My husband and I are older parents of a teen girl with autism. We love to travel as a family, creating trips that are that are both manageable and fun for our daughter G. As of this writing, we’ve made it to 23 US states, 7 European countries, over a dozen US National Parks, a few places in Canada, Puerto Rico, and Morocco. G eagerly rises to every challenge and is always ready next Great Adventure!

I lived in Germany as a young adult, and have visited Munich many times. I was very excited to return there with my family and show them one of my favorite cities in Europe!

Munich is very safe, very clean, and has a real sense of place. There’s a lot to do and see in the Old City (Altstadt) of Munich, more than enough to fill the afternoon on your arrival day. After you check into your hotel, head straight to the Marienplatz, the heart of the Old City.

Here you will see the medieval town hall, onion dome church towers, open air restaurants whose waitstaff wear traditional Bavarian clothing, and small shops selling German merchandise. You will not see American fast food restaurants, or any big box American chain stores, although you can find these things nearby if you really need to.

People flock to the Marienplatz at 11 AM and 5 PM every day to watch the famous Glockenspiel in the New Town Hall. The Glockenspiel plays for about 10 minutes, with bells ringing and life-sized animated mechanical figures rotating on two different levels. The top level tells the story of the 1568 Royal Wedding between Duke Wilhelm and Renata of Lorraine, complete with a joust between French and Bavarian knights. On the lower level, coopers dance to celebrate the end of the plague of 1517.

Sensory: The area immediately in front of the Glockenspiel gets crowded and chaotic before and during the show. For a more sensory-friendly experience, arrive about 30 minutes in advance and get an outdoor table at one of the nearby cafes.

Nearby, visit the Marienkirche (Our Lady’s Church), the Alte Rathaus (Old Town Hall) and climb St. Peter’s church tower. When you’re ready for a break, head to the Hofbräuhaus for some refreshment.

Some of Munich’s most popular tourist sites aren’t within easy walking distance of the Old City, and with travel time, require a half-day commitment. Choose two of these to do in the mornings, then fill your afternoons with more flexible activities like shorter museum visits closer to home, exploring the English Gardens, or a trip to the zoo.

This is a great place to explore in the late afternoon or early evening. Slightly larger than New York’s central park, the Munich public gardens resemble a traditional English garden, with meandering paths throughout.

If you enjoy visiting the different countries at Disneyworld Epcot, you’ll have fun in the English Gardens! Within the park, there are English style pavilions, an 80 foot tall Chinese Pagoda, and a Japanese Tea Garden.

At the south end of the park, you can have some real fun watching people trying to surf a man-made wave at the Eisenwelle.

You can explore on foot, by bike, or take a horse-drawn carriage tour starting at the Chinese Tower. Within the park, there are lots of places to get your dinner - stalls selling snacks, full service restaurants and casual beer gardens.

Sensory: The English Gardens don’t permit motorized vehicles (except public safety) so the park is generally very quiet with lots of room for kids to run around and let off steam. The paths are mostly made of finely ground gravel and sand. Wear closed shoes if you’re sensitive to little pebbles around your toes. There are fountains if you’re thirsty but not necessarily where you want them to be, so bring water.

Don’t miss out on your chance to visit the Bavarian royal family home. Crowds and waiting are not a problem here. Your basic ticket gives admission to the palace only, the Schatzkammer (royal jewel collection) and royal theater are very worthwhile add-ons.

If you have the Bavarian Palace Administration Pass, all three are included. The pass saves you time waiting on admission lines, and if you visit at least 3 palaces, you’ll save some money.

When you go, make the Schatzkamme your first stop. It’s relatively small, but requires attention to detail to really appreciate the workmanship on many of the items. It’s hard to focus on the crowns right after walking through a 100 room palace!

Sensory: The lighting in the Schatzkammer building (where the jewels are displayed) is very dim to protect the valuables.

Being in any large city comes with a high level of sensory debt for families like ours. When G is done for the day, she is DONE, and therefore, so are we. We prioritize a good central location that gives us more time doing interesting things and less time traveling around the city. If we’re in a city for just a couple of nights, we look for a central hotel that offers both breakfast and dinner on-site, just in case we’re in the yellow zone (or worse) at dinner time. For a longer stay, an apartment where we can all have a little more personal space, and stay closer to our usual home routines, is the best choice for our family.

The main train station (Hauptbahnhof) is a 5-10 minute walk from the Marienplatz. All of the underground train lines and above ground tram lines intersect here. The actual neighborhood is more utilitarian than picturesque, but is clean, safe, and reasonably priced. You may want to consider: