Lake Tegernsee, Germany, Bavaria

Things to do at Lake Tegernsee are richening the touristic diversity for a good reason. Lake Tegernsee is known as one of the most picturesque and cleanest lakes in Germany. The boundary marker of the tourism industry at the lake is set in 1817, so the area has a really long tradition in welcoming guests. 

Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee

Hiking around Lake Tegernsee

The Lake Tegernsee is surrounded by Bavarian Alps and that is why the destination is extremely popular for hiking. We can find more than 300 kilometers of well-marked hiking paths. In fact, Lake Tegernsee is some kind of recreational center for SE Munich, as the capital of Bavaria is just 50 kilometers away from the lake.

Cycling

Do you enjoy mountain biking or are you more keen on flat areas? No matter your cycling style, the cycling paths will not be a disappointment. You will already find cycling paths around the Lake Tegernsee itself, but there are even two long-distance routes, passing the area – one connects Munich with Venice and the other connects Lake Constance (Bodensee) to Koenigsee near Berchtesgaden.

Wallberg

You might not be in a good hiking shape, but you can still enjoy one of the best views over the Lake Tegernsee. Take the gondola ride (Wallbergbahn), which will bring you up to the 1620 meters above the sea level. The views are absolutely amazing! There is a hut with restaurant just at the gondola station and just steps away is picturesque church. The Wallberg peak is just 30 minutes on foot away. It lies 100 meters highest than the gondola station. If that sounds too easy, don’t give up to fast – this is a starting point for many scenic hikes.

Paragliding

Wallberg is not a popular spot just because of the hiking – this is also a popular paragliding spot. If you want to spice up your views, book a tandem paragliding and be inspired over the amazing experience – for sure one of the must fun things to do in Tegernsee.

Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee

An amazing experience and stunning views (Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee)

Summer tobogganing

We might find one of the longest natural sledding track in Wallberg in winter time, which is more than 6 kilometers long, but you can still enjoy a toboggan ride during the summer too. Not far from the town of Gmund lies Oedberg, where 1,45 kilometer long summer toboggan is set. The ride is perfect for adrenalin enthusiasts, as you can reach 42 km/h on the track.

Swimming

The Lake Tegernsee is set at 747 meters of altitude, but when the weather is right, this is a great summer destination for many. The lake shore has some nicely organized beaches – some are better for kids, when some are more suitable for adults or at least kids who can already swim on their own.

Taking a boat ride

It is a beautiful sunny day and you are enjoying yourself on the deck of a boat, admiring the Lake Tegernsee and surroundings. I sure cannot imagine better spent time. There are several boats, connecting the towns, what makes it a very good and affordable option for a boat trip.

Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee

Boat ride (Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee)

Renting a boat or a SUP

A boat trip is not, bad, but renting your own might even be a better option. You can even find the ones with a slide, what will sure make kids happy. If you still like to be more active, you can explore the Lake Tegernsee on SUP.

Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee

Renting a boat or a SUP (Best things to do at Lake Tegernsee)

Local Royal Brewery

Is there any better combination than beer and Germany? Beer has a long and important tradition in Germany, after all, the country is home to the world famous Oktoberfest in Munich.  So what kind of destination in Germany would that even be, if we would not find at least one local brewery there? And of course, Tegernsee has its own one – in fact, one of the oldest in Germany, which can be found at the Tegernsee Castle and is known as Herzoglich Bayerisches Brauhaus.

Tegernsee Castle

The Tegernsee Castle was once a Benedictine monastery. It was bought by Bavarian King Maximilian I. Joseph in 1817 and this can be marked as a boundary marker for tourism development at the Lake Tegernsee. Soon, the area became very popular among nobles and royal members from all around Europe.

Kids’ playgrounds

Being a mum, I always notice and search playgrounds for Ren, as they make traveling so much easier for everyone – parents and kids. Luckily for us, Lake Tegernsee has some really nice playgrounds, but among them all, we liked best one in Gmund, just on the lake shore, and the one at the foot of the summer toboggan at Oedberg. There are even some farm animals to get to know.

Adventurous Park

If you enjoy adrenalin, make sure to put a visit of the adventurous park on your travel bucket list. It can be found in the forest right next to the summer tobogganing at Oedberg and is suitable for kids older than 5 years old.

Food at Lake Tegernsee

With all the things you can do at Lake Tegernsee, you for sure must not stay hungry. You will find plenty of traditional restaurants along the lake and its towns, but you can also get a meal in the mountain huts. We have also find a really great cheese producer (Naturkäserei Tegernseeland) with a very interesting concept – instead of just selling their products, they also run a restaurant with meals in which cheese or other dairy products are always included. The food is good and the place is always crowded, what sure is a good sign. I would definitely recommend to have lunch or their cheese plate here.

Towns along Lake Tegernsee

The Lake Tegernsee is spread almost over 23 km2 and along it we can find 5 smaller towns, each one with their own characteristics. Tegernsee town is known for its castle and brewery, Bad Wiesse has been having a spa status ever since 1922, Kreuth is hiking’s center, Gmund is the perfect place for families and Rottach-Egern is known as the most elegant and modern among them all.

Quick tips for visiting Lake Tegernsee

How to reach Lake Tegernsee?

If you will be doing a road trip around Germany, you can just drive there, but the lake is very well connected by train too. You will find hourly trains connected Munich to Gmund and Tegernsee town, what makes the Lake Tegernsee perfect as one of the day trips from Munich.

If you want to explore more of South Bavaria, you can also join a stop at Lake Chiemsee and Berchtesgaden – one of my personal favorite towns in this part of Bavaria. All the three locations are not far away from each other and are perfect for a week long road trip around South of Bavaria.

Where to sleep at Lake Tegernsee?

Tegernsee is a very popular are all year round. The area is well known for family friendly ski fields. The place, with 100 km of tracks, is also great for cross-country skiing.

Visiting Tegernsee area during winter, spring, summer or autumn will show you a totally different look of this beautiful lake. And that is exactly why you will find many different accommodation options to choose from – hotels, B&B, apartments, homesteads, camps.

We have stayed at a beautiful home-stead Ferienwohnung Hoamat Huidhof, which is run by the lovely and extremely welcoming Strohschneider family. We felt like at home there. Our apartment had amazing views to Wallberg, had two private bedrooms, fully equipped kitchen and a large dinning-living room area. Perfect for a 4-5 members family.

The homestead / farm can be found on the way to Wallberg gondola from the town Rottach-Egern. A bus station is near, so having your own car is not really mandatory. You will also find the local Naturkäserei Tegernseeland nearby.

Tegernsee card

The Tegernsee card can save you quite some money for numerous activities – for example, you have discounts for boat trips, gondola ride. You get it completely free of charge if staying at least one night at one of the 150 partner accommodations – one of them is the homestead Ferienwohnung Hoamat Huidhof, wehere we stayed when visiting at the Lake Tegernsee. If you prefer hotels, you might check the Hotel Zur Post in Kreuth town, where you also get the free Tegernsee card.

No matter if you are more of a summer or winter person, enjoying in hiking or cycling, keen on adrenalin or just great views, you will find plenty of things to do at Lake Tegernsee – after all, this is one of the most picturesque and clean lakes in Germany.

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