After arriving in Munich, I headed towards my hotel fairly close to Olympiapark and the BMW Museum and BMW Welt. I opted not to stay in the middle of the city since I was only going to spend one night in Munich before leaving early in the morning for Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Don’t worry, I came back to Munich towards the end of the trip for three nights (more on that later).
Since I scheduled the BMW Museum Guided Tour before arriving in Germany, I was in no hurry to get over to the museum. I spent the rest of our morning walking around Leopoldstrasse, a main street nearby full of shops and restaurants, and then grabbed my first meal in Germany at a cute Bavarian tavern and beer garden.
After lunch, I headed over to the museum to give myself some time to walk around BMW Welt before the tour. FYI: If you have a car, you can park in their parking garage on site for a small fee. BMW Welt is free of charge and consists of show rooms for BMW, MINI, and Rolls Royce. You can also find a restaurant/bar and gift shop inside this amazing building. If architecture is your thing, you will love the exterior and interior of this very clean and sleek structure. BMW Welt also offers a guided tour for anyone that wants to learn more about car delivery, the background information on the building and architecture, and more.
Across the street from BMW Welt is the BMW Museum. I recommend scheduling a guided tour beforehand if that is something that interests you. They book up pretty fast and when I called a couple of weeks prior, the Premium Tours were already sold out and I could only book the BMW Museum Tour by itself. The Premium Tour consists of the BMW Museum, BMW Welt and some sections of the BMW Plant and is 3 hours long.
The museum tour is 1.5 hours long and takes you through the whole museum which holds about 125 of BMW’s most valuable cars, motorcycles and engines. Admission to the museum (without a tour) is 10 euros and gives you access to all exhibits.
I have to say, I’m glad I decided on the guided tour. My tour guide, Vanessa, did an amazing job. She was very, very informative even when people were throwing random questions at her and she kept everyone’s (at least my) attention the entire time. I learned everything from the history of BMW to the evolution of the engine. I even got a glimpse of the world of MINI in the temporary exhibit… and I kind of want one now!
Did you know that the BMW logo is not an airplane propeller blade but instead the blue and white represents the colors of Bavaria? And to spot a correct logo, the top blue quadrant sits under the B (for blue) and the top white quadrant sits under the W (for white). Pretty interesting, right? And that is just 0.001% of the information I learned on the tour. I don’t want to spoil all the facts and history for you.
The temporary exhibit (until January 2016) is The MINI Story focusing on all things MINI. I’m going to sound really stupid now, but I thought the MINI came out only a few years ago (think The Italian Job movie) but I was wrong, so wrong. The exhibit showcases different models and designs throughout MINI’s history and even some newer concept cars that look really cool. I have never been a huge fan of MINI’s before but after walking through this exhibit, I can say I wouldn’t mind driving a MINI around Houston. Plus they were made for me, all 5’1″ of me!
If you have some extra time while in Munich, I highly recommend heading over to the BMW Museum and BMW Welt for a look around. Go for the guided tour if you can, but even without it, it’s still a great place to spend the afternoon walking around.
Have you been to the BMW Museum and/or BMW Welt? What was your favorite part?
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I've not been here, though some people I was traveling to Munich with some years back went (they were BMW fanatics) and they really enjoyed it. I like all the different versions and designs they show off. I also heard you can watch the cars being made and see the new ones coming off the production line?
My husband is a total BMW fanatic too! lol That is why he was so keen on going there… and he drives one in the States. You can tour the plant and see all that fun stuff but the tours to the plant were all booked for the day we went 🙁 It would have been cool to see all of that! Next time!
So cool! I can't say I'm much into cars, but these are quite exotic and fascinating! I love your posts and photos, Christine!
Yes – Luke would love this a lot!! I have never visited a car manufacturer museum, I would love to visit the Ford museum so much!
I haven't been to Munich yet, but when I move to Germany I'll definitely have to go. And I will especially make my way to this museum, how cool is that. I love seeing old prototypes. I did get to go to the smart car factory though and walk through the production line. That was quite interesting.
Jealous you're moving to Germany 🙂 There is an option to visit the BMW Plant as well but it was booked on the day we wanted to go. I wonder what the BMW line is like vs. the Smart Car one. Every time I see a Smart Car on the road, I'm like whoa those things are tiny! ha But I guess in Europe, they would be perfect.
Pretty awesone, some of those cars are total hotness!!
Ok, I'm not into cars AT ALL but I was blown away when I went to the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart. These types of museums are so awesome and informative!
We didn't quite make it here when we were in Munich last year, and now I definitely regret that! 🙂
I've done the Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart since my sister lived there for a bit. Your photos look amazing! Seems like a fun and informative tour!
I've visited BMW Welt twice, but not the Museum! Interesting information about the logo…I didn't know that!!
This looks like a great experience, especially for car fans. I have NO idea about cars, and tell then apart by colour only 😉
BMW Museum is on our list if we ever go to Munich, it looks very informative!
Just another reason for you to go back to Munich 😉
Lol… I'm definitely no car fan and don't really care about engines, performance, etc. but I have to say, I actually enjoyed the BMW Museum and Welt. It anything, all the cars, old and new, are so pretty to look at lol
What's funny is now I try to spot logos that are not correct lol. They make them in all colors, I've seen red and white, my husband replaced his to an all black and white one… so now I make sure they were done "correctly"! 😛
Hey cool you have been in Munich! Close to my home in Switzerland! I love Munich, but I haven't been in that museum yet as I'm ont so much into cars. But I guess I have to visit it one day. Great post!
Thanks Uelito! I'm not huge into cars either, but my husband really wanted to go and I actually wind up liking it! I would love to visit Switzerland one day, it's such a beautiful country!
So cool. I absolutely loved Munich, but my dad and brother and I went last year Easter weekend, and with everything closed (they were heartbroken) we didn't get to head to the BMW factory. We'll have to go back now. Maybe I should just send them your post to make them want to come back to Europe faster! haha
Bummer it was closed! It seems like things close A LOT in Germany lol (still can't get over how everything is closed on Sundays!). Definitely send them this post, it's always a good time to go to Munich 🙂
Munich is somewhere I've always wanted to visit. It always look like a beautiful place to just take strolls and see the town. And who knew BMW Tour would look so cool!
Ah Munich looks lovely! And even though I'm not really into cars, the BMW museum looks pretty sweet! Great photos too!
Haha I know!! I can't decide it if I'd love it or hate it if I lived there on a Sunday. I couldn't run to the shop if I forgot something the day before, but everyone was so relaxed and driving around seeing family and friends, it was a great vibe anyway. haha
This looks very cool! I have to admit, I have a BMW at home, but I really know nothing about cars. This museum (with a tour) would probably be good for me! I also had no idea about the BMW logo (oops)! I've been to Munich a few times, but somehow missed this museum! Well, there's always next time. 😀
Munich is awesome, one of my favorite European cities… if not my favorite! And I was totally surprised at how much I liked the BMW Tour. At first I went cause I knew how much my husband wanted to go but I winded up liking it as much!
Thanks Lo! I'm not that huge into cars either but I wind up liking it a lot. It's fun to look at pretty expensive things every once in a while! lol
Definitely next time, plus going back to Munich is never a bad idea 😉 My husband drives one too and loves all things BMW so of course we had to stop there… but I'm glad we did cause I really enjoyed it!
This is D's brother's dream to come here! He's obsessed with BMW's and I'm pretty sure his life dream is to buy one for European delivery. It looks pretty cool, even though I'm not into cars. I really like Mini's though. I'm super small too so I feel like they're the perfect car for me (I've never actually sat in one, for the record). The classic ones are so cute too!
Wow that looks amazing!! I have not been to Munich yet – only Berlin – but now this will have to be added to our own travel list. 🙂 My hubby sadly just sold his BMW last year so he'd love this. Thanks for the recap! Love your blog.
Jen
http://www.lifeunrefined.com
It's definitely a male-heavy place! lol You know men and their cars! But I would love to test drive a MINI. We might go this weekend… I'll let you know how it goes 🙂
Thanks Jen! If you guys go, you might leave with your husband wanting to buy another BMW 🙂 So many pretty cars there, old and new! My husband currently drives one, and I had to make sure he didn't want an "upgrade" when we left lol
That surfing is so cool!