Where to stay in Bavaria: the 3 areas to know in 2026
The Bavaria our members have documented comes down to three towns, and that is the first thing to know before you book. Munich carries 29 of our 40 reviews, Schwangau ten, Ettal one. Nuremberg, Bamberg, Würzburg and Regensburg exist in our listings and have received no reviews at all: this guide will not talk about them.
Two measurements decide the rest. Beer carries eleven of our 40 reviews, and all eleven are in Munich, three of them pushing back against it: "and yes, Munich isn't all about beer!!!" And six of our nine reviews of Neuschwanstein Castle reach for the fairy tale, for a visit that lasts thirty minutes. Three areas below, and one real question: do you sleep below the castles, or head back to Munich for the night?
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A very beautiful place that is worth taking a day to make the trip and visit.
One base or several?
Our reviews give eight durations, and almost all of them are about Munich: three sights in the city claim half a day or more on their own. At the castles it is the other way round, the visit lasts thirty minutes and it is the journey that takes the day.
- A long weekend: Munich, three nights, no car. Our reviews give three full half-days there, the English Garden, Nymphenburg Palace and the Pinakothek der Moderne, with the centre covered on foot in between.
- A week: Munich then Schwangau: four nights in the city, one below the castles. The night in Hohenschwangau does not buy a longer visit, it buys the first slot of the morning, which our review recommends booking in advance.
- Ten days: Add Ettal, two nights, between the other two. It is Ludwig II's third castle and our only review says the opposite of Neuschwanstein about it: small, detailed, not oversized.
- Two weeks: Extend Munich rather than invent a stop: the Allianz Arena, the Deutsches Museum and BMW Welt each carry a review and none of them fits into a morning. The rest of Bavaria has received no reviews from our members.
How much driving between two bases?
Everything starts from Munich, the only town in the guide with an airport and a connecting station. The direct train takes a little over two hours to reach Füssen, four kilometres from the castles; the car only saves half an hour. Inside the city, our reviews are unanimous: tram, metro and walking.
| Route | Driving time | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Munich → Schwangau | 1 h 45 | 120 km on the A96 then the B17 |
| Munich → Füssen | 2 h 10 | direct train every two hours |
| Munich → Ettal | 1 h 15 | 90 km on the A95 then the B23 |
| Schwangau → Ettal | 1 h 15 | 60 km via Steingaden |
| Marienplatz → Nymphenburg | 20 min | tram 17 |
| Marienplatz → l'Allianz Arena | 20 min | metro U6, Fröttmaning |
| Marienplatz → l'Englischer Garten | 10 min | metro U3 or U6, Universität |
At a glance: our picks by traveller type
Pick the profile that fits you and go straight to the recommended area.
Map of the areas in Bavaria
See how the areas sit relative to one another before choosing your base. Click a name to jump to its description.
Munich Altstadt, Maxvorstadt, Schwabing, Neuhausen
29 of our 40 reviews, and the only town where beer comes up at all
Four of our five reviews of the city say the same thing, and it is a lodging argument: you do it on foot. "You can visit it on foot", "the pedestrianised old centre is very pleasant", "a picturesque pedestrian centre", "the city is easy to explore on foot". One member adds the other half of the reasoning, "well-connected by public transport", which the reviews of the outlying sights confirm: the Allianz Arena "is easily reached by tram", Nymphenburg is "a little way out of Munich, but relatively easy to get to". Sleeping outside the old walls therefore costs you twenty minutes, not a day. Which district to pick is settled on our city guide.
Well-connected by public transport and with plenty of green spaces, the city is easy to explore on foot.
What to see and do in this area
Where to stay in this area
Hotel Bayerischer Hof Luxury
Promenadeplatz, five minutes from Marienplatz, 337 rooms and a 1,300 m² spa on the roof. The city's historic address, and it is inside the old walls.
Platzl Hotel Mid-range
167 rooms facing the Hofbräuhaus München, a five-minute walk from Marienplatz. Both our reviews of the tavern mention noisy communal tables: from here you just go up to bed.
Hotel Torbräu Mid-range
At the Isartor, run by the same family since 1903 and open since 1490: the city's oldest hotel. Ten minutes from the Deutsches Museum.
Hotel Laimer Hof city.oudormir_tier_economique
A neo-Renaissance villa from 1886, 23 rooms, next door to Nymphenburg Palace and five minutes from the Hirschgarten, Europe's largest beer garden. It is the answer to our review's advice, "I recommend trying out the beer gardens when the weather is nice".
Pros
- Four of our five reviews of the city describe it as a place you walk
- One member praises "the many parks and gardens": the English Garden alone fills a day according to our review
Cons
- It is the most expensive city in Germany, and from 19 September to 4 October 2026 the rates bear no relation to the rest of the year
- Three of our reviews warn that a single sight can eat half a day: Nymphenburg, the English Garden, the Pinakothek
Schwangau and Hohenschwangau Hohenschwangau, the village centre, the Alpsee
The most reviewed place in the region, for a thirty-minute visit
Nine of our 40 reviews are about Neuschwanstein Castle alone, and six of them reach for the fairy tale or Disney: "you really would think it was a Disney castle straight out of a fairy tale", "a magical place, worthy of a fairy tale", "the castle that was the model for Sleeping Beauty's castle". One member goes further back, all the way to "Wagner, a close friend of Ludwig II of Bavaria". Not one of them speaks ill of the castle. Two say the same thing about the visit, and that is what decides the night: photographs are forbidden inside, and the tour lasts half an hour. The village itself is "a picturesque little village at the foot of the Alps".
I did regret that the tour was a bit short (about 30 minutes). I would have loved to take more time to discover the secrets of the monument!
What to see and do in this area
Where to stay in this area
Hotel Müller Hohenschwangau Mid-range
40 rooms at the foot of both castles, open since 1910. Hohenschwangau Castle is a five-minute walk away, the village centre 2.5 km.
AMERON Neuschwanstein Alpsee Resort & Spa Mid-range
The former Schlosshotel Lisl, on Neuschwansteinstraße, with rooms looking at one castle or the other, sometimes both. The closest address to Neuschwanstein Castle on foot.
Pros
- Sleeping here means being at the counter when it opens: our review recommends "booking tickets in advance", and the slot is timed
- One review recommends winter, "especially in winter with the snow", when Munich is visited indoors
Cons
- Thirty minutes of guided tour, no photographs: our review says so with regret
- Two castles and a museum, and that is all: our reviews document nothing else in the town
Ettal and the Ammergau Alps Ettal, the abbey, the Loisach valley
Ludwig II's third castle, and a single review to speak for it
Only one of our reviews documents this valley, and it says the opposite of the nine before it: at Linderhof Palace, "you won't find an oversized palace here that impresses you with its sheer scale". What it holds on to is "the gardens, the exterior and interior decor", "full of details that show a lot of taste and effort". It is the same royal signature as Neuschwanstein, 60 km away, in exactly the opposite register: small, finished, lived in. The guide gives it an area of its own because you sleep differently here, in a high valley rather than in a ticket-office hamlet.
You won't find an oversized palace here that impresses you with its sheer scale.
What to see and do in this area
Where to stay in this area
Klosterhotel Ludwig der Bayer city.oudormir_tier_economique
101 rooms facing Ettal Abbey, indoor pool and saunas included in the rate, views over the Ammergau Alps. Ten minutes from Linderhof Palace.
Pros
- The lowest rates in the guide, and an indoor pool included at the only address we verified
- 1 h 15 from Munich and 1 h 15 from Neuschwanstein: it is the balance point between the two other areas
Cons
- A single review for the whole valley: it is the least documented area across all our regional guides
- Neither Garmisch-Partenkirchen nor Oberammergau has received a review: we can say nothing about them
Our tips for booking the right place
- Eleven of our 40 reviews mention beer, and all eleven are in Munich: Not one review from Schwangau or Ettal mentions it: it is a Munich subject, not a Bavarian one. And three of those eleven push back against the cliché they quote, with the same turn of phrase: "known for its beer festival, there is plenty else to see and do there", "famous for Oktoberfest, it also offers many activities and tourist sites to visit", and, at the modern art museum, "and yes, Munich isn't all about beer!!!" The others explain it rather than sell it: at the Hofbräuhaus München, "you understand why beer matters so much in Bavaria, why Oktoberfest exists", and "there is a sort of locker where the regulars keep their own steins".
- The sixteen days that change the budget: 19 September to 4 October 2026: This is the only date in the guide that decides a rate. Oktoberfest is held on the Theresienwiese, west of the centre, and Munich is already the most expensive city in Germany for the rest of the year. Our review says it is worth the trip, "the atmosphere during Oktoberfest is absolutely wild, worth experiencing at least once in your life, even if you don't like beer", and it adds the qualifier that counts, "the party is everywhere, without ever turning nasty". If you are not coming for it, shift your dates: the city itself does not change.
- Thirty minutes at Neuschwanstein, and a day to get there: That is the gap our reviews measure, and it decides the night. "I did regret that the tour was a bit short (about 30 minutes)", writes the most precise member; the Bavarian palace administration states the same duration and only sells timed slots. Against that, "a very beautiful place that is worth taking a day to make the trip and visit". Two reviews add the practical constraint: "photographs are not allowed inside the castle, and since the site is very busy, I recommend getting tickets in advance". Sleeping in Hohenschwangau does not lengthen the visit, it secures the slot.
- Nymphenburg: three of our reviews, three durations, and each one is right: "The visit is fairly quick, under an hour", measures the first, who is talking about the interior. "Count on at least half a day on site", corrects the second, who adds the gardens and the museums. "Count on a full day, because the garden is just as worth the trip", concludes the third, who spent two hours in the park. All three describe the same palace, "the German Schönbrunn": what separates them is what they timed. The same gap applies to the English Garden, "I spent an afternoon there and did not begin to cover it all".
- The Marienplatz carillon: three of our reviews give the times, one gives the warning: "Come and watch the carillon, which comes to life every day at 11 and 12, and even at 5 in summer", writes the first. The second confirms, "the tower has a clock with a lovely carillon that chimes every day at 11 and 12". The third adds what is missing, and it is the most useful part: "do check the times carefully, because the shows only last a few minutes". Staying inside the old walls means you can come back another time: it is the most concrete argument for sleeping in the centre.
- What our reviews do not say about Bavaria, and you should know it before booking: Of the 824 towns our database attaches to the region, three carry a member review. Nuremberg appears with 38 listed sights, Augsburg and Bamberg with twelve, Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Würzburg with eleven, Regensburg with nine, Garmisch-Partenkirchen with six: not one has received a single review or a single photograph from our members. So this guide does not rank them and does not send you there to sleep. It covers what it really has: Munich, the castles, and the Ettal valley.
- Booking Munich between 19 September and 4 October 2026 without meaning to: those are the sixteen days of Oktoberfest, in the most expensive city in Germany.
- Going up to Neuschwanstein without a ticket: the visit is only possible in a guided group, on a timed slot, and our review recommends getting it in advance.
- Allowing a morning for Nymphenburg Palace: two of our three reviews count half a day or a day there, gardens included.
- Turning up at the Marienplatz carillon at roughly the right time: our review warns that the show "only lasts a few minutes".
- Looking for a verified address in Nuremberg, Bamberg or Regensburg in this guide: they have received no reviews from our members, and we would rather say so.
FAQ: where to stay in Bavaria
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