Home to the world's biggest beer festival and some of its greatest art galleries and museums, the Bavarian capital has many sides to its nature. Cosmopolitan, yet deeply attached to its traditions, a high-tech dynamo that still loves its oompah bands, the centre of German haute couture where you may well see men proudly sporting lederhosen -- Munich will constantly surprise and delight. From raucous beer gardens to the castles of Ludwig II's fanciful dreams, this guide explores the city and surrounding Upper Bavarian countryside.

Home to the world's biggest beer festival and some of its greatest art galleries and museums, the Bavarian capital has many sides to its nature. Cosmopolitan, yet deeply attached to its traditions, a high-tech dynamo that still loves its oompah bands, the centre of German haute couture where you may well see men proudly sporting lederhosen -- Munich will constantly surprise and delight. From raucous beer gardens to the castles of Ludwig II's fanciful dreams, this guide explores the city and surrounding Upper Bavarian countryside.