Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Left
Dallmayr
Centre
Sales at Karstadt department store
Right
Hieber am Dom
Shopping Tips
!
Opening Hours
$
Consumer
especially the pedestrian
zones, Sendlinger Straße,
Maximilianstraße,
Theatinerstraße, and in
Schwabing on Leopold-
straße and around the
university
(see p66).
*
Music
Protection
The Landratsamt of Munich
(regional and municipal
affairs office) is responsi-
ble for food and consumer
goods. If you have any
problems, such as ex-
changing a purchase, con-
tact them or the Munich
subsidiary of the Bavarian
Consumer Protection
Agency. d
Landratsamt
München, Mariahilfplatz
17, Map F6-G6, (089) 62
21-23 28 bzw. 62 21-28
17 • Verbraucherzentrale
München, Mozartstr. 9,
Map E5, (089) 53 98 70
%
Sales Tax
Most stores in the
city are open 9am to 8pm
Monday to Saturday. Gov-
ernment offices, banks,
and post offices close
earlier, usually at 4pm,
5pm, or 6pm. On Christ-
mas Eve and New Year's
Eve, most stores close at
noon. Stores in small
towns outside Munich
keep shorter hours, often
closing at 6pm weekdays,
at noon on Saturday, and
on Wednesday afternoons.
Hours may well be extend-
ed in the near future, as
the legal retail closing
hours are currently the
subject of lively debate.
@
Sales/Discounts
In addition to chains
such as WOM, Saturn,
MediaMarkt, and the CD
sections of department
stores, you'll find an
interesting selection in
independent stores, such
as Hieber am Dom
(Liebfrauenstr. 1), which
also sells sheet music.
Ludwig Beck am Rat-
hauseck
(see p83)
offers
excellent jazz, worldbeat,
blues, and classics, both
modern and traditional.
In Germany, sales tax
(
Mehrwertsteuer
) is 19 per
cent and included in the
marked price. Travellers
from non-EU countries can
apply for a refund with the
relevant documents from
Global Refund either at the
airport or by mail from
home. The Customs offi-
cial has to see the goods
purchased and stamp the
sales receipts when you
leave Germany.
^
Exchange
End-of-summer and
-winter sales have been
undermined for some
time now by special sales
events all year long. Just
keep your eyes open for
Rabatt
(discount) or
Son-
derverkauf
(special sale)
signs. Price labels on
merchandise are non-
xnegotiable in most
stores. At wholesalers, in
some boutiques, and at
flea markets, you can try
your hand at bargaining
for a reduced price.
£
Payment
(
Books
Munich's principal
bookseller is Hugendubel
department store, whose
flagship store is located
on Marienplatz. Many
small independent book-
shops, including those
selling foreign-language
books, are located in the
university district. If you
have a passion for anti-
quarian books, be sure to
visit Kitzinger
(see p91)
.
)
Factory Outlets
Full-price items have
limited warranties and can
be exchanged if they are
damaged or otherwise
unsatisfactory; in some
cases, you will get a full
cash refund. Note: there
is usually no exchange
policy for discounted items.
by Credit Card
Most city-centre stores
accept all major credit
cards. Outside the city
and in smaller boutiques,
credit cards might not be
taken, with the exception
of the Maestro card,
which is accepted
virtually everywhere.
Factory outlets have
now come into fashion in
Munich. Many are located
outside the city in com-
mercial districts; others
are more central.
d
Classic Outlet,
Leopoldstr. 20, Map M1
•
Replay Outlet,
Hofmannstr. 7a (Sendling)
&
Fashion
Fashion boutiques
are located chiefly in the
main shopping districts,
142
For details on shopping for antiques
See p52
