Discover Chiemgau: Lake, culture and cycling routes

Chiemgau offers several different ways to shape your trip: Lake Chiemsee and its islands, museums covering geological and technical subjects, and cycling and hiking options. This lets you base your search on the excursions you actually want to take.

Lake Chiemsee and Herrenchiemsee

Lake Chiemsee is Chiemgau’s flagship attraction; its historic islands and wide range of leisure activities appeal to visitors of all ages. Chiemsee-Schifffahrt connects the main places along the lakeshore, including Prien, Gstadt, Seebruck and Chieming, with Herreninsel and Fraueninsel. If a boat trip is part of your plans, check the schedule in advance.

Herrenchiemsee Palace is one of Chiemgau’s most significant sights. The Baroque monastery building on Herrenchiemsee now houses several exhibitions. This gives the island a range of cultural attractions: the palace and the exhibitions in the monastery building.

Museums, crafts and traditions

The MammutMuseum Siegsdorf presents 250 million years of geological history in southeastern Bavaria. Its themes span geological fundamentals, the diversity of fossils, the giants of the Ice Age and the world of the Stone Age. If you are interested in the history of the Earth, you can explore several subjects here, from geology to the Stone Age. The Stone Age Garden is right next to the museum. Children can polish stones, bake bread on a stick and make crafts from natural materials there. This allows you to complement a museum visit with hands-on activities in the garden.

The Glockenschmiede in Ruhpolding is a blacksmithing museum with a large tail hammer forge powered by an overshot water wheel. The Glockenschmiede is already mentioned in documents from 1646. The interplay between the water wheel and the hammer forge offers a concrete example of the museum’s technical focus.

Traditional events in Chiemgau include the Easter Georgiritt procession, Maypole raising, the Leonhardiritt procession in November, and summer costume festivals and parades. These seasonal events can help you choose when to travel. If a particular event is important to you, check the exact dates in advance.

Cycling, hiking and the Hochfelln

For active days, Chiemgau has around 1,400 kilometers of well-signposted cycling routes and 20 themed cycling tours; the mountain biking network covers almost 600 kilometers. These figures describe different ways to plan: signposted cycling routes, themed tours and a mountain biking network. First consider whether you want to focus on a themed cycling tour or mountain biking. For hiking, there are seven premium trails, and their number is growing.

The Hochfelln cable car takes you to the summit in two stages, where you can access the Geological Nature Trail and the Tabor Chapel. These destinations offer different highlights for an excursion up the mountain. Check the schedule if you plan to take the cable car. You can also ski tour up the Hochfelln, which is regarded as Chiemgau’s panoramic terrace.

Canoeing on Lake Chiemsee

There is an important restriction for kayaks and canoes on Lake Chiemsee: they should not venture more than 300 meters from the shore. If you are planning a paddling trip, factor this distance into your route choice.

Discover more destinations: Pfaffenhofen An Der Ilm, Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen, Neumarkt In Der Oberpfalz, Upper Bavaria, Fürstenfeldbruck, Rosenheim, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Kempten.

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