Country Information

The comprehensive public transport network in Munich is run by the Münchener Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund GmbH (MVV) (tel: (089) 4142 4344; www.mvv-muenchen.de). This consists of an integrated system of 10 Strassenbahn (tram) lines, around 70 bus lines, eight U-Bahn (underground) lines and 10 S-Bahn (suburban train) lines.

Tickets are available for purchase from blue ticket machines marked with the MVV logo and from other ticket outlets. Unless you've purchased a pre-validated ticket, tickets must be validated in blue Entwerter machines, marked with the letter 'E', upon boarding.

One-day, three-day and four-day passes are available, and up to five adults travelling together can save money by buying a one-day group ticket (Partner-Tageskarte).

Taxis in Munich are usually cream-coloured Mercedes and can be safely hailed on the street. Taxi-München (tel: (089) 21 610) and Isarfunk (tel: (089) 450 540) are both good options for call-outs. A tip of 5-10% is common practice.

Traffic can be heavy, particularly during rush hour, and parking is often problematic. Drivers should note that trams always have priority in Munich, although driving on their tracks is permissible and usually unavoidable. Buses have priority when leaving stops.

The most useful car parks in Munich include Carpark am Stachus (Adolf-Kolping-Strasse 10) and Carpark Vor der Oper (Max-Joseph-Platz 4).

Drivers need to be at least 21 years old to hire a category-one car, although small cars, such as a Smart car, can be hired at 19 years. Insurance in Germany is mandatory and drivers must hold a valid licence.

There are numerous car hire firms, both at the airport and in central Munich. Companies include Avis (tel: (089) 9759 7600; www.avis.de), Hertz (tel: (089) 978 8619; www.hertz.de) and Autoverleih Sander (tel: (089) 348 046; www.sander-autoverleih.de).

Call A Bike (tel: 0700 0522 5522, in Germany only; www.callabike-interaktiv.de), operated by Deutsche Bahn (DB), has bikes spread over Munich. By calling the number, a credit card account is set up, which enables customers to release the electronically locked bike by inputting a pin code. You can also register online. The credit card is charged after the bike is returned to a bike rack. Once an account and pin code are set up, any available bike can be used at any time.

Bikes can also be hired from Radius Touristik, in Munich's Hauptbahnhof opposite platform 32 (tel: (089) 54348 77740; www.radiusmunich.com) or Mike's Bike Tours & Rentals, Bräuhaustrasse 10 (tel: (089) 2554 3987; www.mikesbiketours.com).