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I’m actually quite surprised that Montreal is winning here.
In Munich, we are talking about a place that has significantly more transit infrastructure, cultural and historical depth, at least IMO natural splendor, major events/attractions (Oktoberfest), was rated as world’s most livable city and by all amounts seems to have much more interesting attractions surrounding it too.
Not saying Montreal isn’t very nice also, and it’s perhaps more likely I will visit there sooner than Munich because it’s closer and cheaper, but Munich seems to me like a cultural powerhouse, nearly on the level of Paris but with much greater outdoor opportunities surrounding it too. I wonder if it is in part because many have a North American base. I’m not posting this to troll Montreal, I’m asking in part to understand how Montreal can beat arguably the historical/cultural capital of Germany, consistently voted world’s most livable city, and one of the world’sbest Surroundings for a major city (like 5 winter Olympic host cities within 100 miles)
You stated 5 winter Olympic host cities within 100 miles....I found that to be interesting,
so I checked...not quite true....Innsbruck, Austria and Garmisch in Germany are within 100 miles
of Munich and Innsbruck held the Winter Olympics twice. Saint Moritz, Switzerland is a bit
farther away at 139 miles as is Cortina, Italy at about 184 miles....maybe they are less than 100 miles
as the crow flies....Montreal is only 112 miles by car from Lake Placid, New York, which held the
Winter Olympics twice...1932 and 1980. Only 87 miles away as the crow flies.
I’m not sure about your saying that Munich is on a level,closer to Paris...
Paris is imo on a different level more closer to London, England....Paris has over 12 million...
Actually Montreal and Munich are a good match up...
Montreal has a city population of about 1.7 million ....metro population about 4.2 million
Munich has a city population of about 1.5 million....metro population about 4.6 million
Even city size and population density are similar...
Munich city size about 119 square miles...population density on average 12,000 per square mile
Montreal city size about 166 square miles...population density on average 10,000 per square mile
As for transit infrastructure ...yes, I agree, edge to Munich....but Montreal is no slouch,
unlike USA, canadian cities people use public transit more....
Montreal Metro (subway) is 43 miles in length and has average daily ridership of over 1 million
with average annual ridership of about 360 million
Montreal average dialy ridership when including it’s 197 bus routes is over 2 million.
Munich subway is longer at 64 miles but average daily ridership slightly less at just under 1 million.
Also I’m not so sure about the nature splendor being in Munich’s favor...
after all Montreal is in Canada and there is plently of “nature” not too far from Montreal,
including from our friends in the USA ...New York state’s Adirondack Mountains are just ovef
1 hour drive away....Vermont’s Green Mountains are pretty close too...not that Montrealers need to cross the
border for natural splendor....north of Montreal are the Laurentians...east of Montreal are
a continuation of Vermont’s Green Mountains ...part of the Appalachian mountain system that
runs from northern Georgia to the Gaspe in Quebec.
Cetainly not the Alps but does offer great recreation and natural splendor ,
especially in the fall with all the leaves changing color.
And being Canada and not jam packed Germany...once you drive about 150 or so miles north
of Montreal you are in true wilderness....almost no roads.....very typical right across Canada.
I prefer Montreal. It’s very unique. It’s very open minded (Munich is a conservative City) Montreal has one of the best nightlife in the world too ( I loved the hidden bars). The metro is great too and the city is very affordable. The food is actually better too being a more multicultural city than Munich. Weather is very cold in winter but Montreal is sunnier than Munich. People are nicer too :P
So, I can't really disagree on all the points for certain, but is Munich really all that conservative? I know it is traditional, per se, but it's also known for "laptops meets lederhosen", so I would guess that while it may not be as liberal as Montreal is, I'm guessing it is a relatively open minded/liberal place also. I could be wrong on that though.
https://www.wired.com/2009/02/stressful-munic/ I would think Munich's metro might be on a different scale than Montreal's, though I am sure that both transit networks have their unique qualities.
Munich's nightlife seems to be more centered around biergartens, outdoor drinking, festivals and such (which honestly I might prefer in style), but I'm sure I could find great/diverse nightlife options in both.
You are correct about Lake Placid, and perhaps I am underestimating the Adirondacks/Laurentians/other ranges. Montreal certainly isn't a slouch in the natural scenery department, I would definitely not say that. In fact, out of all the Eastern North American cities, I would say Montreal might come out on Top. The only thing I would say is that Munich because of the Alps and all that comes with might be, at least in terms of elevation, perhaps a little more analogous to the surrounds of Salt Lake City, or perhaps more appropriately Denver, but with more of a lush feel than those two have even.
Both have great city parks, rivers, etc. though Montreal city limits parks might be prettier than Munich's. All pictures of Munich that I see just paint the place as extremely lush though. Both rank in Global Top 20 on the Copenhagenize best cycling cities in the world index, and consistently so.
I really do think Montreal is a cool city and hope to visit at some point, and in a number of ways, it is somewhat comparable to European cities, which is really, really impressive. I guess the thing that threw me off on transit is that I don't think that there's any direct link by rail to the airport which I found odd (and it's like 40 minutes or so it said by the bus shuttle). Munich also has the S Bahn, which runs 275 miles, 147 stops which might account for the perceived difference in train networks.
I guess when I am thinking about comparing Munich to Paris, Montreal, etc., I am thinking less about overall population of the cities and more about their standing, holistically. Montreal was founded in 1642. Munich was founded in 1158. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histor..._225v_226r.jpg this is a woodcut painting of Munich from 1492, even. Louis IV was an important emperor of the whole of the Holy Roman Empire in the early 1300s, and one can visit his tomb there. In 1506, Munich became the capital of the entire Kingdom of Bavaria (and the 1592 brewing recipe handed down from Wilhelm happened here). The Catholic League of the Holy Roman Empire, along with the Habsburg Dynasty ruled from here. So basically 500+ years of being an imperial center (and still much preserved Marienplatz where all that happened), and all the development/knowledge that went with that. Howard Hillman does lists of world wonders, and is considered a foremost source on that. He lists no less than 7 places within the City of Munich on that list of Top 1000 places, including castles/palaces, outstanding museums (including what is noted as the premier technology/science museum in the world), etc. I think based on all that alone, it may not actually be Paris (although there are various reasons I might prefer it still to there, modernity, nature, laid back vibes, livability measures etc.). It just seems like it has an order of magnitude of prestige that is incredibly high right now, and probably much deeper layers due to it's age and stature at those times.
On a modern basis? I would be curious about how the two compare regarding more minute differences on everyday life factors, and also bigger economic factors like importance, international organizations, etc. Montreal is at 27 on the AT Kearney list outpacing Munich which is at 32, however, Munich has a higher future outlook though. This is actually a pretty interesting comparison, with some obvious differences aside (Montreal is more diverse, and probably has more of a modern feel on a citywide level though Munich seems to be just a very clean place, too)
If we're being honest, neither city is even close to being in the same league as Paris.
Munich is behind Paris on sheer volume, and Paris' notable standing as a world city and tourism mecca. That said, I think there are a number of criteria on which I personally would prefer Munich to Paris. Monocle's Annual Livability Ranking is probably the world's most studied and publicized since it has come out, and I believe that Munich has been ranked as Most Livable City in the World according to it's metrics no less than 3 times.
Munich is behind Paris on sheer volume, and Paris' notable standing as a world city and tourism mecca. That said, I think there are a number of criteria on which I personally would prefer Munich to Paris. Monocle's Annual Livability Ranking is probably the world's most studied and publicized since it has come out, and I believe that Munich has been ranked as Most Livable City in the World according to it's metrics no less than 3 times.
I think that OP was mainly looking for which one was better to visit to which I’d say there’s no reason they should be mutually exclusive. Montreal can be done cheaply esp. since I’m thinking he’s in North America perhaps even the east? That’s a long weekend.
And Munich I’m increasingly thinking is the most underrated city in Europe (I had thought Moscow but after FIFA that seems to get a lot more respect). I agree with you it doesn’t have the heft I’d say Paris, but I’d say it is then in a league with Milan, Madrid, Vienna, Amsterdam of 2nd Tower Cities in the whole world (Top 20 or 25). Montreal is impressive too, almost certainly Top 10 maybe Top 5 in North America, but maybe Top 50 in the world. Europe just has so many outstanding cities that some that would be considered best in show on other continents tend to be overlooked. Likewise, I think Asia Pacific has some outstanding 2nd and even 3rd tier cities, just so many out there.
I think that OP was mainly looking for which one was better to visit to which I’d say there’s no reason they should be mutually exclusive. Montreal can be done cheaply esp. since I’m thinking he’s in North America perhaps even the east? That’s a long weekend.
And Munich I’m increasingly thinking is the most underrated city in Europe (I had thought Moscow but after FIFA that seems to get a lot more respect). I agree with you it doesn’t have the heft I’d say Paris, but I’d say it is then in a league with Milan, Madrid, Vienna, Amsterdam of 2nd Tower Cities in the whole world (Top 20 or 25). Montreal is impressive too, almost certainly Top 10 maybe Top 5 in North America, but maybe Top 50 in the world. Europe just has so many outstanding cities that some that would be considered best in show on other continents tend to be overlooked. Likewise, I think Asia Pacific has some outstanding 2nd and even 3rd tier cities, just so many out there.
Some people may not agree, but I've always considered the cities in that category (which also includes Munich) to generally be "peer cities" of Montreal. And yes I've been to all of them.
There has been an error in my previous post that corresponds to another thread.-
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....Montreal is only 112 miles by car from Lake Placid, New York, which held the 
Vienna vs Madrid
