Side Trips

Königsee

This is the "jewel in the necklace" of Berchtesgaden. The waters of this scenic lake appear to be dark green because of the steep mountains that jut upward from its shores. Low-lying land on the lake's northern edge contains a parking lot and a few charming inns and bathing facilities, but mountains enclose the rest of the lake, making it impossible to walk along the shoreline. The only way to explore the water, unless you're like one of the mountain goats you may see above, is by boat. Electric motorboats -- no noisy gas-powered launches allowed -- carry passengers on tours around the lake throughout the summer and occasionally even in winter.

The most popular spot on Königssee is the tiny flat peninsula on the western bank, the site of a basilica as early as the 12th century. Today the Catholic Kirche Sankt Bartholomä (Chapel of St. Bartholomew) is still used for services (except in winter). The clergy must arrive by boat because there's no other way to approach the peninsula.

The adjacent buildings include a fisher's house and a restaurant, which was once a favorite hunting lodge of the Bavarian kings. Here you can sample trout and salmon caught in the crisp, clean waters. At the southern end of the lake you come to the Salet-Alm, where the tour boats make a short stop near a thundering waterfall. If you follow the footpath up the hillside, you'll reach the summer pastures used by the cattle of Berchtesgaden. Just over the hill is Lake Obersee, part of Königssee until an avalanche separated them 8 centuries ago. If you prefer a shorter trip, you can take the boat as far as St. Bartholomew and back.

To reach Königssee from Berchtesgaden by car, follow the signs south from the town 5km (3 miles). It's also a pleasant hour's walk or a short ride by electric train or bus from the center of town.

For information about boat excursions, call Schiffahrt Königssee at tel. 08652/96360. An entire tour of Königssee requires about 2 hours. There are boats in summer every 15 minutes, so getting off one boat and climbing aboard another is easy if you want to break up the tour. During the summer, the first boat departs every morning at 8am and the last boat leaves at 5:15pm. In winter, boats leave about every 45 minutes beginning at 9:45am. The important stops are at Salet and St. Bartholomä. A round-trip fare for a lake tour is 15€ ($24) for adults and half price for children.

Obersalzberg

The drive from Berchtesgaden to Obersalzberg at about 1,000m (3,000 ft.) is one of Bavaria's most scenic routes. Obersalzberg was where Hitler settled down in a rented cottage after his prison term while he completed Mein Kampf. After he came to power in 1933, he bought Haus Wachenfeld and had it remodeled into his residence, the Berghof. Obersalzberg became the center for holiday living for Nazis such as Martin Bormann and Hermann Göring.

Today, you can walk around the ruins of Hitler's Berghof. This was where the famous 1938 meeting took place between Hitler and British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain. The result was the Munich Agreement, which Chamberlain so mistakenly declared would bring "peace in our time." The Berghof was destroyed in 1945 by Bavarian government authorities at the request of the U.S. Army -- the Americans did not want a monument to Hitler. One of the only fully remaining structures from the Nazi compound is a guesthouse called the General Walker Hotel that was used by U.S. troops stationed in Europe.

An eerily fascinating point of interest is the Kehlstein (Eagle's Nest), which was erected on a high-altitude site by Bormann, who intended it as a 50th-birthday gift for Hitler. Built on a rocky plateau and never intended as a military installation, its access was made possible by the construction of a 7km (4 1/2-mile) road that was blasted out of solid rock beginning in 1937 -- an outstanding act of engineering. Ironically, Hitler visited the site very rarely, perhaps three times in all. Unlike Hitler's larger lodgings at Obersalzberg, which were demolished by the Allies at the end of World War II, the original granite-built teahouse on the mountain summit at Kehlstein is still standing. Today it's the site of a restaurant, the Kehlsteinhaus. In winter, the site is completely closed because of snow blockages on its access road.

Between April and October, if you want to reach Kehlstein, you can either sign up for an organized tour with Eagle's Nest Tours, or set out by yourself from the railway station at Berchtesgaden. Modern buses operated by the RVO Bus Company (for information, call the Berchtesgaden Tourist Office at tel. 08652/9670) charge 6€ ($9.60) per person for a round-trip transit from the Berchtesgaden railway station up to the alpine hamlet of Berchtesgaden-Hintereck. Here, you'll find some souvenir shops, a documentation center, and a minimuseum showcasing the region's role as a place of rest and relaxation for Hitler. Also at Hintereck, you'll have the option of visiting a bunker and a grim series of rooms used as a military prison by the Nazi regime. Access to the minimuseum, the documentation center, the bunker, and the prison cells at Hintereck costs 5€ ($8) for adults. Access is free for students, children 15 and under, and military personnel. From April to October, they're open daily from 9am to 5pm; from November to March, they're open Tuesday to Sunday 10am to 3pm (closed Jan 1, Nov 1, and Dec 24, 25, and 31).

To continue uphill from Hintereck to Kehlstein, you'll have to transfer to the Kehlstein Bus that hauls passengers uphill, past sweeping panoramas, along a tight and winding alpine road, to the base of an elevator shaft that will carry you the remaining way to the Kehlstein. Total transit time from Berchtesgaden to Kehlstein, without stops, is about 50 minutes each way. The Kehlstein bus line operates at roughly 20-minute intervals daily from 9am to 5pm from mid-May to mid-October. Round-trip passage, including the fee for the elevator, costs 18€ ($29) per person (free for children 4 and under). If you're hardy, you can skip the elevator and take a 30-minute uphill climb along a well-marked hiking trail instead. The restaurant at the summit, within the Kehlsteinhaus, is open during hours that correspond to the bus access described above.

The Kehlstein road is closed to private traffic. The only option for drivers of private cars involves parking in the lot at Hintereck and then riding the Kehlstein bus to the base of the elevator described above.

If you prefer to visit Kehlstein by guided tour, you'll find worthwhile English-language options at the American-run Eagle's Nest Tours, Königsseerstrasse 2 (tel. 08652/64971; www.eagles-nest-tours.com). Tours, including Obersalzberg, Eagle's Nest, and the bunker system as an afternoon history package, are conducted daily mid-May to mid-October, starting at the Berchtesgaden Visitor Center. The service also takes visitors to sights such as the Salt Mines and the Königssee. A 4-hour tour costs 45€ ($72) for adults, 30€ ($48) for children 7 to 12, and is free for children 6 and under. One of the most popular tours offered is the "Sound of Music" tour to nearby Salzburg, which costs 35€ ($56) for adults, 25€ ($40) for children 6 to 12, and free for children 5 and under.