U-Bahn 1: Rotkreuzplatz station
Tel. 17 90 80
Daily 9am-6pm
From mid Oct. to March : 10am-4pm.
Entrance fee : € 10 EURO. Palace only : € 5 EURO.
In 1662, Elector Ferdinand Maria presented a plot of land just
outside the town to his spouse Henriette Adelaide of Savoy in gratitude
for the birth of a successor to the throne. First a country seat in
Italian ‘villa suburbana’ style was built here. The middle section,
constructed between 1664 and 1675, orients itself after the model of
Italian garden-mansions. Over 100 years passed between the laying of
Schloss Nymphenburg’s foundation stone and its completion. Henriette
didn’t live to see the castle in its full glory.
Under Ferdinand’s son Maximilian Emanuel II, the second great
construction phase began, involving the builder Enrico Zucalli and then
Joseph Effner. Side wings were added to the main tract, so that the
summer residence of the Bavarian Electors and Kings measures 685 metres
from north to south. Later, the Pagodenburg, the Badenburg,
and the Mariaklause were built in the extensive park which first
follows the Italian ideal and then dissolves into English garden
landscaping. Even today, promenaders, catching a glimpse of these jewels
in between the trees, express amazed delight. Beginning in 1734,
François de Cuvilliés the Elder (1695-1768) built a hunting-lodge, the
so-called Amalienburg. When it was completed in 1739 he proved to have
succeeded in creating a uniquely splendid example of rococo. Visitors
are advised to reserve an entire day for these sights. The most
beautiful approaches to the palace are the northern and southern
boulevards running alongside the Nymphenburg Canal. The gondola service
of the good old days unfortunately no longer exists. During cold winters
the canal’s waters are covered with a layer of ice and are used by
skaters and curlers. Only guided tours of the palace are available.
After the Wagenburg (Coaches and Carriages Lodge) at Vienna’s Schloss
Schönbrunn, the Marstallmuseum (Museum of Royal Carriages) here has the
world’s largest coach- and carriage collection.
An overview of hotels in Munich.
Other German cities.
Schloss Nymphenburg
