On Saturday 17 October, more than 100 museums, galleries, churches and studios across Munich stay open until 1 am – and in the afternoon there is a separate programme just for children. For families looking for an autumn weekend outing that will not drain the wallet, it is arguably the richest cultural offer of the year.
The 27th Lange Nacht der Münchner Museen runs from 6 pm to 1 am on 17 October; some events end earlier. The children’s programme takes place from 2 to 6 pm. The hub is Odeonsplatz, where an information and ticket tent opens at 1 pm and sells tickets and programme booklets.
What will it cost a family?
The Lange Nacht ticket costs €20, with booking and system fees added in advance sales. It covers all participating venues, the children’s afternoon programme and the special MVG shuttle buses. The key point for parents: according to the City of Munich, one adult’s ticket is valid for up to four children aged four to 14. A mother with two or three children therefore pays €20 once rather than four times. Anyone who only wants the afternoon can buy a €5 children’s ticket, valid for the children’s programme only. How an accompanying adult is handled with that ticket is not stated on the programme pages, so it is worth checking the FAQ beforehand. Prices for children under four are not mentioned either.
Teenagers aged 16 and over may stay unaccompanied until midnight; younger children, and anyone staying later, need a responsible adult. Tickets are sold online through München Ticket (advance sales began on 12 August) and on the day at Odeonsplatz.
Which activities suit children?
The organisers list specific afternoon slots. The Bavarian National Museum runs “Animals in the Museum” (3–4.30 pm and 3.30–5 pm). The State Museum of Egyptian Art offers a studio workshop (2–4 pm), guided tours at 2.30 and 3.30 pm and a story hour at 4.30 pm. The Sudeten German Museum has sand-art shows at 2 and 4 pm, family tours at 3 and 5 pm and short workshops. The State Archaeological Collection presents “Roman lovers” from 2 to 5 pm; the Museum Fünf Kontinente holds an open block-printing workshop (2–5 pm) and the State Coin Collection a cyanotype workshop (2–6 pm). At the TUM Center for Culture and Arts, children can build robots and learn about AI from 2 to 6 pm, in German and English. Haus der Kunst offers hands-on activities around the Tomás Saraceno show “Verwobene Welten” (2–6 pm).
Most activities show no registration requirement on the programme page; for the Kunstareal tour, the jewellery workshop at little ART, the Magda Bittner-Simmet Foundation tour and “The Night Watchman for Kids” (4.30–5.45 pm), sign-up goes through the individual organisers. The page gives no age limits; the ticket rule (four to 14) is the best guide.
Getting around: MVG runs special buses on six lines. Lines 90 to 94 leave Odeonsplatz every ten minutes, the northern line 95 every twenty. The shuttle is included in the Lange Nacht ticket, while regular buses, trams and the U-Bahn need a separate ticket. Our advice: with more than 100 venues, pick two or three in one district in advance rather than criss-crossing the city – and with children the afternoon is the calmer part anyway.
Note: some older tourism pages still describe five shuttle lines and list the date as “pencilled in”; the current pages of the city and the organisers are authoritative.
Sources: muenchen.de, Lange Nacht der Münchner Museen, Children’s programme, München Ticket
