I had a connecting flight in Munich yesterday, and I had to share the experience to see if this is something specific to German culture, that airport, or what, because it was something else.

After we had unborded our first flight and had been in the Munich airport a few minutes, I looked at my wife and said... isn't it really quiet in here? And then we were very tuned in to how very different this was than a typical American airport.

It was not terribly busy, so that was part of it, but it was more than that. There were almost NO announcements. I think maybe our gate agent paged one passenger, but that was it. No general announcements from the terminal. No loud talking. No TVs. No music.

And when it was time to board, the signs at the gate simply indicated so, and everyone just got up and got on the plane. Hardly any verbal interaction with the gate agents, no groups announcements, no announcements about how full the plane was and how overhead bins were tight... we all just got up and boarded. And it was efficient. A Boeing 777 with very few empty seats, and the queue at the gate was never more than 10 people deep, and it didn't back up at the entrance to the plane.

Is this a Munich Airport thing or is that just German efficiency on display? I was rather impressed.

And on a side note, I've never been to Munich before, but looking out over it as we came in to land, I think I'd like to visit. Beautiful, green countryside with small communities that looked ideal all throughout the countryside, with the Alps looming in the distance, and already quite snow packed.

German efficiency. I fly out of and into the Frankfurt and Stuttgart airports frequently. You get used to the quiet, and it's MUCH nicer than most US airports. I have mediocre hearing (some tones/frequencies annoy the crap out of me) and the cacophony of noise in US airports suck for me. London Heathrow is WAY noisy as well.

I have flown through Frankfurt many times and you are absolutely correct. The whole airport experience in Germany is just much more calm. That's why it's one of my favorite places to connect.

German efficiency is kind of an oxymoron. The country has so much bureaucracy and red tape it's shockingly inefficient. I do think, however, that Germans are significantly more independent than Americans and overall less loud. They tend to be able to do things without being explicitly told or having their hand held.

And yes, Munich is absolutely gorgeous. Southern Germany (Baden-Wurttemberg and Bavaria) is by far the prettiest part of the country. It's also the most expensive. Highly recommend anyone visit that part.

Saw a guy at the Munich airport eating his traditional German breakfast with a big stein of beer at 6:15 am.

I've observed this as well, but I feel it's limited to the terminals that fly the large jets (767 or 777 and above) on the international carriers. If you're catching a regional flight on a 737 or smaller on one of the European discount or subsidiary airlines, it's just as chaotic as the US. Especially when it comes to checking baggage at the gate, because their carry on limits are even tighter than ours.

Pre pandemic I would fly to Munich annually for business and to see friends. I never noticed this but don't doubt it.

One year I was in Munich during the Semis and Finals of the World Cup that was hosted in Brasil. I went to a watch party at a bier garden with some expats and Germans, was there starting 9am to ensure we had seating for the 10pm start. Anyway, the Germans annihilated Brasil, and the celebration in the streets was absolutely amazing to see. Well over 100k in North Munich. I went back to my apartment at 430 or so thinking that I've never seen so many beer bottles strewn on the street. When I got up around 11am there wasn't a single bottle to be found. As if there was no celebration even hours before.

FancyKetchup14 said:

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German efficiency is kind of an oxymoron. The country has so much bureaucracy and red tape it's shockingly inefficient.

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Like having to have a permit to play golf

A lot of Airport over here have gone quiet or significantly reduced the amount of public announcements/pages that are in airports. Couple that with the fact that we Americans are loud as **** compared to other cultures and yeah you can have some stark differences at other international airports.

I know their ac sucks during the summer.

Jock 07 said:

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FancyKetchup14 said:

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German efficiency is kind of an oxymoron. The country has so much bureaucracy and red tape it's shockingly inefficient.

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Like having to have a permit to play golf

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I'm sorry, what?!?

That's interesting considering;

"Germany is one of the largest golfing nations in Europe with over 700 golf clubs and over 600,000 golfers."

You mean this?

"Generally, a handicap certificate is always required to play and a Tee-time must be booked in advance (it is seldom possible to simply turn up and play). Clubs and shoes are not available for rent."

Because that's not unusual for Europe or nice courses here in the US.

No, I mean a license.

To play golf in Germany, most golfers must possess a license called a "Platzreife" before they can get on the green. To get a license, you can expect to pay at least $300 for a five-day course that involves several hours of training each day. Then you must pass a series of tests.

The "Platzreife" is a legal requirement to play golf in Germany, instituted over 40 years ago. No other country in Europe requires such a license, but most of Europe's courses require a certain handicap. German golfing associations say it is necessary to prevent unskilled players from holding up the games of others. Germany has no courses open to all, like the public ones in the U.S. So, the "Platzreife" is a way to control who gets to play.

That's crazy.