Murnau am Staffelsee is only forty-five minutes southwest of Munich, but you’ll find yourself thinking you’re in heaven. A place where you can sit on the town’s pedestrian plaza sipping a Maß (two pint beer glass) staring up at the Bavarian Alps that’s shadows the square.
The Alps are only a part of Murnau’s natural beauty. You’ll find three of the warmest lakes in all of Bavaria and on top of it, there are the moorlands.
Even if you’re not the most ardent outdoor enthusiast, you’ll find yourself in pure awe; not wanting to wait to be outside. Who cares whether you choose to hike, walk, bike, or hot-air balloon ride over the countryside — just get outside and experience it!
By no means of the imagination does it stop there; the culture of the arts are alive in Murnau. You might think you’d have to be in a large city to find as many concerts, art exhibits, Passion Plays, culinary activities, and festivals that take place here. But, you’ll find it all right here.
Two of Murnau’s most popular festivals are the World Music Festival (who doesn’t enjoy all sorts of music?) and its Leonhardifahrt Festival. This festival takes place on or around November 6th in reverence to St. Leonhard of Limonges (patron saint of animals) starting with a procession of horses and somehow ends with a (long) visit to the beer tent. No wonder it’s popular…
It’s probably wise to wait to hit up the Bavarian beer until AFTER you’ve seen Murnau’s Ramsachkirchel; this is considered to be serious holy ground. A church has stood on this hillside since the 8th century with more than six centuries of love and devotion to Christianity. Even before Christian times this spot was considered to be a holy place.
If you like all things medieval then visit Castle Murnau. There’s a museum at Schloss Murnau with great exhibitions on the history of the area, as well as the castle’s almost 800 year history. Murnau’s St. Nikolaus Church is just about as old, it was built in 1300 A.D.
Just when you think you MIGHT run out of things to do, Murnau has little surprises; there’s still shopping to do. There are lots of little shops to buy handmade jewelery, lederhosen, and those 2-pint beer mugs.
Prost! :-)
