Marienplatz and the Glockenspiel
The central square, and a carillon of thirty-two figures replaying a wedding of 1568.
Duration
45 min – 1 hr 30 min
Best time
At 11am, for the carillon
Open
Every day
Entry price
Free
Marienplatz has been Munich's market square since 1158 and is the city's geographical centre: all distances are measured from it. The neo-Gothic new town hall along one side was finished in 1908 and is a hundred metres wide, which misleads: it is far more recent than it looks.
Its tower carries the Glockenspiel, a carillon of forty-three bells and thirty-two life-size figures. The upper tier replays Duke Wilhelm V's wedding of 1568 with a joust in which the Bavarian unhorses the Lorrainer; the lower tier dances the coopers' dance, instituted after the plague of 1517. The show lasts about a quarter of an hour.
Getting there
Marienplatz station, on both the S-Bahn and U-Bahn: the exit gives onto the square.
Rules on site
The carillon only plays at eleven all year, plus midday, and at five from March to October: the rest of the time the tower is silent and the square is nothing special.
