Marienplatz, Munich — Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

Marienplatz is the central square of Munich and has been the city's main gathering place since Munich was founded in 1158. It's where everything starts and where all distances from the city are measured. The square was originally a market, first called "Markth" and later "Schranne" (grain market), before being renamed Marienplatz on October 9, 1854, after the Mariensaule, the golden column of the Virgin Mary erected at its centre in 1638. The column was built to celebrate the end of the Swedish occupation during the Thirty Years' War and was the first Marian column north of the Alps. The dominant building on the square is the New Town Hall (Neues Rathaus), a massive neo-Gothic structure built between 1867 and 1909. Its Glockenspiel, a carillon with 43 bells and 16 life-sized figures, performs daily at 11am and 12pm (and 5pm in summer). The figures re-enact two stories from Munich's history: the 1568 wedding of Duke Wilhelm V and a jousting tournament, as well as the Schafflertanz (coopers' dance), performed every seven years since 1517 to celebrate the end of plague. The square is car-free and serves as the starting point for most explorations of Munich's Old Town. The Viktualienmarkt, Munich's famous open-air food market, is just a two-minute walk south. If you're on a Questo quest through Munich, Marienplatz is the obvious starting point, and the Glockenspiel might just give you a clue if you watch closely.