Munich

Munich, the most expensive city in Germany, is also very quaint — and perhaps it’s this dual personality that visitors find so charming.

Although München plays host to the country’s 200-year-old bacchanalia, Oktoberfest, it’s also highly modern: the unofficial European capital of publishing and technology.

Nuzzling the Bavarian Alps and resting beside the River Isar, the city is rife with natural beauty and yet its streets are also lined with man-made marvels, in the form of designer retail shops and shiny BMWs. In short, you should visit for both the provinciality and progressiveness.