Schleissheim
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Schleissheim

Schleissheim

Bavarian town north of Munich, known for the Schleissheim palace complex and its baroque gardens.

Schleissheim is a small town just north of Munich, easily reached by S-Bahn and well worth half a day. It is best known for its palaces: the grand Neues Schloss Schleissheim — a Baroque palace commissioned by Elector Max Emanuel and filled with outstanding Flemish painting — and Schloss Lustheim at the far end of the formal gardens, which holds one of Europe's finest Meissen porcelain collections. Together they make up one of Bavaria's more impressive royal ensembles, without the tourist crowds of Munich's city centre.

The third major draw is the Flugwerft Schleissheim, an aviation museum that forms an annex to the Deutsches Museum. It houses more than 50 historic aircraft in a beautifully preserved First World War flying corps hangar and is one of the best aviation museums in Germany.

Guide

Getting There

Schleissheim is easily reached from Munich by S-Bahn. Take the S1 line towards Freising and alight at Oberschleißheim station; the palaces are about a 15-minute walk from the station, well signposted. The journey from Munich Hauptbahnhof takes roughly 30 minutes. The Flugwerft is a short walk from the S-Bahn station in the opposite direction from the palaces.

By car, Schleissheim is about 15 kilometres north of Munich via the B13. Parking is available near the palace complex. The site can be combined with a visit to Dachau, which is about 12 kilometres to the west, though the emotional contrast between the two is stark.

Guide

Things to Do

Schleissheim offers three major attractions in close proximity. The Neues Schloss Schleissheim is the centrepiece — a full-scale Baroque palace with a superb collection of Flemish and Dutch paintings, built to rival Versailles and nearly as grand. Schloss Lustheim at the eastern end of the formal gardens holds the finest collection of Meissen porcelain outside Meissen itself. And the Flugwerft Schleissheim aviation museum fills a magnificent restored airfield hangar with some of the best historic aircraft in Germany.

The formal gardens connecting the palaces are pleasant to walk in any season. Visiting all three attractions comfortably fills a day; if time is limited, the Flugwerft is the most unusual and the Neues Schloss the most spectacular.