Chinesischer Turm e.V.An honest comparison
Munich's great beer gardens
Munich has more beer gardens than any other city in the world. This overview puts the big ones in order, by seats, location and character, and says what each place is good for.
Beer garden culture
The seat counts below are the figures usually given by the operators and the city. Treat them as orders of magnitude: beer gardens count differently, and real capacity depends on weather, seating and events.
Overview
| Beer garden | Seats, approx. | Location | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| Königlicher Hirschgarten | 8,000 | Nymphenburg | The biggest, with a deer enclosure, strong for families |
| Chinese Tower | 7,000 | English Garden | The second biggest, brass music from the tower, central |
| Augustiner-Keller | 5,000 | Arnulfstrasse | Historic cellar operation, dense old trees, near the main station |
| Seehaus | 2,500 | Kleinhesseloher lake | On the water, boat hire next door |
| Aumeister | 2,500 | English Garden, northern part | At the quiet end of the park, classic excursion destination |
| Zum Flaucher | 2,000 | Isar meadows | By the river, gravel banks, deliberately unhurried |
What sets them apart
The Hirschgarten: the biggest
Around 8,000 seats in the west of the city, with a fenced deer enclosure at the edge, which makes it a safe bet for families. It lies a little off the tourist routes and is surprisingly relaxed on weekdays.
The Chinese Tower: the central one
Around 7,000 seats in the middle of the English Garden. Its unique feature is acoustic: the brass band plays from the first floor of the tower, without amplification, across the whole area. No other beer garden has a stage above people's heads.
The Augustiner-Keller: the historic one
The name says it. A real beer cellar stood here, and the tree stock is correspondingly old. If you want to understand how a beer garden came into being, this is the place to sit.
Seehaus and Aumeister: the other two in the park
Both lie in the English Garden, but in different worlds. The Seehaus on the Kleinhesseloher lake is the waterside spot, in its present form since 1985. The Aumeister lies in the northern part, where the park goes quiet, and is a destination rather than a stop on the way.
The Flaucher: the river
On the Isar meadows, with gravel banks at the door. The least staged of the big beer gardens.
What applies everywhere
All the places named are traditional beer gardens in the sense of the Bavarian beer garden decree. That means: your own food is allowed in the self-service area, drinks are bought on site, music ends by 10 pm at the latest, closing time is 11 pm.
How many beer gardens Munich has in total cannot honestly be reduced to one number, because the line between beer garden, pub garden and outdoor serving area is blurred. The order of magnitude is in the high hundreds; the city counts as the beer garden capital.
And the association?
The Chinesischer Turm e.V. runs none of these beer gardens. It is a heritage association and looks after the culture at the tower. This overview is orientation, not endorsement, and contains no paid placements.
How to pick the right one
The seat count says the least about whether a beer garden fits the occasion. Four questions are more useful.
- With children?
- Hirschgarten for the deer enclosure, Chinese Tower for the historic carousel of 1913.
- With guests from out of town?
- Chinese Tower. The park, the pagoda and the music from above explain Munich in an hour.
- For a rest?
- Aumeister in the northern part or Flaucher on the Isar. Both lie away from the paths people pass by chance.
- Short on time?
- Augustiner-Keller. Ten minutes from the main station and still an old cellar operation with mature trees.
What the seat counts are worth
Capacity figures come from the operators themselves and are counted differently: sometimes only self-service, sometimes including served areas and indoor dining. The order of the big houses is undisputed, the exact numbers are not. We therefore give them as orders of magnitude, not to the seat.
The one thing that exists only here
All of Munich's great beer gardens have trees, beer and Brotzeit. Only one has a stage above people's heads. The gallery on the first floor of the Chinese Tower was designed as a music stage when the tower was built in 1789 and 1790 and is used that way to this day. That is not a verdict on the others, but the one structural difference no operator can retrofit.
Frequently asked questions
What is the biggest beer garden in Munich?
The Königlicher Hirschgarten with around 8,000 seats. The beer garden at the Chinese Tower follows in second place with about 7,000 seats.
How many beer gardens does Munich have?
There is no exact figure, because beer garden, pub garden and outdoor serving area are not sharply separated. The order of magnitude is in the high hundreds.
In which beer garden does a brass band play?
At the Chinese Tower the brass band plays in summer from the first floor of the tower, on Sundays and public holidays, and in fine weather also on Wednesdays and Fridays.
May you bring your own food to all Munich beer gardens?
In traditional beer gardens in the sense of the Bavarian beer garden decree, yes, in the self-service area. Drinks are bought on site.