Bertchesgaden and Eagle's Nest

As for enough time, it probably depends on how early in the afternoon you start and how long you want to spend at the top. When I was there, I started from the Berchtesgaden Hauptbahnhof around 9 AM, took the buses via Obersalzberg to the top of the mountain, hiked around, had lunch, came down, probably, I'm guessing, by around 2 PM. The last trip down from the top is at 16:50.

The fastest way to Berchtesgaden is by bus, RVO 840, called the Watzmann Express. It leaves hourly from in front of the Salzburg Hbf and takes about 45 min. For two people, it is also the least expensive. Get an RVO TagesTicket for €9,- per adult from the driver. That will cover your RT to Berchtesgaden Hbf, as well as the round trip bus (#838) to the Kehlstein Busabfahrt. With more than three people, the least expensive route, and only a little slower, is to get a €28 Bayern-Ticket at the Salzburg Hbf and take the train via Freilassing to Berchtesgaden. The Bayern-Ticket also covers bus 838 to the Kehlstein BA.

At the Berchtesgaden ZOB (Busbahnhof, in front of the train Bhf) there are two bus stops (Haltestelle, Hst). 840 arrives at Hst 2. You'll have about a 15 min wait and take RVO 838 from Hst 1. It takes twelve minutes to the "Dokumentation, Kehlstein BA" stop.

From the Kehlstein BA to the top of the mountain (Kehlstein), is by special mountain buses and a private road. You buy your tickets at the BA for €15,50 per person. The trip takes 15 min up.

There is an American couple who do a tour out of Berchtesgaden. It is mentioned in the RS Germany book.

Super informative, you get every penny worth.

We traveled from Salzburg using the directions Lee provided.

We just did this a couple of weeks ago. We truly did need the entire day. My husband and I were not prepared for the amount of time it would take to get through the Nazi Documentation Center, if you wanted to take in all the information with the audio guide. The nice thing with the audio guide was that you could skip things you were not interested in, but if you are interested in all, the audio guide takes a lot of time.

Unfortunately for us, the actual trip up to the Eagle's Next was a huge let down, as it was cloudy and had a significant amount of snow on the mountain (this was late June). There wasn't a lot to do on top of the mountain in that kind of weather. My husband was there on July 1 (a different year) and the weather was beautiful and they had a lot more to take in and do.

So, it really depends on the day, but if you are only going to have a half day, it wouldn't be worth it, based on my experience.

I went there last year in late may and there was 6 feet of snow at The Eagles nest. However, it was overrun with tourists entering the dining room where i was trying to have lunch. It was pretty interesting, but very crowded, even in lousy weather. Easy to get to from Salzburg by train or bus. However, an elderly gentleman(German) in my B+B in Schonau am Koenigsee expressed his opinion that it was not very interesting AT ALL, and he would NEVER go there. The Berchtesgaden area is fantastic but it does fairly ooze with nazi souvenirs. I bought a very interesting dvd about the history of the Eagles Nest which was nicely done.

We spent nearly 4hrs at the Documentation Center. It was really informative and offers some great scope/background that most people typically don't know, but most of us were so depressed afterwards that we had no desire to pay more money to have a bus schlep us up to the Eagle's Nest.

We took a daytrip from Salzburg to the salt mines at Berchtesgaden. It was a pretty easy trip that didn't consume the entire day. We didn't go to the Eagle's Nest.

Matthew,

Lee provided an excellent description on the best way to get to Berchtesgaden from Salzburg. There are two options for seeing the Eagle's Nest and Dokumentation Centre.

You could use public transit to get to Berchtesgaden and then use Eagle's Nest Tours (check their website or the Guidebook for details). You could also use Bob's Special Tours who will provide transport directly from Salzburg (again, check their website for details).

Try to get as much time as possible, as there are a few sights to see in that area - the town of Berchtesgaden deserves a quick visit, the Dokumentation Centre and Bunkers above town will take at least two hours, the Salt Mine (which can be toured if you're interested) and the Eagle's Nest.

Happy travels!

"However, an elderly gentleman(German) in my B+B in Schonau am Koenigsee expressed his opinion that it was not very interesting AT ALL, and he would NEVER go there."

I would consider the source. He is from a generation that wants to forget it's past, not revisit it. I'm not condemning Germans, what happened there could happen anywhere in the world.

I have to agree with James. The Eagle's Nest by itself is rather unspectacular, except for the view (which can be marred by haze on occasion). No events of much significance occurred there, and Hitler only visited the site about 10 times (he was reportedly claustrophobic, which is the reason for the mirrored surfaces in the elevator).

That's why I feel that a guided day tour would be a good choice in this case, as it provides a better overview of not only the history behind the Eagle's Nest, but also the related events which led to it's construction.

"Or the old German guy could just have the same opinion that I had...there ain't nothing up there cool enough to waste the time, money, or energy for. I hiked up there from the museum - a restaurant and a cross and a decent view in good weather...not much else (1 hour spent at the top, and that includes a beer stop)."

If that is what you consider a "decent view" then you are quite spoiled. To this desert rat, that is a bit more than a decent view.

I loved standing there thinking about the sense of euphoria the allied troops that reached the top must have felt. The scene is portrayed real well in "Band of Brothers," although the scenes of the Eagles Nest weren't actually shot there.

There is no reason for a third party, profit added tour. Transportation to Kehlsteinhaus is easy by yourself and a lot less expensive than with a tour. When I was there, there were guides at the Bus Parkplatz selling guided tours for a couple of Euro. They would take you up the elevator to the building, explaining the construction. Then when we got to the building, she took us around, showing us the Mussolini fireplace and the side room where Eva Braun entertained the wives while the husbands met in the octagonal room.

I guess there are other places in Germany, the assembly grounds in Nürnberg, maybe a bierhall in Munich, the prison in Landsberg, that also have a direct connection to Hitler, but we've all seen photos of der Führer with Eva on the porch of Kehlsteinhaus. And here you are in the same place. I'm not an admirer of Hitler, but irregardless of the view, the place has an historical significance.

Despite the negative feedback on the experience of Berchtesgaden and Kelsteinhaus (Eagle's Nest), you may enjoy the experience. As you mentioned, you will be traveling there from Salzburg. Salzburg is wonderful! However, that said, Salzburg has its own Nazi history that is well known and is not at all engraciating to discuss with locals. As was mentioned in a previous post about the elder German gentleman, they want to quietly forget this portion of their history. Don't blame them. We did a tour with a Brit lady in a VW bus who positioned us in the morning at the Eagle's Nest. We had a spectacular view of the surrounding area for the period allowed, and then toured Berchtesgaden.

I interpreted the elderly gentlemans comment about the Eagles Nest to mean that he had no desire to revisit the obviously painful past. The dokumentation center was filled with bored teenagers on school trips, and despite the thousands of (Allied) lives lost in the liberation of Europe, that chapter of history rated only one poster in the whole place. I did not enjoy the Dokumentation Center, it left me depressed and unsettled, and aside from the interesting architecture of the Eagles Nest itself it wasn't worth the time. I could sympathize with the gentlemans feelings, therefore, that it was a deppressing and not really all that interesting place. There are mountain views to be had all over the Alps, so that one was nothing out of the ordinary, so to speak.