Not to miss

Nymphenburg Palace

If the Residenz hasn't satisfied your passion for palaces, visit the amazing Schloss (Palace) Nymphenburg. Begun in 1664 as a villa for Electress Adelaide of Savoy, the amazing palace and gardens were continually expanded and built upon over the next century to create the royal family's summer residence.

The main palace building consists of a main villa and two wings. The rooms are all sumptuous, but one of the most majestic is the Schönheitengalerie (Gallery of Beauties) in the south wing, formerly the apartments of Queen Caroline. It's now the home of 36 portraits of beautiful women chosen by an admiring King Ludwig I.

Also in the south wing are the coaches and riding gear of the royal families, suitably displayed in the Marstallmuseum (Royal Stables Museum). Ludwig II's over-the-top sleigh fitted with oil lamps for his nocturnal outings is not to be missed.

The north wing is occupied by the Museum Mensch und Natur (Museum of Humankind & Nature). This is a fun place to bring children for the interactive, if aged, displays on the animal kingdom, planet earth and the mysteries of the human body (German only).

Marienplatz

Visit Marienplatz on a sunny day and you'll find the world and its dog enjoying this expanse of cafes at the heart and soul of the Altstadt. The spikes and turrets of the 19th-century neo-Gothic Neues Rathaus grace the square's northern border, while the spruced-up remains of the original town hall, the Altes Rathaus (1470), squat at its eastern end.

The obvious photo opportunity is the Glockenspiel in the centre of the Neues Rathaus; the marvellous figures spring into action four times daily. Take a lift to the top of the ridiculously spindly spire for more pics. The nearby Fishbrunnen (Fish Fountain) harks back to medieval market days, when fish were kept alive in the fountain before being sold. Dip your purse in on Ash Wednesday and it will always be full - and if you believe that, you deserve to have a soggy wallet.

If the Föhn (a warm, dry wind) is blowing you can see the Alps in all their glory from the top of the Gothic St Peterskirche, and the rococo ceiling of the Heiliggeistkirche is just as gob-smacking. The other church you can see to the northwest is the city's trademark Frauenkirche - those oxidised copper onion domes are reproduced on everything from beer steins to tea towels.

Ludwig the Bavarian is buried here. To the north there's Ludwig's Alter Hof, home of the Wittelsbachs before they moved to the Residenz; it received its severe neo-Gothic facelift during 19th-century renovations. Follow the raucous racket of cheers and oompah-music to the nearby Hofbräuhaus. Hitler's National Socialists first met here in 1920, and today the lovely old building is filled to the brim with beer-guzzling sightseers.

Alte Pinakothek

This Italian-style art palace commissioned by King Ludwig I contains a treasure trove of works of European masters between the 14th and 18th centuries. The collection reflects the rather eclectic tastes of the Wittelsbachs over four centuries, and are sorted by schools over two sprawling floors.

Major displays include Albrecht Dürer's Christ-like Self-Portrait and his Four Apostles; Rogier van der Weyden's Adoration of the Magi; Botticelli's Pietà; and Peter Paul Rubens' two-storey-high Judgement Day. This museum houses, in fact, one of the world's most comprehensive Rubens collections.