On 21 October 1876 Munich’s first horse tram set off from Promenadeplatz towards Maillingerstraße, a 2.8-kilometre line. A hundred and fifty years on, the city’s transport operator MVG is marking the anniversary with a festival weekend on 17 and 18 October, and everything is free. For families with vehicle-mad children it is a very cheap day out.
Saturday: parade and a free anniversary line
On Saturday 17 October historic trams and buses line up on Theatinerstraße, led by a modern Avenio in anniversary livery. After speeches, the parade heads via the Maxmonument and Max-Weber-Platz to the tram depot on Einsteinstraße. The sources differ slightly on timing: MVG gives 9:45 am for lining up and 10 am for speeches, muenchen.de says the parade starts at 9:30; arrival at the depot is around 11. You cannot ride in the parade, but you can watch from the pavement, and period costume or traditional dress is welcome.
From about 11:30 am to 6 pm an anniversary line shuttles between Einsteinstraße and Sendlinger Tor by tram and historic bus. You can board at any stop without a ticket if there is room. MVG says timetables will follow shortly before the weekend. Sendlinger Tor has balloon art; Einsteinstraße has face painting and a photo wall.
Sunday: a look underneath a tram
On Sunday 18 October the depot at Einsteinstraße 148 is open to all from 10 am to 5 pm. Visitors can see a raised tram from below, workshops and paint shop, door technology, driver’s cabs to sit in, and maintenance and recovery vehicles. For children there is a wheel of fortune, face painting, balloon art, a painting station and a “fun tram” where they can ring the bell, make announcements and take photos. People curious about careers can talk to drivers, vehicle technicians and track crews.
Getting there: tram 19 to Vogelweideplatz or Einsteinstraße every ten minutes, plus historic buses from Max-Weber-Platz. Worth knowing: pushchairs are not allowed on historic vehicles, only backpacks and bags up to A4 size are permitted on site, and most historic vehicles are not wheelchair accessible. Organisers say dates and routes may still change, so check mvg.de before you go.
Our view: today the tram carries about 390,000 passengers a day, while the network peaked at 134.6 kilometres in 1964. With small children, pick Sunday: Saturday is for watching, Sunday for touching.
Sources: MVG, muenchen.de
