Lake Eibsee is an incredibly beautiful lake near Zugspitze in Germany.
By all means, it’s one of the most fascinating lakes in the state of Bavaria around 10 km southwest from Garmisch-Partenkirchen and 100 km southwest of Munich.
Visiting Eibsee is definitely one of the best day trips from Munich.
The most popular activity there is a scenic hike around the lake itself.
In this blog, you can read about Lake Eibsee, the hike around the lake, and all the practical information that you need to plan your trip to Eibsee.
LAKE EIBSEE DAY TRIP MAP
Route: Garmisch-Partenkirchen – (Hammersbach) – Grainau – Lake Badersee – Lake Eibsee
Lake Eibsee is a lake lying at the base of Zugspitze, Germany’s highest mountain. It’s situated at an altitude of 973.28 meters (3,193.2 ft). :-) The emerald green water surrounded by breathtaking alpine nature is 35,40 m (116 ft) deep. Its greatest length is 3.15 km (1.96 mi) and its greatest width is 0.56 m (0.35 mi).
See in German means lake. Eib has no meaning. In English, the lake is normally called simply Eibsee Lake or Lake Eibsee.
The cheapest ticket for this trip is the BayernTicket. If you don’t know the Bayern Ticket yet, make sure you check my blog post about it.
To get the best out of your day, start at least as early as 8 am, especially in autumn. To check the timetable select Garmisch-Partenkirchen as your destination. If you want to plan ahead, you can purchase the Bayern Ticket right away.
Munich Central Station – Garmish-Partenkirchen Station
Distance: 89 km (55 miles)
Duration: ~ 1:30 h
Check the train schedule, here, on the website of Deutsche Bahn.
Once you get to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, you have two options. You can either take the Zugspitzebahn and then walk or simply take the bus to Lake Eibsee.
When you get off in Garmisch, take the Zugspitzebahn (Zugspitze railway). When you get off the train, go down the stairs and signs will show you the direction.
If you have the BayernTicket, the ticket will be valid for the Zugspitzebahn until Grainau.
HOW DO YOU GET YOUR FREE TICKET FOR THE ZUGSPITZEBAHN
Yes, the price of the ticket is included in the price of the Bayern Ticket. Nevertheless, at the station of the Zugspitzebahn, you need to get a ticket for the Zugspitzebahn.
All you need to do is to present your Bayern Ticket at the ticket counter and you will receive your ticket free of charge. Each of you will get a ticket card as everyone needs a ticket card in order to go through the ticket barrier to get to the train.
If you want to travel with the Zugspitzebahn all the way to Eibsee Lake, you can also do that. In that case, you pay an extra 3.50 € (3.70 USD) for the Zugspitzebahn ticket.
INSIDER TIP
When you get to the station, you will see the ticket counter right away. But if you see people queuing up there, just go to the second one which is inside the station. Most people don’t notice that and they just keep lining up for the ticket outside.
Get on the Zugspitzebahn and you have two options again. You can get off in Hammersbach or later in Grainau.
HIKING FROM HAMMERSBACH TO LAKE EIBSEE
Difficulty level: medium
Distance: 6,6 km (4.10 miles)
Duration: 1:40 h
Ascent: 390 m
Descent: 150 m
HIKING FROM GRAINAU TO LAKE EIBSEE
Difficulty level: medium
Distance: 4,5 km (2.8 miles)
Duration: 1:10 h
Medium difficulty means that if you never hike or walk too much, it’ll be very difficult for you.
The trail is picture-perfect.
Hiking path between Hammersbach and Lake Eibsee in Germany
Some part of the trail is going through farms. There, you can also make friends with cute sheep and cows.
A friendly sheep in a farm on the way to Lake Eibsee in Germany
Make sure that in both cases, you pass the Badersee Lake. It’s a tiny lake but it’s incredibly beautiful and picturesque.
The Badersee Lake, one of the highlights of the hiking trail leading to Eibsee Lake in Germany
Take the Zugspitzebahn to Grainau as explained above. Then, from Grainau, take the Lake Eibsee bus. There is a bus every hour to Lake Eibsee. As the Bayern Ticket is valid until Grainau, take the bus from there.
The ticket from Grainau to Lake Eibsee costs 3.50 € (3.70 USD) one way.
You can obviously, take the bus already from Garmisch. But, traveling by bus is not so interesting as traveling by the Zugspiztebahn or hiking.
The bus ticket from Garmish-Partenkirchen to Eibsee Lake costs 5.20 € (5.40 USD).
If you are not into hiking, rent a car and drive all the way to Eibsee Lake. Just enter Eibsee Hotel in your navi and you’ll get to the parking lot next to the lake.
If you don’t own a car, hire a car through DiscoverCars.
PARKING NEAR LAKE EIBSEE
There is a pretty large parking lot near the Eibsee Hotel about 100 meters from the shore of the lake.
It’s open from 05:00-22:00. Your car, moreover, cannot be taller than 2,10 meters.
PARKING PRICES
5:00 – 9:30: 2.50 €
Parking up to 4 hours: 8 €
Every additional hour: 1 €
Penalty for parking after 22:00: 50 €
#1 HIKING
More about it in the next section.
#2 KAYAKING, CANOEING, PADDLEBOARDING AND BOATING
At the Eibsee Hotel, you can rent kayaks, canoes, stand-up paddle boards, and paddle boats.
#3 SWIMMING
In summer, the temperature of the water is perfect for swimming.
#4 VISITING ZUGSPITZE
From Eibsee, you can the Zugspitze Cable Car and visit the highest mountain in Germany, Zugspitze
#5 LUNCH AT EIBSEE HOTEL
More about that later as well.
EIBSEE LOOP – HIKING SUMMARY
The trail around Eibsee is suitable for people of all ages as well as families.
Difficulty level: easy
Distance: 7,5 km (4.7 miles)
Duration: 2 hours
Ascent: 224 m
Descent: 224 m
You can decide how much you wanna walk and plan your trip respectively.
HIKING FROM HAMMERSBACH TO EIBSEE + EIBSEE LOOP
1) From Hammersbach to Lake Eibsee, walking around Lake Eibsee, and walking back to Hammersback, you’ll hike roughly 20,70 km (~ 12.90 miles).
or
HIKING FROM GRAINAU TO EIBSEE + EIBSEE LOOP
2) From Grainau to Lake Eibsee with the circular track around Lake Eibsee, then walking back to Grainai, you’ll walk around 16,50 km (~ 12.90 miles).
Off the beaten track photography – Lake Eibsee in Germany
Photo taken directly on the shore of Lake Eibsee in Germany
Incredible autumn colors around Lake Eibsee in Germany
You can either have a picnic in the arms of nature or you can go to the Eibsee-Pavillon. From its spacious terrace, you can enjoy the magnificent view of Eibsee Lake.
Obligatory
Bayern Ticket: 13.80 € (if you are five persons)
For 1 person: 29 €
For 2 persons: 39 € / 19.50 € per person
For 3 persons: 49 € / 16.30 € per person
For 4 persons: 59 € / 14.75 € per person
For 5 persons: 69 € / 13.80 € per person
To learn more about the Bayern Ticket, check out the following guide:
Ultimate Guide to the Bayern Ticket
Optional
Two-way bus ticket from Zugspitze Bahnhof Grainau: 3.50 € x 2= 7 €
Two-way bus ticket from Garmisch-Partenkirchen Bahnhof: 5.20 € x 2= 10.40 €
Tea, Coffee: ~4-5 €
Lunch: ~12-20 €
As a matter of fact, Eibsee is beautiful and breathtaking all year and hiking is possible as well generally any time of the year.
If you like warm weather, the best time to visit Eibsee is from June to August.
If you love colors, the best time to visit Eibsee is from September to November when the trees are sparkling in the autumn colors. My pictures in this blog are all from the middle of October.
In winter, the lake gets frozen at times and there is a lot of snow. Eibsee is a pure winter beauty from December to February.
Spring can be interesting because that’s when the snow starts to melt.
If you go there in winter or spring and want to know whether the conditions are suitable for hiking or want to know whether the lake is frozen, you should call the Sportbetriebe am Eibsee on this number: +49 882 198 810.
Staying in a hotel next to Eibsee Lake is the best option if you have more than one day. The Eibsee Hotel is the best one in terms of location. From this hotel, you not only have a beautiful view of the lake but also Zugspitze.
Make sure you visit the website of Cozycozy to secure the most stunning hotel for your stay at Eibsee Lake.
There are a lot of magnificent places close to Eibsee Lake. Thus, you can easily spend there weeks and explore amazing natural wonders and gorgeous Bavarian towns every single day.
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This place looks spectacular! Thanks for sharing!
My pleasure, Katy.
Informative post! That lake is superb. It looks magical. I can always see that Munich has so many beautiful places to offer, I hope I can visit it someday!
This place looks stunning!
Thank you very much, Jasmina!
Hi, will the hike from AMMERSBACH TO LAKE EIBSEE be suitable during end-Nov to early-Dec period?
Hi Vivian, I would say, yes. I think it would be a pleasant winter hike.
Hi! thanks for writing about this!
Got a few questions:
-Does the bayern ticket cover the bus from Garmisch to Eibsee Lake? Or is that a separate cost?
-As the Bayern ticket covers only from 9am, does this means that it’s best to plan the journey from Munich after 9am to make sure the ticket covers the cost?
Hi Rafael,
– If you check my travel guide for Eibsee Lake, you will find a detailed explanation there about it. There are several ways to get to Eibsee. But if you want to go to Eibsee Lake all the way by public transport, you have to pay extra for the bus.
– The Bayern Ticket is valid only from 9 am from Monday to Friday. But on the weekends and public holidays, it’s valid anytime. It means, that if I wanted to use the Bayern Ticket on Monday, I would take the train earliest at 9 am.
Thank you for your detailed guide! your posts have been super helpful!
Hi Madeline, I’m glad it helped you.
Hi! Thank you for this content!
If I take the zugspitzebahn all the way to Eibsee lake by paying 3.30 more, does that include the return? Or do I have to purchase another one when returning?
Where does the hiking trail start in Hammersbach and Grainau?
It starts from the train station there.
Hi, we are staying at Garmisch and plan to cover Lake Eibsee and Zugspitze in one day in mid-Apr. Should we visit Zugspitze first in the morning and Lake Eibsee in the afternoon? As per your recommendation, we take the train from Garmisch, and at Grainau and then change bus to Zugspitze, correct? From there, take the cable up to the Zugspiltz top. On our return trip, take the cable car to Lake Eibsee and return to Garmisch by bus or train.
Make sure that the weather is good and the sky is clear on the day when you want to visit the top of Zugspitze. If the sky is not clear on the top, you might be disappointed of the view. Generally, you should go to the top of Zugspitze first and then Eibsee Lake. Whenever I was on the top of Zugspitze, the sky was the clearest before 2 pm.
Thank you for your reply. Looking forward to the visit and hope that we will have good weather.
Hi! Thank you for this informative post :) I was wondering for the journey back to Munich, does the Bayern ticket cover the ride back or should I be getting another train ticket?
I’m glad you liked it. :-) The Bayern Ticket is for the whole day.