The park and its four pavilions: two hundred hectares, free, and open in winter
Behind the palace lie two hundred hectares, laid out formally near the building and landscaped further out by Friedrich Ludwig von Sckell in the early nineteenth century. It costs nothing. It is open every day of the year, from six in the morning. Four small palaces stand in it, and those four are ticketed and do close for the winter — which is the distinction the rest of this page is about.
The winter claim, and who is right about it
One supplier listing states that the park is closed in winter and accessible only during the summer months. The Bavarian Palace Administration, which owns the gates and opens them, publishes hours for January, February, March, November and December. Those hours are below. Where a supplier and the operator disagree about a gate, the operator is the one holding the key.
| The park’s main gate | Opens | Shuts |
|---|---|---|
| January, February, March, November, December | 6 am | 6 pm |
| April and October | 6 am | 8 pm |
| May to September | 6 am | 9.30 pm |
The operator’s own published gate times. There is no winter closure of the park in them, and no admission charge in any season.
What genuinely closes on 16 October is the four park palaces, and it is easy to see how one fact became the other. If somebody walks out to the Amalienburg in November and finds it shut, the story that comes home is that the park was closed. The gates were open at six that morning and stayed open until six that evening, two hours after the palace museums had shut.
The four pavilions, and when they were built
- Pagodenburg, 1716–19. The earliest of the four.
- Badenburg, 1719–21.
- Magdalenenklause, 1725–28.
- Amalienburg, 1734–39. The last built and the one most visitors have heard of, for the mirrored hall inside it.
All four are covered by the combination ticket, and all four can be bought together on a single ticket of their own for less than the palace costs. All four keep the palace’s summer hours, 9 am to 6 pm, and all four are closed from 16 October until April. That is why the winter combination ticket costs less than the summer one: it is covering two things instead of three. The arithmetic is on the tickets page.
A reviewer of the architect-led walk described reaching one of them: “We walked through beautiful Baroque gardens, discovered hidden gems like the Amalienburg (a true Rococo masterpiece!), and Philipp shared fascinating stories about the Bavarian royals.” — Germany, July 2025, on Nymphenburg Palace Reimagined (Max. 12 guests). That listing states in its own inclusions that tickets are not included, so the pavilion admission is yours to buy.
What the free half is worth
More than the ticketed half, for some visitors, and the reviews say so without being asked. Anna, who came out on a bus and paid for the entry ticket, wrote: “The grounds around the palace are extensive, beautiful, and free.” — United States, July 2026, on Munich: Nymphenburg Palace Entry Ticket. In winter the park is open for two hours after the museums shut; in high summer it is open for three and a half hours after they shut, which is the difference between an afternoon and an evening.
What works
- Two hundred hectares, free, every day of the year
- Gates open at 6 am in every season, long before the museums
- Formal near the palace, landscaped by Sckell further out
- Outlasts the ticketed buildings by hours at both ends of the day
Worth knowing
- The four park palaces are ticketed and shut from 16 October
- One supplier listing wrongly says the park itself closes in winter
- Nothing in the park is guided; the audio guide is a palace product
- The pavilions are a walk out from the palace, not a step outside it
In winter, do the museums first and the park afterwards. The gate stays open two hours after the last door shuts, and a low December sun down the avenues is the part of that day nobody charged you for.
Listings that reach the park
Two, and neither of them has to. The private gardens tour runs four hours and its inclusions reach the Amalienburg and the Badenburg out in the grounds. One city tour includes a visit to the park on foot as part of a wider morning across the old town and BMW Welt, which is about half an hour among the trees — and the park is free anyway, so what you are buying there is the rest of the itinerary.
Palace and gardensNymphenburg Palace and Gardens Private Tour
City tour, park onlyMunich Moments: City Tour – Nymphenburg Park, BMW Welt
Tickets NOT includedNymphenburg Palace Reimagined (Max. 12 guests)
The gate times sit alongside the museum hours on opening hours, and how the park changes the length of a visit is on how long you need.
Frequently asked questions
Is Nymphenburg Palace park free?
Yes, in every season and at every hour the gates are open. The park covers two hundred hectares and carries no admission charge. Its main gate opens at 6 am all year and shuts at 6 pm from November to March, 8 pm in April and October, and 9.30 pm from May to September. The ticketed parts of the estate are listed on the tickets page.
Does the park close in winter?
No. One supplier listing says it does; the Bavarian Palace Administration publishes winter gate hours of 6 am to 6 pm, and it runs the gates. What closes from 16 October is the four park palaces — Amalienburg, Badenburg, Pagodenburg and Magdalenenklause — which reopen in April. Full seasonal times are on opening hours.
What are the four park palaces at Nymphenburg?
The Pagodenburg of 1716–19, the Badenburg of 1719–21, the Magdalenenklause of 1725–28 and the Amalienburg of 1734–39, standing in the grounds behind the palace. All four are on the combination ticket or on a cheaper single of their own, and all four are closed from 16 October until April. See tickets and what they cover.