With the Olympic Park, BMW World and the Allianz Arena, the north of Munich has three worlds of experience to offer on the topics of sport, leisure and mobility. A highlight on the outskirts is the city's oldest church as the only evidence of the vanished village of Fröttmaning.
The BMW Welt – the car manufacturer’s experience and distribution centre – supplies up to 34,000 HP on some days. Its futuristic architecture provides a fascinating juxtaposition to the high-reaching roof construction of the adjacent Olympiapark (Olympic Park), which was built in 1972 and is still a place for great experiences to this day.
Also located in the north of Munich: the Allianz Arena in Munich-Fröttmaning! In Munich's football temple there are first-class matches and the FC Bayern Museum to marvel at. A special feature is the Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche, the oldest church in Munich. It is the last testimony to the village of Fröttmaning, which was razed in the early 1950s.
Horse power fans will have no trouble getting their money’s worth during a day spent at the BMW Welt. The delivery hall doubles as a showroom, cultural site, congress centre and playground.
On the ground floor, spanning 180 metres in length, you can see the latest cars and motorbikes; while in the 800 qm Technology and Design Studio, interactive display boards reveal how a car is designed, as well as how innovative technologies work. Adults can try out the driving simulators; younger visitors are supervised in the Junior Campus. There are also bou-tique shops, cafés and restaurants on site. Meanwhile, the glazed double cone is the venue for various exhibitions and regular concerts.
As part of a BMW group tour, you have the exclusive opportunity to find out further details about the noble brand. While the two shops and a culinary journey of discovery are open to everyone who visits BMW Welt, the company guides take you to places that are not accessible to regular visitors. The delivery procedure of customers’ new cars is also explained in full: from washing and polishing to the often blissfully tearful and practically dust-free first meeting with the new vehicle in the so-called “Premiere” area. At peak times, up to 170 cars are delivered from Monday to Friday here.
The hour-long tour is packed full of facts about the history, architecture and processes used at BMW Welt, though it’s impossible to cover everything. It’s enough, though. By the end, you will go away knowing all the possible fake stories about the origins of the brand’s logo, the price of a basic Rolls Royce including the two obligatory umbrellas, and also the answer to the question as to what a 3,000-metre tall mountain has in common with the warehouse at BMW Welt. BMW Welt also allows you to book your dream BMW by the hour.
Olympic organisation committees – most recently teams from Brazil and Tokyo – visit Munich time and again on the hunt for the Olympic Park’s recipe for success from 1972. We’re not exaggerating when we say that the Olympiapark (Olympic Park) in Munich is a shining international example of how to create a successful legacy for Olympic facilities. The large park, inspired by the hilly landscape of the Alpine foothills, can be explored on foot or by bike.
For a view of the entire park, why not visit the 185-metre platform in the Olympic Tower? If you want a more relaxing way to see the park, take a trip on the miniature railway which runs around the grounds.
Football fans can let off some steam at the SoccArena, while ice skaters can skate to their hearts’ content in the Olympic Ice Sports Centre. Depending on how adventurous you are, you may be brave enough to tackle a roof climb across the Olympic Stadium’s canopy top before rounding off the experience by taking the zip line over the arena. Tower-
ing over the Olympic Lake is the Olympiaberg (Olympic Mountain) which was built out of the wreckage and ruins of the Second World War. The Olympia-Alm is the city’s high-est beer garden, the perfect place to lift your spirits all year round. You may even be lucky enough to eavesdrop a concert by an international star playing in the Olympic Stadium.
Explore Munich’s Olympiastadion during a roof climb tour and enjoy breathtaking views of Munich's skyline. Read more
The multimedia “Einschnitt“ memorial pavilion provides information about the twelve victims and explains the historical reasons behind the 1972 Olympic attack. The memorial was opened in 2017 to mark the 45th anniversary of the day the hostages were taken. The opening was attended by representatives and the heads of state from Israel and Germany. The memorial focuses on the stories of the eleven Israeli athletes and one German police officer who were killed in the attack.
As has always been the case, events are still held year-round in the Olympic Stadium and Olympic Hall, the settings for the 1972 Olympic Games. The park is also home to two other attractions: the Sea life centre and exhibitions in the Small Olympic Hall. If you fancy a spontaneous swim in the Olympia-Schwimmhalle, there is no need to worry – you aren’t expected to be a world record breaker like Mark Spitz. Like many other Olympic icons of his generation, the seventime gold medal winner of 1972 remains true to the site of his victories to this day.
www.olympiapark.de
www.touren-olympiapark.de
Built to the plans drafted by renowned architects Herzog & de Meuron, the Allianz Arena has become one of Munich’s main landmarks since it opened back in 2005.
The stadium holds up to 75,000 people, all of whom enjoy an outstanding view of the action thanks to the steep grandstands. Its impressive design featuring almost 3,000 air pockets makes a visual impact before you’ve even arrived. The pockets light up in red and white at FC Bayern München home games and in white at Germany matches. On special occasions, such as St. Patrick's Day, they shine green.
The FC Bayern Museum is also well worth a visit: Germany’s largest museum dedicated to a sports club takes visitors on an emotional journey, starting with the club’s foundation in 1900 and ending with its latest triumphs.
Older than anything you can admire in Munich's old town is the Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche (church) in Fröttmaning. It is one of the oldest preserved church buildings in Munich. You can reach the late Romanesque building via a footpath up Fröttmaninger hill to the wind turbine and on to the sunken village: with the exception of the church, Fröttmaning had to make way for the growing rubbish of Munich in the early 1950s.
It was not until the early 1970s that the Fröttmaning rubbish mountain was renaturalised and planted with greenery. Today you have a beautiful view of the whole city from the top. At the foot of the hill, a full-size copy of the church was created that cannot be walked on. The copy looks as if it has been half buried by the mountain. The work of art is reminiscent of the buried village and acts as a beacon against our throwaway society.
Also interesting: Our author visited BMW Welt with Georg Schuster, the board member of the "BMW Munichs" fan club. Read what he learned from him about the "fascination of cars" in his report.
