Munich - Maps

The most basic map which is indispensible to tourists and (geographically-challenged) locals alike is the 'Stadtplan' produced by the City of Munich. You can get it from the tourist bureau, and it costs around 1 Euro. This map has a blow-up of the city centre, and covers most of the metropolitan area. While not every single street name appears on the map, the map shows bus routes, tram routes, train stations (U-Bahn and S-Bahn), taxi ranks, public car parks, beer gardens and other tourist attractions. Some maps also have a complete map of the Munich train network which is also useful, although there are large copies of these on the walls of all U-Bahn stations and on the ceiling above the doors on the trains themselves. Similarly, maps for the tram network are at all tramstops and on the tram. The bus network is a little more complicated.

Most bookshops in Munich have a map section selling posters, street maps and regional road atlases. The two main publishing companies are ADAC (the German automobile club) and Falk. Look for the very useful fold out maps like the Falk - very good to have with you at all times!

Specialist maps for hiking and long-distance biking are also available at bookshops and specialist sports stores. Be careful of these if you don't speak German - some guide books have wordy instructions in preference to detailed maps, so it is very easy to get lost!

An online map site can be found at website: www.stadtplandienst.de
Although there is a British flag and a German flag, the translation into English is not complete. Hopefully the following list of useful vocabulary will help!

Useful vocabulary
Look for                      suchen
Direction                     Richtung
North                           Nord
South                          Süd
East                            Ost
West                           West
Left                              Links
Right                           Rechts
Straight ahead          Gerade aus
Local                           hiesig
Near                            in der Nähe
Far                               weit
Distance                    Strecke
City Map                     Stadtplan
Road map                 Strassenkarte
Address                     Adresse
Street                          Strasse
Road                           Strasse (Weg)
Place, square           Platz
Bus/tram stop           Haltestelle
Station                        Station
Route                          Route, Weg, Linie
Bus                             Bus
Car                              Auto, Wagen, PKW
Cycle, bicycle            Fahrrad
Train                           Zug, S-Bahn, U-Bahn
Tram                           Tram, Strassenbahn
Drive                           Fahren
City, town                   Stadt
Village                        Dorf
River                           Fluss (the Isar is the name of the river in Munich)
Mountain                    Berg
Flat                              eben
Steep                          steil
Country                       Land
In the country/rural    auf dem Land
Outskirts                     Stadtrand
Municipality                 Gemeinde
Central                         zentral
Down town, city centre   Zentrum
Lake, water                 See
Sea                              Meer
Holiday                        Ferien
Travel                           reisen
Tourist                         Tourist
Visit                              besuchen
Live (in house)           wohnen
Hiking                          wandern
Hiking trail                   Wanderweg
Bike path                     Fahrradweg
Skiing                           skifahren
Altitude                         Höhe