Haidhausen

Hilton Munich City

★★★★★

Hilton Munich City is the practical choice for travellers who want full-service comfort, easy transport and a quieter neighbourhood than the old town, at a price below the city's luxury hotels. It stands at Rosenheimer Strasse 15, on the Haidhausen side of the Isar, and its great advantage is that it adjoins the Rosenheimer Platz S-Bahn station. That station is on Munich's main S-Bahn trunk line, so Marienplatz is one stop away, the main station a few more, and the airport is reachable directly without changing, which is a real convenience with luggage. On foot, the Deutsches Museum is about 600 metres away across the Ludwigsbruecke, and the old town is around fifteen to twenty minutes' walk via the Isartor. Haidhausen itself, once a village of workers' cottages and now one of Munich's most pleasant residential quarters, is right behind the hotel, with its French Quarter of nineteenth-century streets named after battles of the Franco-Prussian War, the Wiener Platz market square, and plenty of cafes, wine bars and traditional inns. The hotel offers the facilities you would expect of a large business-and-leisure Hilton: a range of room categories, a fitness centre, meeting rooms, MONA, a restaurant serving modern Italian-inspired food, and the Juliet Rose bar, known for its signature cocktails. A kids' menu is available, making it a reasonable family option. Parking is in the hotel garage, with self-parking and valet options at a daily fee, and pets are accepted for a one-off fee. It lacks the character of the city's family-run hotels and the polish of its grand hotels, but it is reliable, well connected and often good value, especially at weekends and outside trade-fair periods, when business demand drops.

Location: Haidhausen is one of the best neighbourhoods in Munich for a relaxed evening, and the hotel is on its western edge. Walk east to the Wiener Platz, with its small market and the Hofbraeukeller beer garden nearby, or into the French Quarter around the Pariser Platz for dinner. Walk west across the Isar, past the Mueller'sches Volksbad, to the Deutsches Museum, the Gaertnerplatz and the old town. The Maximilianeum and the riverside paths are close, and the Ostbahnhof, with trains to Salzburg, Chiemsee and the Alps, is the next S-Bahn stop.

Who it suits: business travellers, families who want a predictable, full-service hotel with a restaurant and bar, Hilton loyalty members, and anyone who values the direct airport connection. Travellers seeking Bavarian character or a boutique feel should look at the old-town hotels.

Compared with nearby options: Motel One has two hotels nearby that are cheaper and more basic, and the Hotel Admiral, across the river, is smaller and more personal. In the old town, the Platzl and the Torbraeu offer more character for more money. The Hilton's strengths are its transport links and its facilities, and on weekends and in winter it can be among the better deals in central Munich.