Just over one hour from Munich, is the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen and at its end the stunning lake Eibsee and its many shades of green. This is one of my favorite places to spend a weekend in Bavaria. Mountains and lake: Nature is breathtaking!

INFO & PLANNING TIPS - Eibsee
Eibsee, almost 1000m in elevation, lays the base of Zugspitze, the highest peak in Germany. The tour for this lake is easily accessible. It is a very enjoyable walk with lots of shade and a view of the 8 small islands surrounded by vibrant green.
TIPS FOR TRAVEL PLANNING ADDICTS - Eibsee
Getting to Eibsee
- Garmisch-Partenkirchen is just one hour South of Munich
- Eibsee is reachable by a 30min bus drive from Garmish centre (the Blue buses - Weiß Blau). However there are mostly once an hour (a bit more in the middle of the afternoon. If you get a special pass to go up the Zugspitze, the bus is included. Otherwise I think it costed be 4€30 (May 2014)
Visiting Eibsee
- Easily accessible with a trail that take 2h to 2h30min
- if you complete the tour anticlockwise you will start with the most hilly part of the walk and finish on a more or less flat path.
- I think the best views are on the northern side (first half if walking anti-clokwise
- Restaurant and facilities at the eastern tip of the lake (where you arrive by bus)
- This is also where the cable car to Zugspitze departs
Eibsee in pictures
The loop around the lake is an easy stroll with many different views of the surrounding mountains and of the 8 islands with light green.
My favorite part of the tour was on the Northern bank. From there you get magnificent views of the mountains behind. And I was lucky to get beautiful reflections.






Eibsee - other lake
Although considered one, there are parts of Eibsee which are separated. Below is one of these ‘smaller lakes’ with again another shade of green.

Western tip of Eibsee
At the western end of Eibsee you walk in a beautiful forest witch also shows shades of green. It feels very peaceful.

Eibsee from above
I always love seeing a scenery from above. At the lake, you can take the Eibsee Cable Car to the top of Zugspitze and get breathtaking views of the lake and the surroundings mountains. This an impressive steep ride but as you can see on the photos below, the views are stunning. Notice the small islands surrounded by vibrant blue.

What a peaceful environment, don’t you think?

I count this as one of my most beautiful memories of garmisch. Hope to go back one day.