s hard to get lost here, and the map in…
