Bavaria and Tyrol on Foot

Five nights of guided walking across the border between Bavaria and Tyrol, with a van alongside and the luggage sent ahead. Ridgelines above Berchtesgaden and a salt mine worked since 1517, high trails above Kitzbühel, then the Partnach Gorge and Neuschwanstein from Schloss Elmau, whose concert hall holds 140 to 160 concerts a year.

Length: Five nights
Pace: Three stays
Style: Walking, alpine, summer, guided
Route: Berchtesgaden to Kitzbühel to Elmau

BerchtesgadenOne night
KitzbühelTwo nights
ElmauTwo nights

A small town with twin church spires below a snow-capped mountain in morning light.

Days 1 to 2 · one night

Berchtesgaden

Met in Salzburg, among the hills of The Sound of Music, for a first walk along a ridgeline on the German-Austrian border and a tasting of local produce near the pastures. Below ground in Berchtesgaden, the salt mine, worked since 1517, takes visitors 650 metres in by mine train and down two miners' slides. Above the town, a private minivan climbs the mountain road to the Kehlsteinhaus, the Eagle's Nest, where a guide opens an area closed to the general public and the terrace looks out over the German and Austrian Alps.

Where you stay

Kempinski Hotel Berchtesgaden

Kempinski Hotel Berchtesgaden is a mountain resort in the Bavarian Alps, its rooms facing the mountains to the east or the west, some with a terrace or a fireplace. The spa has an indoor pool, a heated outdoor pool and three saunas, and the cooking runs from Bavarian Alpine dishes to the gourmet restaurant PUR.

A church and its tower beside a green hill, with the town and mountains beyond.

Days 2 to 4 · two nights

Kitzbühel

The Obersalzberg Documentation Centre, then into Tyrol for a wine tasting across the border. A gondola up to high Tyrolean trails, and the medieval centre of Kitzbühel with a stop at a café. Tennerhof, in the same family since 1929, keeps its Tyrolean furniture and antiques and a rose garden at the door.

Where you stay

Relais & Châteaux Hotel Tennerhof

Tennerhof grew from a farm first recorded in 1416 and stands on a gentle slope on the sunny side of Kitzbühel, in a quiet garden looking across to the Streif. Its 39 rooms and suites are furnished with antiques from the family estate, and in summer dinner is served on the restaurant terrace.

A mountain stream running over boulders through a narrow, sunlit gorge.

Days 4 to 6 · two nights

Elmau

A walk in the Kaiser Mountains on the way back into Bavaria, timed to reach Kufstein Fortress above the Inn at 12:00 p.m., when the Heroes' Organ, with 4,307 pipes the largest open-air organ in the world, is played in memory of the victims of both world wars. Then a hike through the Partnach Gorge, and Neuschwanstein Castle at Füssen. In Mittenwald, the violin-making museum's show workshop, where a violin maker works and answers questions, with a concert on historic instruments on selected dates, before the drive to Munich. Evenings at Schloss Elmau, where the 300-seat concert hall holds 140 to 160 concerts a year, with an artist in residence each year, Igor Levit in 2026.

Where you stay

Schloss Elmau

Schloss Elmau lies in its own valley in the Bavarian Alps near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, below the King's House on Schachen, and is two hotels, the Hideaway and the Retreat. Between them are six spas, nine restaurants and a concert hall of 300 seats that hosts 140 to 160 concerts a year.

Arranged on request

The concert hall at Schloss Elmau

A 300-seat hall that holds 140 to 160 concerts a year, with festivals from chamber music in January to jazz in November; the artist in residence for 2026 is Igor Levit.

The King's House on the Schachen

King Ludwig II's mountain house at 1,866 metres, reached only on foot, with its Turkish Hall; open from late May to late September, with guided tours in German on the hour from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; dates confirmed at booking.

The Berchtesgaden salt mine

Germany's oldest working salt mine, active since 1517, entered by mine train 650 metres into the mountain, with two miners' slides of up to 40 metres.

The Eagle's Nest in private

A private minivan up the mountain road to the Kehlsteinhaus above Berchtesgaden, and a guide into an area of the house closed to the general public.

The violin makers of Mittenwald

In the show workshop of the Geigenbaumuseum, a violin maker at work and time for questions, and on selected dates a small concert on historic instruments.

The Heroes' Organ at Kufstein

At Kufstein Fortress, first recorded in 1205, the largest open-air organ in the world, with 4,307 pipes, is played every day at 12:00 p.m. in memory of the victims of both world wars.

Subject to availability.

Ways to make it yours

A night in Salzburg before the first walk, with a day south to Werfen for a guided walk into the first kilometre of the world's largest ice cave, and the falcons, vultures and eagles flying low over the lower courtyard of Hohenwerfen Fortress.
A private boat across the Königssee below the Watzmann to the red-domed pilgrimage church of St. Bartholomä, with the lake's echo off the rock walls.
A third night at Elmau for the walk to King Ludwig II's house on the Schachen, 1,866 metres up, with its gilded Turkish Hall; six to seven hours there and back, open from late May to late September.

This is a sample. The hotels, the pace and the order are where we start, not where we finish: every journey is designed around the people taking it.

Made around you

Most travel is bought. This is designed.

Before anything is booked, we talk: who is travelling, how you like to spend a morning, and the hotel preferences below the obvious, from the kind of bath you like to the time you wake and how much daylight you need in a room. You see options where options matter and clean recommendations where they don't.

The same person remains your point of contact from the first reply to the trip after next. No handovers. No team.