Why now? The city's historic beer gardens open this month, so there's no need to wait for the infamous Oktoberfest for a weekend of sitting in the sun 'researching' the best brews.

Getting there: Eurostar (eurostar.com, from £59 rtn) to Paris then the Cassiopeia sleeper, from £81 rtn; see bahn.de.

Where to stay: Anna Hotel (annahotel.de, rooms from £130), where giant bathrooms are lit with red neon.

What to do: There are more than 100 beer gardens, but with 8,000 seats, the Koniglicher Hirschgarten near Myphenburg Castle claims to be the largest in Europe and has a deer enclosure — you don't get that in Wetherspoons. For something less frothy, there's the 'Long Night of Music' on May 31, with genre-spanning performances city-wide until 3am . Plus, it's Munich's 850th birthday this year, so the summer will be packed with celebrations (see muenchen.de).

Where to eat: Lenbach (lenbach.de), designed by Terence Conran, for rhubarb consomme with ravioli or wild garlic and curd cheese dumplings.