The Wendelstein Rack Railway, sometimes just referred to as the Wendelstein Railway, is an electrically-driven metre gauge rack railway that runs up the Wendelstein in the Upper Bavarian Limestone Alps. Together with the Wendelstein Cable Car it is operated by the Wendelsteinbahn GmbH.
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Gasthaus Müllner Stüberl
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Ok, this is a long one...
The Wendelsteinbahn is one of four remaining cogwheel railways left in Germany (they're a rare, classic delight), and it’s an amazing experience that I HIGHLY recommend to (almost) everyone, but I would go in with a few pieces of advice:
As of August 2024, the two trains depart from one station every hour. The journey takes about 30 (±5) minutes, and the trains spend another 30 (±5) minutes at the other station before returning. You can board the trains as soon as they arrive at the station.
The vehicles, identical to the Bayerisch Zugspitzbahn, have no air conditioning and get very, VERY stuffy. Considering arriving early to get seats that you prefer (good view) and to find a seating arrangement that matches your group size. Also, if you are prone to motion sickness, considering facing in the direction you're going. Being Germany, sometimes your neighbors might be... light on the deodorant, which is especially noticable in a small, hot, cramped car. A piece of gum and a face mask are my go-to trick!
The trains run pretty slow at 15 kph (10 mph), so it's definitely NOT an exhilarating experience, but the scenery is beautiful and the clunking of the cogwheel is charming enough to make the time feel fast.
In terms of timing, I would recommend catching the first or second ride up to have some time on the mountain without crowds. Plan to catch the trains departing at 9 or 10 AM. The mountain definitely has enough to see to entertain for a few hours, so I came down on the 12:55 PM train.
Considering using the cableway if you are sensitive to heat, motion sickness, or want a...
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Terrible. I asked to purchase the cogwheel train up and cable car ticket down. They sold me a round trip cogwheel train ticket, which was not what I asked for. At the top, they would not exchange the ticket and I had to take the train back down, which resulted in a big delay for my travel schedule due to train connection times. I am sure the issue was a language barrier, but considering the tickets are the same price (in fact I paid one Euro more than the combo ticket that would let me take the cable car down) they could’ve fixed the issue and instead refused, even when I asked nicely if that was an option. So just be warned that this is not a tourist friendly place — would strongly suggest to avoid, at least if you don’t speak German. The price is also very high relative to the views — two thirds of the price of Zugspitze but much less interesting. There are definitely better places to...
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We were staying a few minute walk from the station so had to go up via the railway.
The views at the top of the mountain are amazing. There is a nice cafe and if the weather is okay you can sit on the terrace. If the weather is good my suggestion would be to go up early in the day and walk down the mountain… we wished we had done but the forecast was heavy rain on the morning of the day we went… we found the railway on the way up was nice - on the way down very crowded with people who didn’t have much of a clue about personal space or controlling their kids!
Make sure you take warm clothing even in height of summer - it’s quite cool and changeable at the top as you’d expect at the top of a mountain
Tickets for the railway are quite expensive- €99 for a family of three but I suppose it’s required to...
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