Bavarian BistroBavaria, explained. Served warm.

AboutEditorial policyAffiliate disclosureContact

Zugspitze: Germany’s Highest Mountain Day Tour from Munich

Disclosure: this page describes a tour sold by Viator, and the button below is an affiliate link. A booking through it may earn the site a commission at no cost to you. How this works.

from $164 on Viator, checked September 27, 2026. Prices change with the date and the option you choose.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 on Viator (as of September 2026).

Check price and dates on Viator

Our take

Worth it for one kind of traveler: the one who wants the summit without managing the timetable. The mountain is easy to reach on your own, and the Bayerische Zugspitzbahn sells a round-trip ticket for €78 that covers both the cable car and the cogwheel train2. This tour sells the day around that ticket: a coach from Munich, a guide, cable car up from the Eibsee, cogwheel train down1. The one honest limit is the pickup: two recent reviewers could not find the meeting point on Karlsplatz and the coach left without them1.

Who it suits

  • Anyone staying in Munich who wants the mountain as one planned day, about 8 hours1.
  • People who want both routes in one trip: cable car up from the Eibsee, cogwheel train down1.

Who should skip it

  • Anyone already sleeping in Garmisch-Partenkirchen: the cogwheel train starts a few minutes from your hotel, and the €78 ticket covers the same mountain2.
  • Anyone pregnant or with a heart condition: the operator says the tour is not recommended for pregnant travelers and asks for no heart problems or other serious medical conditions1.
  • Groups who like trains: the Bayern-Ticket covers the regional trains to Garmisch for €34 for one traveler up to €74 for five3.

What it adds to doing it yourself

On your own you take a regional train to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, buy the round-trip ticket, and pick your own way up and down2. The tour drives two hours to the Eibsee, sends you up by cable car, gives you about an hour on the platform, a walk to the golden summit cross, the glacier plateau at about 2 p.m., and the cogwheel train down at about 4 p.m.1. Lift tickets, coach and guide are included; food, drinks and gratuities are not1. The tour price is in US dollars and the mountain's own ticket in euros, so do the sum in one currency before you decide.

Good to know

  • About 8 hours, starting 10 a.m. at Karlsplatz (Stachus); be there 20 minutes before1.
  • Pin the meeting point the day before: the square is large, and the app gave two reviewers no building number1.
  • Free cancellation up to 24 hours before1.
  • Rated 4.5 out of 5 from 265 reviews on Viator and Tripadvisor, as of September 28, 20261.
  • The independent version is in Zugspitze: Cogwheel Train or Cable Car?.

Sources

  1. Zugspitze: Germany's Highest Mountain Day Tour from Munich — Viator product page (operator: Gray Line Münchener Stadtrundfahrten). Accessed 2026-09-28.
  2. Zugspitze: tickets and rates — Bayerische Zugspitzbahn. Accessed 2026-09-27.
  3. Bayern-Ticket — Deutsche Bahn. Accessed 2026-09-27.

What the operator says

This day trip takes you through the charming Garmisch-Partenkirchen to the Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Germany. You start your ascent with the new cable car, which will take you to the almost 3,000 meter high mountain peak in just ten minutes. After enjoying the exhilarating views over more than 400 peaks, you can explore the countryside on a short hike. For those who like things a bit faster, a toboggan hill is available on the eternal ice during the summer months. Toboggans can be borrowed free of charge. In the many restaurants (which also offer vegetarian and halal menus) you can indulge in culinary delights. The descent then takes place with the historic rack railway.

More alps and lakes

All alps and lakes →