Finding a room in Munich is comparatively easy, but tabs tend to be high. Bargains are few and hard to find -- but they do exist. If you arrive in town without a hotel reservation, go to the Munich Tourist Office on Platform 2 at the Hauptbahnhof (tel. 089/233-03-00; www.muenchen-tourist.de), where general information about Munich and its attractions is also available; it's open Monday to Saturday 9am to 8pm and Sunday 10am to 6pm. Here, the English-speaking personnel, maintaining access to more than 300 hotels (jointly containing around 35,000 beds), will come to your rescue. Tell them what you can afford and they'll pick a suitable hotel within that price range. There's no charge for the reservation, but you must give them a 10% down payment on the room, an amount that will be deducted from your final hotel bill.
Be sure to get a receipt as well as a map with instructions on how to reach the place they've booked for you. Keep your receipt. If you don't like the room, go back to the tourist office and they'll try to find you other lodging.
Frankly, we find that this reservations service is most appropriate for travelers arriving at Munich's railway station without a reservation -- the last-minute arrangements the staff can make, especially during periods when many hotels are full, can be very useful. But they'll also arrange reservations weeks or months in advance of your arrival, without charge, if you want them to.
Written correspondence describing your needs and preferences should be addressed to Landeshauptstadt München, Fremdenverkehrsamt, Sendlingerstrasse 1, D-80331 München. The hotel reservation service can also be reached by phone through the tourist office or through its direct line (tel. 089/233-96555), by fax at 089/233-30133, or by e-mail (hotelservice@muenchen.de). Note: Whereas the tourist office itself remains open at the hours noted above, the division that arranges room reservations maintains hours as follows: Monday to Thursday from 9am to 5pm and Friday 9am to 3pm.
Advance Reservations Citi Incoming, Riemerstrasse 360 (Postfach 140163), D-81801 München (tel. 089/940-099-91; fax 089/940-099-81), is the best place to go if you want not only to book a hotel room but also to arrange for a Grey Line sightseeing tour. The service is free, and although this company works with hotels on a commission basis, it guarantees that travelers never pay more than they would if they made the bookings themselves. In some cases, Citi Incoming can even get you a better rate than off-the-street bookings because hotels make special offers to travel agencies. Guaranteed bookings can easily be made by phone or fax. The company provides this service for other areas of Germany as well, and for neighboring countries such as Austria and Switzerland. They'll even provide you with road maps. Both long-term bookings and last-minute requests are handled. Hours are Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.
All hotels raise their prices for Oktoberfest and for various trade fairs. Some hotels announce their rates in advance, while others prefer to wait until the last minute to see what the market will bear. In general, prices during the festival rise about 15% or more. Prices listed under hotel reviews below are for non-Oktoberfest stays. For the most up-to-date information, call the specific hotel where you'd like to stay.
