With the Alpine peaks as its horizon, Munich is a city on a human scale and imbued with charm. Its cafés and brasseries reflect the Bavarian art of living, while its numerous museums – the Pinacothèque, the Trésor, the Résidence – bear witness to a particularly developed artistic scene. If the city has many attractions, it is the entire region that a curious traveler must visit...
Because Bavaria alone concentrates a formidable collection of castles and palaces, most of which are straight out of the imagination of Louis II, this solitary, misunderstood and deeply romantic king. If his madness and his tragic death made him a myth, his architectural ambitions constitute his legacy.
From Nymphenburg to Hohenschwangau via Neuschwanstein and Herrenchiemsee, learn to recognize the characteristics of Bavarian Rococo and immerse yourself in the creative madness of a king who wanted to “
remain an eternal enigma for me and for others
”.
Program
DAY 1 Thursday October 10, 2024
PARIS • MUNICH
Meet at Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport with your Figaro escort.
1:05 p.m
.: Flight to Munich on a direct Air France flight.
2:40 p.m
.: Arrival in Munich.
Upon arrival, you will be greeted by your local French-speaking guide who will accompany you to Munich city center for a guided tour. You will discover the city's most emblematic Baroque and Renaissance style buildings including: the vibrant Marienplatz, which houses the town hall with its carillon, the splendid Notre-Dame Cathedral, a Gothic style building all in red bricks, topped with imposing copper domes, the elegant St. Peter's Church, the oldest in Munich, and finally the food market, the beating heart of the city with its breweries, its lively squares, its charming courtyards and its garden.
Inside Notre-Dame Cathedral, also nicknamed Frauenkirche, you will find a sober decoration. Built on the remains of an ancient Roman basilica between 1468 and 1525, the building was considerably damaged during the Second World War. The monument's points of interest include the altar of St. Andrew, the stained glass windows and the tomb of Emperor Ludwig IV of Bavaria. Don’t miss the “Devil’s Footprint,” a mark that, according to legend, was left by Satan himself…
Installation at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost***** hotel. Dinner at the restaurant.
Night at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost***** hotel.
Sofitel Munich Bayerpost corporate images
Marienplatz Noppasinw - stock.adobe.com
DAY 2
Friday October 11, 2024
• MUNICH • SCHWANGAU • MUNICH
Embark for a day to discover some of the most beautiful castles in Schwangau!
Along the way, you will make a stop to visit the Wies Church, a masterpiece by architect Dominikus Zimmermann and the embodiment of the Bavarian Rococo style with its exuberant interior, loaded with floral and mineral motifs, characterized by the use of light shades – white, ivory – used in contrast with gold.
You will continue with a visit to Hohenschwangau Castle, built on the ruins of a medieval building by Maximilian II, father of Ludwig II of Bavaria in the 1830s. Designed by Domenico Quaglio, this Gothic masterpiece combines romantic theatricality specific to the period and the functionality of a royal accommodation. Inside, discover an endless succession of remarkably well-preserved rooms furnished in the Biedermeier style. It was in this castle that Louis II lived to supervise the construction of his wildest dream: Neuschwanstein.
Lunch at the restaurant
“It has never been more necessary to create settings where the mind can take refuge in a sort of poetic asylum to forget the anxieties of our terrible times. » It is with these words that Ludwig II of Bavaria described his construction project to his friend Baroness von Leonrod. And if making a romantic dream like Neuschwanstein a reality was indeed the king's ambition, we can say that the challenge was met with flying colors. Listed by Le Figaro as one of the 10 most beautiful castles to visit in Europe, Neuschwanstein seems like something out of a fairy tale. The Disney studios were inspired by it for their Sleeping Beauty castle. During the guided tour, you will explore the 14 main rooms of the castle including the throne room, which is reminiscent of Byzantine churches, or the king's bedroom with its immense Gothic four-poster bed and its decoration evoking the legend of Tristan and Isolde. .
Dinner at the restaurant.
Night at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost***** hotel.
Hohenschwangau Vadim Lavra Castle
DAY 3
Saturday October 12, 2024
• MUNICH • NYMPHENBURG CASTLE
In the morning you will visit Nymphenburg Castle.
Built as a summer home for the Wittelsbach family, Schloss Nymphenburg is an elegant Baroque palace, surrounded by magnificent gardens and swan-covered lakes.
The rococo-style ballroom, the queen's bedroom with the original four-poster bed on which Louis II was born, and the Schönheitengalerie, which houses a collection of portraits of women admired by Louis I, are an excellent representation of the characteristic extravagance of the Bavarian sovereigns. Finally, the gardens contribute to the grandeur of the castle. Extending over more than 200 hectares, they stand out for their English-style organization with vast green lawns, bodies of water, as well as a multitude of pavilions and annexes.
It is also one of them, the Amalienburg, that you will then have the pleasure of visiting. Built between 1734 and 1739 by François de Cuvilliés for the wife of Charles VII, Marie-Amélie of Austria, the pavilion is also a masterpiece of Bavarian rococo style. Inside, discover a series of lounges and rooms decorated by Joachim Dietrich and Johann Baptist Zimmermann, specialists in stucco and sculpture in Bavaria.
Lunch at the restaurant.
In the afternoon, you will visit the Lenbachhaus, a museum nestled in the home of Franz von Lenbach, a famous German portrait painter from the late 19th century. Thanks to the donation made by Gabriele Münter in 1957, the collection was enriched with works by her, as well as those of Wassily Kandinsky, Franz Marc, etc., and today constitutes the most exhaustive selection of pieces belonging to to the movement of the Blue Rider (Der Blaue Reiter) in the world.
Dinner at the restaurant.
Night at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost***** hotel.
Nymphenburg Castle Adobestock
DAY 4 Monday October 14, 2024
• MUNICH • LINDERHOF • ETTAL • MUNICH
In the morning, you will take the road towards the Benedictine abbey of Ettal.
Perched at more than 900 meters above sea level, between the Ammer and Loisach valleys, the famous Ettal Abbey is a unique monastic site of striking beauty. Founded in 1330 by Louis IV, the building is a Rococo masterpiece. This is evidenced by the imposing sacristy, the former royal apartment, the Dresdner room, dating from the 18th century, and the library. Today, 30 monks live in the abbey under the rule of Saint Benedict. A local beer, known as Ettaler, is brewed there by them. Finally, don't miss the basilica and its impressive dome covered with a fresco signed by the painter Johann Jakob Zeiller.
Road to Oberammergau at the end of the morning. Lunch in Oberammergau.
Explore this picturesque village nestled in the heart of the Bavarian Ammergau Alps. Stroll through its streets lined with houses with facades typical of traditional architecture.
You will then visit Linderhof Castle, a new creation from the tortuous mind of Louis II, this time mixing the codes of the second Italian Renaissance and Bavarian Baroque in a barely veiled imitation of the Trianon. The garden is the main attraction of the complex. It notably contains a Moorish kiosk, a “Venus cave” in which an orchestra can play an opera in a setting that resembles that of Wagner's Tannhäuser, and a hunting hut inspired by the setting of The Walkyrie.
Return to Munich at the end of the afternoon. Dinner at the restaurant.
Night at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost***** hotel.
Linderhof Al Carrera Castle / Al Carrera - stock.adobe.com
DAY 5
Tuesday October 15, 2024
• MUNICH
In Munich, the artistic scene is particularly developed, particularly in the Schlachthof district where the old Pinacothek is located. It was Louis I, a great art lover, who ordered, in the 1820s, the construction of a museum for the royal collection. He entrusted this mission to his architect: Leo von Klenze. Inaugurated around fifteen years later, the Pinacothèque now has a vast collection of more than 8,000 works of art. Of these works, around 700 are exceptional paintings covering various eras from early German art to Flemish painters, including Italian, French and Spanish paintings from the 16th to the 18th century. You will find there, for example, Albrecht Dürer's Self-Portrait or Leonardo da Vinci's Madonna with a Carnation. The Old Pinakothek (Alte Pinakothek) also has the largest collection of Max Beckmann paintings outside the United States.
Lunch at the restaurant.
In the afternoon, visit the Munich residence. Successively seat of government, residence of the dukes, electors and kings of Bavaria from 1508 to 1918, and finally museum, the Residence has a rich and complex history, like Bavaria. Partly destroyed during the Second World War, the main building was gradually rebuilt and today houses rooms and art collections covering periods from the Renaissance to neoclassicism, early baroque and rococo.
Free end of the afternoon. The opportunity to taste the famous apfelstrudel (apple dessert) on the terrace of a café. Dinner at the restaurant.
Night at the Sofitel Munich Bayerpost***** hotel.
The old Folker Gratz Pinacoteca / parallel_dream - stock.adobe.com
DAY 6 Wednesday October 16, 2024
• MUNICH • PARIS
For your last day in Munich, you will visit the Treasury. The collections exhibited there are the result of the passion of the rulers of Bavaria for art.
Duke Charles V was the first major patron and initiator of this royal collection. His selection of jewelry, goldwork, enamels, crystal objects and ivories formed the basis of this treasure which was gradually expanded by his son, Duke Wilhelm V, and then by his grandson, Prince elector Maximilien I, and maintained by the prince electors Maximilien-Emmanuel, Charles Albert, known as Charles VII and Maximilien III. At the end of the 18th century, Elector Charles Theodore transferred the pieces to Munich. At the beginning of the 19th century, the insignia of the new Kingdom of Bavaria and several exceptional medieval works of art, acquired following the confiscation of ecclesiastical property in 1803, completed this prestigious collection.
Lunch at the restaurant.
3:25 p.m
.: Flight to Paris on a regular direct flight with Air France.
5:05 p.m
.: Arrival in Paris.
Fraueninsel Jo Graetz - stock.adobe.com
The price includes
Paris/Munich round-trip air transport on regular Air France flights
Air taxes €80 to date
Local taxes and services
Transport by air-conditioned coach
Accommodation in a double room in Deluxe category at the Sofitel hotel
Full board from dinner on day 1 to lunch on day 7
Drinks at lunches and dinners: 1 glass of wine or a beer, water, coffee or tea
Tipping: guides/drivers/hotels
Visits/excursions/entrances, according to the program
Local French-speaking guides
Carrying luggage to the hotel
A travel diary
Health – accident – repatriation – baggage insurance Mutuaide Assistance
A Figaro accompaniment