What’s on in Munich this week

Where to go in Munich: events, concerts and shows worth your night

Munich is Germany’s second city for culture and, some would say, its first: three world-class orchestras, an opera house that sells standing tickets for a few euros, rock venues in former industrial halls by the river, and a club scene that runs in the tunnels under the museums. Below is where to go in Munich for a night out, with addresses, and what tends to be on when.

Concerts and live music in Munich: Muffathalle, Backstage and the Olympiahalle

The Muffathalle (Zellstraße 4, 81667, by the Isar, muffatwerk.de), a former power station beside the Müllersches Volksbad, is the city’s main mid-sized venue for touring bands, with the smaller Ampere club next door. Backstage (Reitknechtstraße 6, 80639, Neuhausen, backstage.eu) is the alternative rock and metal centre, several rooms and a beer garden, with free club nights after the concerts. The Olympiahalle (Spiridon-Louis-Ring 21, 80809) in the Olympiapark takes the arena tours, and the Zenith and Tonhalle in the north the rest. The Munich Philharmonic plays the new Isarphilharmonie (Hans-Preißinger-Straße 8, 81379, Sendling) while the Gasteig is rebuilt; the Bavarian Radio Symphony and the state orchestra fill the rest of the classical calendar.

Munich nightlife: the Glockenbach, the Kunstpark and the tunnels

The Glockenbachviertel, south of the centre around Müllerstraße and Gärtnerplatz, is where the bars are, mixed and late. Blitz (Museumsinsel 1, 80538), on the island under the Deutsches Museum, is the techno club the rest of Germany talks about, with a strict no-photos policy and a Funktion-One system; the Werksviertel by the Ostbahnhof has the larger clubs and concert halls on the old Pfanni factory site. Most bars close around 3 am, clubs later; the U-Bahn and S-Bahn run all night on Fridays and Saturdays.

Opera, ballet and theatre in Munich

The Bayerische Staatsoper (Max-Joseph-Platz 2, 80539, staatsoper.de) at the Nationaltheater is one of the busiest opera houses in the world, with the Bayerisches Staatsballett sharing the stage; standing tickets go on sale an hour before curtain. The Gärtnerplatztheater does operetta and musicals, the Prinzregententheater concerts and dance, and the Kammerspiele and Residenztheater are the German-language stages, with the Kammerspiele surtitling selected nights in English.

Art galleries and museums in Munich for an evening

The Kunstareal in Maxvorstadt holds the three Pinakotheken: the Pinakothek der Moderne (Barer Straße 40, 80333, pinakothek-der-moderne.de) for twentieth-century art, design and architecture, open late on Thursdays, with the Alte and Neue Pinakothek beside it and the Museum Brandhorst for contemporary art across the road; all are one euro on Sundays. The Haus der Kunst on the edge of the Englischer Garten stages the big contemporary shows and hosts the Goldene Bar and P1 club in the same building.

Munich festivals and events by season

• Winter: Fasching, the carnival season, ending with dancing on the Viktualienmarkt on Shrove Tuesday; the Christmas markets from late November, the Marienplatz one the largest.
• Spring: the Frühlingsfest, a smaller Oktoberfest, on the Theresienwiese in April and May, and the opening of the beer gardens.
• Summer: Tollwood on the Olympiapark in June and July, with concerts and a free market; the Munich Opera Festival in July, with free Opera for All screenings on Max-Joseph-Platz; and open-air cinema in the Olympiapark.
• Autumn: Oktoberfest, from the third weekend of September to the first Sunday in October, and the new concert and opera seasons.

Things to do in Munich tonight and this weekend

The listings above are the live version of all this: every concert, show, club night and exhibition on in Munich tonight, tomorrow and this weekend, with times, prices and tickets, updated every hour.