There's a hotel in Munich's Westend where the corridors double as a gallery, the whirlpool plays films above your head, and the minibar gin comes from a local distillery. The Dean Munich, part of Marriott's Autograph Collection, sits a short stroll from the Oktoberfest grounds of Theresienwiese — but its real scene is the neighbourhood's studios and coffee roasteries rather than the beer tents.

Art is the whole concept. The programme was shaped by curator Christian Ganzenberg, co-founder of the city's Various Others contemporary art collaboration, and takes its cue from Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities. Guests get a map and audio guide leading them through works including Ju Young Kim's stained-glass aircraft window, Jieun Park's blue Bavarian mountain panels, Veronika Hilger's surreal paintings and Sebastian Quast's sequinned pieces — which you're actively encouraged to touch.

The interiors, by Munich-born designer Tatjana von Stein, layer jugendstil curves with a nod to the city's glam 1980s nightlife, the era when Freddie Mercury and David Bowie partied here. That spirit carries through to the spa, where a cinema screen hangs above the hydrotherapy pool (La Piscine, fittingly, was screening during one visit), alongside a sauna, steam room, cold plunge and a gym running Hyrox-style classes.

There are 281 rooms, from 25sq m doubles to a 155sq m Dean Suite, many with freestanding bathtubs stocked with DS & Durga products. The suites come with terraces, Bang & Olufsen sound systems and a stash of local Duke gin and Haribo alongside the Nespresso.

Eating is split across three venues. Ibasho, the ground-floor restaurant, covers both ends of the morning: weisswurst with sweet mustard and pretzels at the buffet, or egg whites and ginger shots for the gym crowd. Dinner is Japanese — robata, sushi topped with oscietra caviar, Balfegó bluefin and wagyu — paired with Rheingau riesling or junmai daiginjo sake by the glass. Three bars follow: Ibasho's curved counter serving a sake-martini hybrid called the "seijaku", Noren, a small speakeasy with custom speakers and a DJ, and the lobby bar. For schnitzel, it's a three-minute walk to the hotel's own Bavarian tavern, Servus Heidi.

The location works in your favour. Trams 18 and 19 run from the Hauptbahnhof to Schrenkstraße, moments from the door. Westend itself rewards wandering — ceramics studios, indie roasters — and the 19 tram whisks you to the Altstadt for galleries like Max Goelitz and Sperling, plus Haus der Kunst and a terrace drink at Schumann's Bar am Hofgarten.

The hotel also ticks green boxes: built in 2017 to strict German energy standards, refurbished with a light touch (one artist turned building debris into an artwork), and it tracks carbon, water and energy use. Accessible rooms connect step-free to the restaurant, spa and gym, and non-guests can book into the restaurants, bars and day-spa passes.

Doubles start from £160. For design lovers and art-forward weekenders, it's a persuasive reason to base yourself west of the centre rather than in it.

Review via Suitcase Magazine