Sundays in Munich: What Is Closed, What Is Open, and the One-Euro Museums

A Sunday in Munich catches a lot of visitors off guard the first time, usually somewhere around 4 p.m. when they realize the corner shop that was open all week is now shut, and will stay that way until Monday. This page is part of my complete first-trip guide to Munich, and it exists to make sure that surprise happens to you on a page, not on the sidewalk.

What actually closes

Munich follows the same shop-closing law as the rest of Germany, and its own shopping guide spells out the weekday and Saturday hours plainly: department stores run 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., supermarkets 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and bakeries 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday¹. On Sunday, all of that stops. Every shop closes except petrol stations, and bakeries are the sole exception allowed to open at all, and only from 7 a.m. until noon¹. If you need groceries, a phone charger or anything from a normal retail shop on a Sunday, a petrol station is genuinely your best option, not a last resort.

One practical note that cuts the other way: Munich’s shelf prices already include VAT, either 7 percent or 19 percent depending on the category of goods, so nothing changes at the till on a Sunday versus any other day; non-EU visitors can claim a VAT refund on goods they are exporting, though EU residents cannot¹.

The €1 Sunday museums

While the shops shut, four of Munich’s state art museums drop their admission to a single euro every Sunday, confirmed directly on the Pinakothek’s own visitor page. The table below is the current list.

Source: pinakothek.de².

Regular admission at the Alte Pinakothek runs €9, reduced €6, and at the Pinakothek der Moderne €10, reduced €7, with under-18s free at all times³. The Pinakothek der Moderne’s own visitor page confirms the Sunday rate in its own words: “Sunday admission 1 Euro”³. None of the four museums in the table open on Mondays, so a Sunday visit followed by a Monday change of plans will find every one of them shut.

The ticket math that actually saves money

Munich also sells a combined ticket covering same-day entry to multiple Pinakotheken for €12³. On any day but Sunday, that is the better deal if you are visiting more than one. On a Sunday, it is not: three separate €1 admissions at the Alte Pinakothek, the Pinakothek der Moderne and Museum Brandhorst add up to €3, nine euros less than the combined ticket covering the same three visits. If your museum day lands on a Sunday, buy each ticket separately at the door and skip the combination pass entirely.

Resi says The one euro rule is the best-value hour in Munich, and almost nobody I have ever talked to about their trip knew it existed before they got there. Go to the Alte Pinakothek first, since it also absorbed a rotating selection of the Neue Pinakothek’s nineteenth-century highlights while that building stays closed for renovation until 2029³.

What the €1 club leaves out

The Lenbachhaus, Munich’s museum of Blue Rider-era art, is not part of the pinakothek.de €1 Sunday group, and it is closed on Mondays regardless of when you visit. It runs its own version of the same idea instead: free admission every first Thursday of the month, from 6 to 10 p.m.⁴. Standard admission otherwise runs €10, reduced €6⁴. If your Sunday is booked elsewhere, a first-Thursday evening at the Lenbachhaus is worth building an itinerary around instead.

Building the day around it

Once you know the rule, Sunday stops being a problem and becomes the easiest day to plan. Saturday is the day to handle anything that needs a shop: department stores run until 8 p.m. and supermarkets the same, so there is no need to rush a Saturday errand before some early closing time¹. That frees Sunday for the things a closed shop front never affected in the first place: the €1 museums above, a walk through the Englischer Garten, or a half-day trip like Dachau, which is free and open daily regardless of the Ladenschluss rules governing retail.

Restaurants, cafés and beer gardens are not shops, and Munich’s shopping-hours page addresses retail specifically, not hospitality, so a Sunday roast or an afternoon at a beer garden is not affected by any of the above¹. The rule that surprises visitors is narrower than it sounds: it closes retail, not the city, and it says nothing at all about where you eat or drink once the shutters come down.

Resi says Treat it as a gift, not an inconvenience. Groceries and anything with a cash register belong on Saturday; Sunday is for the Pinakothek, a long walk, and a beer garden table if the weather holds, in that order.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are shops open on Sundays in Munich?

No, with two exceptions: petrol stations stay open, and bakeries may open from 7 a.m. to noon only.

Which Munich museums cost €1 on Sunday?

The Alte Pinakothek, the Pinakothek der Moderne, Museum Brandhorst and the Sammlung Schack all drop to €1 admission every Sunday.

Are the €1 Sunday museums open on Monday?

No. All four are closed on Mondays, and the Sammlung Schack is also closed Tuesdays.

Is the combined Pinakotheken ticket worth it on Sunday?

No. Buying each €1 Sunday admission separately costs less than the €12 combined ticket if you are visiting three or fewer.

Can I buy groceries on Sunday in Munich?

Not at a regular supermarket. Petrol stations are the main exception, and bakeries are open only until noon.

Is VAT added at checkout in Munich?

No, VAT of 7 or 19 percent is already included in the shelf price; it does not change based on the day of the week.

What is open on Sunday in Munich besides museums?

Petrol stations and, until noon, bakeries; restaurants, cafés and beer gardens operate on their own separate hours, not the retail Ladenschluss rules.

Is the Lenbachhaus part of the €1 Sunday museums?

No, but it offers free admission every first Thursday of the month, from 6 to 10 p.m.

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