Exploring Lake Königssee: The Beautiful Alpine Lake in Bavaria

03

Feb

When Matt and I were planning our honeymoon, we knew we wanted to be on a pretty lake in the mountains in Europe (it was August and I didn’t want to be sweltering on a beach!). We ultimately decided on staying near Wilder Kaiser in Austria to see Hintersteiner See, but after I saw pictures of Lake Königssee during my research, I knew I wanted to visit during our honeymoon! It’s such a gorgeous lake in Bavaria, and we had a lovely day exploring Lake Königssee 🙂

Exploring Lake Königssee: The Beautiful Alpine Lake in Bavaria, Germany

One day in Lake Königssee

Lake Königssee was more of a tourist attraction than the lakes we visited in the Wilder Kaiser area, and the parking lot was pretty full by the time we got there. You can go hiking in the mountains, or you can go see the lake like we did. The area is also known for having Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, his retreat house. You can take a bus there, and the house has been turned into a restaurant. We didn’t have much interest in that, so we just went straight to the lake! It’s about a 10 minute walk from the parking lot area to the lake, and there are lots of shops and restaurants along the way.

Chalet by Lake Konigssee

Shops by Lake Konigssee

Fresco on house by Lake Konigssee

Chalet by Lake Konigssee

Stores by Lake Konigssee

German chalet in the Alps

The only way to get across the lake is by boat, and you can go to a few different places. We got tickets to get off at the first stop, St. Bartholomew, and it is 16 euros for a round trip ticket. There was a bit of a wait before our scheduled boat time, so we went for a short hike to get better views of Lake Königssee!

Boat on Lake Konigssee

Historic ruins on Lake Konigssee

Boat sheds on Lake Konigssee

German Alps in the summer

Houses on Lake Konigssee

Hiking trail by Lake Konigssee

Hiking around Lake Konigssee

Boats on Lake Konigssee

Wagon filled with flowers

Hiking on Lake Konigssee

Boat on Lake Konigssee

View of Lake Konigssee and the Alps

Mountains on Lake Konigssee

Elderly couple sitting by Lake Konigssee

This is one of my all time favorite pictures!

Hiking trail by Lake Konigssee

Boat houses on Lake KonigsseeBoats on Lake Konigssee

Boat houses on Lake Konigssee

Boat ride around Lake Königssee

We took the ferry on Lake Königssee, and the views are so pretty! The lake is a dark green color, and the Alps as the backdrop makes for the perfect picture. It is a natural alpine lake, and the name translates to “king’s lake” (although since there haven’t been any Bavarian kings in recent history, it isn’t clear why it was named that). The lake is one of the cleanest in Germany, and to keep it that way, only paddleboats or electric powered boats are allowed on the lake.

Lake Königssee is surrounded by cliffs, and there’s a spot in the lake where you can hear a loud echo. The driver of our boat stopped and played the bugle, and we could hear a perfect echo for the whole song!

Boat ride on Lake Konigssee

Lake Konigssee with Alps in the background

Boat ride on Lake Konigssee

German Alps on a lake

St. Bartholomew’s stop

We took the ferry to St. Bartholomew’s, which is where most people got off. You can see the church, and there’s a beer garden where you can get some beer and food. We had heard of the Bavarian dish of white sausage and decided to try it, and it was actually pretty good! You’ll see in the picture that it doesn’t look very appetizing or flavorful, but we enjoyed it and I recommend giving it a try. We also got spaetzle and a pretzel, and both were great.

St. Bartholomew's Church on Lake Konigssee

St. Bartholomew's Church on Lake KonigsseeSt. Bartholomew's Church on Lake Konigssee

St. Bartholomew's restaurant on Lake Konigssee

St. Bartholomew's restaurant on Lake Konigssee

White sausages and spaetzle at St. Bartholomew's restaurant on Lake Konigssee

Meadow with Alps in Germany

Boat on Lake Konigssee

Lake Konigssee with Alps

Small boat on Lake Konigssee

Lake Konigssee in Germany

Lake Konigssee with the Alps

Boat on Lake Konigssee

Lake Konigssee in Germany

Walkway along Lake Konigssee

The area was busier than we were expecting, but we still had a wonderful day exploring Lake Königssee! If you’re in Bavaria, you can’t miss visiting this beautiful lake 🙂

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Blog, Europe, Germany, Photography, Travel

  1. Heidi says:

    Lake Königssee looks amazing! What a great place for a honeymoon!

  2. Melissa says:

    So beautiful! I have never heard of this destination , but it looks like something I would enjoy! I love the cobblestone path and the views are breathtaking! Thanks for sharing

  3. Sharon says:

    The lake with mountains rising from it is just stunning! I would love to hike here. And the German architecture is so charming.

  4. Claire says:

    wow I need to remember to travel to lakes when in other countries, not just cities – beautiful!

  5. Courtney says:

    Wow, the scenery is absolutely breathtaking! I love your photos!

  6. Katherine says:

    I’ve visited Austria to do a cycle tour along the Danube River, and some of the scenery was similar to your photos, but a lot of your photos are about 20 times better than what I saw as well. I obviously need to go back and check out Lake Konigssee! I had no idea that Hitler had a place in Austria, although it makes sense given the history.

  7. Angela says:

    I love the European lakes especially in Austria and Switzerland however I am yet to experience this one. Great photos.

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