A day in Berchtesgaden from Salzburg

Can't speak about the time factor, but we also did a tour and grabbed a quick lunch at the little deli/butcher shop directly across the street from the bus. They made sandwiches to go and the price was certainly right.

Thanks. Is that the bus station in Berchtesgaden, or down by the lake? That is good to know about.

Directly across the street from the TI in B-gaden. Are you taking the David and Christine Harper tour?

The bus picked us up for that tour (David and Christine Harper's tour) in the TI parking lot, NOT at the bus station. There's a little bier garden across the street and the deli/butcher shop is next to that. Every day we were there, we made that our first stop for a carry out lunch. Both of us ate for under 10 euro.

The pickup for Eagle's Nest Historical Tours (aka David and Christine Harper's tour) historically has been the TI office. As always, it's a good idea to check your tickets/reservation info just to make sure things have not changed. The TI office is very close to the bus station; Google Maps says it's a 3-4 minute walk. I missed the deli/butcher shop when there, but there is also a REWE supermarket that is a 3-4 minute walk from the TI; it has a little cafe at the front of the supermarket that offers sandwiches and is also inexpensive. Look at the Berchtesgaden Hbf (also the bus station) and the Tourist Information office on Google Maps (as well as REWE, if so inclined); it will give you an idea of how close they are in proximity.

The 8:15 bus from Salzburg Hbf will get you to Königssee at 9:24 (with a transfer from the 840 bus to the 841 bus at the Berchtesgaden bus station). There are 11:30 and 12:30 buses back to the Berchtesgaden bus station (13 minute ride).

Here is the boat schedule for Königssee. It's 35 minutes to St. Bartholomä and 35 minutes back. There can be queues for the boat in either direction (though this shouldn't be much of a problem since you will be there early [unless you will be there on a weekend or a holiday]). You can probably pull off the boat ride to St. Bartholomä; you can definitely pull off some walking around -- like to Malerwinkel ("painter's point/corner"), which has a nice view of the lake and the surrounding mountains.

There are earlier options out of Salzburg, which would give you more time at the lake. Check bahn.com with "Salzburg Hbf" as the departure point and "Königssee, Schönau a. Königssee" as the arrival.

Judy and Dave, thanks for your detailed information on where to meet, eat, and the boat schedule. Yes, we are taking the David and Christine Harper tour, on a Tuesday, mid-June. It sounds like we can at least do a little hiking around the lake to Malerwinkel, if taking the boat seems like it is pushing it. Rick says it is doable, but he is a bit ambitious sometimes. Now I have to hope for good weather!

We took that tour, and took the bus from Salzburg. We bought picnic food the night before in Salzburg and carried it with us. We walked along the river through beautiful countryside and found a wonderful bench for our picnic. We did not walk all the way to the lake, but we enjoyed what we did -- gorgeous views, got some exercise, and were not stressed out about time.

Thanks, that's a thought, too. I'm sure it's beautiful just being in the area.