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Münchner Jüdisches Museum
The Münchner Jüdisches Museum, Munich Jewish Museum, is a major effort to come to terms with one of the city's most sinister chapters. It integrates a new synagogue and community centre and the exhibit aims to show - in a balanced, sensitive fashion - the Jewish place in Munich's cultural landscape over the ages, from medieval times through to the horrors of the Third Reich and today's slow regeneration.
The site is near that of the Romanesque synagogue that was razed by the Nazis in 1938.
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Münchner Kindl
A toy-filled refuge is Münchner Kindl, which welcomes kids 18 months to 10 years old.
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Münchner Marionettentheater
Munich's grand tradition of children's puppetry emanates from this purpose-built theatre, which was set up in 1900 by the legendary and much-loved Papa Schmit, who first started delighting Munich ' kinder ' with his intricate puppets and cunning sets in the 1850s.
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Münchner Stadtmuseum
You could spend hours roaming through the collections of the rambling Münchner Stadtmuseum, making it a perfect rainy day destination.
Historical exhibits help you understand how the royal residence evolved into today's modern metropolis, but the main artistic draw is the ensemble of Erasmus Grasser's 10 spritelike Morris Dancers (1480), medieval travelling entertainers who performed at court and on market squares. The late Gothic figures originally adorned the ballroom of the Altes Rathaus.
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Münchner Theater für Kinder
At the Münchner Theater für Kinder, budding thespians can enjoy fairy tales and children's classics à la Max & Moritz and Pinocchio.
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Museum Brandhorst
Yet another museum dedicated to postmodern masters is scheduled to open in autumn 2008 in a new building at the corner of Theresienstrasse and Türkenstrasse. Andy Warhol and American abstract expressionist Cy Twombly will get plenty of wall space; and there will also be entire rooms exploring the provocative art of Damien Hirst, Robert Gober and Mike Kelley.
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Museum Mensch und Natur
Kids will have plenty of 'ooh and aah' moments in the Museum Mensch und Natur, in the Schloss Nymphenburg's north wing. Anything but old-school, it puts a premium on interactive displays, models, audiovisual presentations and attractive animal dioramas.
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Museum Reich der Kristalle
If diamonds are your best friends, head to the Museum Reich der Kristalle, with its Fort Knox-worthy collection of gemstones and crystals, including a giant Russian emerald and meteorite fragments from Kansas.
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Museum Villa Stuck
Franz von Stuck was a leading light in Munich's art scene around the turn of the 20th century and his residence is one of the finest Jugendstil homes you'll ever see. Stuck himself came up with the intricate design, which forges tapestries, patterned floors, coffered ceilings and other elements into a harmonious work of art. His furniture even earned a gold medal at the Paris World Fair in 1900.
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Musikinstrumenten-Museum
The Musikinstrumenten-Museum is packed with fun, precious and rare sound machines from around the world, including Indonesian ceremonial gongs and mechanical musical instruments. Some of them are cranked up regularly during concerts.
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Neue Pinakothek
Neue Pinakothek harbours a well-respected collection of 19th- and early 20-century paintings and sculpture, from rococo to Jugendstil (Art Nouveau). Its imposing original structure by Friedrich von Gärtner was destroyed during WWII and not rebuilt; since 1981 works are housed in a modernist structure by Alexander von Branca.
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Neuer Botanischer Garten
Munich's vivacious Neuer Botanischer Garten segues smoothly from the north side of the palace park and ranks among the most important in Europe. About a century old, it boasts some 14,000 plant species from around the world. Highlights include the Victorian-style Palmenhaus (palm pavilion) with its famous collection of tropical and subtropical plants. Other greenhouses shelter cacti, orchids, ferns, carnivorous plants and other leafy treasures.
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Neues Rathaus
The coal-blackened façade of the neo-Gothic Neues Rathaus, New Town Hall, is festooned with gargoyles and statues, including a dragon scaling the turrets. Inside, six grand courtyards host festivals and concerts throughout the year. For a good view of the city, ascend the 85m tower.
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Neues Rathaus Tower
For pinpointing Munich's landmarks without losing your breath, catch the lift up this 85m-tall tower.
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Nibelungensäle
Even without a ticket to the Residenzmuseum, you're free to visit the Nibelungensäle (Halls of the Nibelungs) off the Königsbauhof courtyard to marvel at an exhibit depicting the near total destruction of the Residenz in WWII and the miraculous restoration in subsequent decades.
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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.
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Odeonsplatz
Odeonsplatz marks the beginning of the Maxvorstadt, a 19th-century quarter built to link central Munich with Schwabing to the north. Leo von Klenze masterminded its overall design and several of the buildings, including the Leuchtenberg-Palais. There are several nice, if pricey cafés, including Schumann's Bar as well as the plushly furnished Café Tambosi, which has a pedigree going back more than 200 years and used to be popular with Munich's high society.
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Olympiastadion
Germans have a soft spot for the Olympiastadion because it was on this hallowed grass in 1974 where the national soccer team - led by the 'Kaiser' Franz Beckenbauer - won the FIFA World Cup. Older people on the guided one-hour Stadium-Tour often wax nostalgic when setting foot in the old locker rooms or seeing the VIP lounges.
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Olympiaturm
When the sky is clear, you'll quite literally have Munich at your feet against the breathtaking backdrop of the Alps from the 290m top of the Olympiaturm. Your lift ticket also buys access to the small if quirky Rock Museum (same hours) also up on top. Ozzie Osbourne's signed guitar, a poem penned by Jim Morrison and Britney Spears' glitter jeans jostle for space with letters, photos and concert tickets, all the result of three decades of collecting by a pair of rock fans.
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Olympic Park
Built for the 1972 Olympic Games, Munich's Olympic Park remains an important part of life in the city. The park's lofty centrepiece is the 290m-high Olympia Tower, and the architecturally gargantuan 75,000-sq-m transparent 'tented' roof covering the Olympic Stadium is also impressive.
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Palais Pinakothek
The latest addition to the Pinakothek family is the Palais Pinakothek which organizes art-related events such as thematic walks and workshops for both kids and adults. The schedule and admission fees vary, but there's usually something going on Sunday afternoons.
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Paläontologisches Museum
The curatorial concept of the Paläontologisches Museum could use a little dusting up but otherwise this archaeological trove of prehistoric skulls and bones is anything but stuffy. The most famous resident is a fossilised archaeopteryx, the creature that forms the evolutionary link between reptile and bird. Dino fans can check out the wicked horns on a triceratops skull or the delicate bone structure of a plateosaurus. Admission is free, so why not pop in for your Jurassic fix?
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Pfarrkirche St Anna im Lehel
The rather pompous neo-Romanesque Pfarrkirche St Anna im Lehel arrived on the scene in the 1890s after the Klosterkirche St Anna im Lehel had become too small. Conceived by Gabriel von Seidl, it's worth a spin for its huge altar and impressive nave paintings.
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Pinakothek der Moderne
Germany's largest modern art museum, the Pinakothek der Moderne opened in 2002 in an extravagant building by Stephan Braunfels that's a perfect setting for artists that dominated the art world throughout the last century. The spectacular four-storey interior centres on a vast eyelike dome which spreads soft natural light throughout blanched white galleries. Many walls are curved, gently leading the viewer from one discovery to the next, and right angles are disrupted by diagonals.
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Praterinsel
Praterinsel is a popular bathing spot in summer and also home to the Aktionsforum Praterinsel. It's an art and cultural centre in a former schnapps distillery with artists studios, exhibits, open-air performances and parties.
