Hiking Wankberg: a family-friendly hike in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Hiking the Wankberg in Garmisch-Partenkirchen is an incredible experience, especially for families looking to enjoy the stunning German Alps. This scenic hike offers beautiful panoramic views and is perfect for hiking with kids. The Wankberg trail is an easy-to-follow route that provides access to some of the best landscapes in the area. Read on to discover our journey on this Wankberg hiking route, as well as helpful tips for making the most of your hike with children in the German Alps!

Hike the Wankberg in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

The Wankberg near Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a well-known mountain for hiking in the German Alps. To reach the Wankberg, you can take a cable car called the ‘Wankbahn’. The Wankbahn has cabins for up to 4 people, and you can get off at 2 stations. It takes about 20 minutes to reach the top of the Wankberg, but you can also get off at the intermediate station. However, most people take the cable car to the top. Just like we did. Of course, you can also climb the 1,780-meter high mountain, but we decided not to do that with a child in a child carrier.

The Wankberg is very popular because of the panoramic views of the surrounding mountains. Since there is a valley between the Wankberg and the mountains south of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, you get a beautiful overview of the formation of the German Alps. You can also clearly see the Zugspitze (the highest mountain in Germany) from the Wankberg. Unfortunately, the top of the Zugspitze was hidden behind the clouds when we were there. Fun fact: the Wankberg is sometimes called the “Sun Mountain” because there are wooden lounge chairs facing the sun. On sunny days, it can get quite busy on the Wankberg.

Next to the wooden lounge chairs, there is a restaurant and a playground at the cable car station. Most people who take the Wankbahn to the top, walk around and enjoy the views. There is a nice walking loop at the top of the mountain. These paths are also suitable for families, as many people walk with strollers or buggies. There is also a relatively flat hiking route of about 2.5 hours, which not only passes through the Wankberg but also goes around the Ameisberg and Roßwank.

Hiking from the Wankberg: our hiking Route

We chose not to stay at the top and hiked down to the parking lot of the Wankbahn. The nice thing about this hiking route is that there are 4 stops where you can eat or drink. We essentially hiked from hut to hut. The stops along the route are the Wank Haus hut (at the top of the Wankberg), the Esterberg Alm, the Gschwandtnerbauer hut, and the Tannenhütte.

The first stop on the hiking route is the Wank Haus hut at the cable car station at the top of the Wankberg. We didn’t stop here for food and drinks, but did enjoy the view of the Alps from one of the lounge chairs at the hut. Then, we hiked for about 1 hour and 15 minutes to the ‘Esterberg Alm’ hut. This path goes through the forest, zigzagging fairly steeply downhill. Toward the last part, you start to feel it in your legs. The Esterberg Alm is a mountain hut in a so-called ‘alm’: a large, flat grassy meadow between several mountain peaks. Here, we had lunch. They only serve typical South German dishes, and they taste really good. Luca also enjoyed the Kaiserschmarrn. He also had some time to play here.

Hiking to Garmisch-Partenkirchen

After our lunch break, we headed toward the Gschwandtnerbauer hut. The first part of the route was very beautiful: we went up and down along a small stream. Luckily, the elevation changes weren’t too steep. Just before reaching the Gschwandtnerbauer hut, the path did drop significantly through the forest. We didn’t stop at this hut, but we did take a short break for a few minutes.

Next, we made our way to the Tannenhütte. To do this, we had to hike uphill again through the forest (why had we gone so far down before?). Once we reached the highest point, we walked on a wider, flatter path through an area with fewer trees. This section is where alpine cows can roam, but unfortunately for Luca, we didn’t see any.

On the final stretch toward the Tannenhütte, you arrive in a large open area. In this part of the hiking route, you also have beautiful views of the German Alps and Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Here you’ll find benches to take some rest, but within a few minutes, you can also reach the Tannenhütte via an iron suspension bridge. So we stopped for a drink here instead. This hut also has a playground where children can play. From the hut, it’s about an hour’s walk down to the car. The last stretch before reaching the Wankbahn parking lot involves hiking through a typical South German residential neighborhood in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

Hiking with children from the Wankberg

We were very curious about how it would go. It was our first time hiking with children in the mountains. It was also our first mountain hike with a child carrier (so extra weight). Plus, we didn’t know how Luca would feel about sitting in the child carrier all day.

In the end, hiking down the Wankberg was quite a hike. Including the time spent in the cable car and at the mountain huts, we spent 7 hours hiking. The total distance was 12.7 kilometers. It was a bit too long for Luca because by the end, he got a little impatient in the child carrier. Fortunately, he managed to take a nap along the way. But the hike was also a bit long for Mario, carrying Luca on his back. A hike of 2-3 hours (without stops) would be better when hiking with children.

However, the Wankberg offered a pleasant hike with children due to the many stops. Besides the stops at the Wankberg and the huts, there were also occasional grassy areas where we could rest, and Luca could crawl around. It’s also nice that there are opportunities along this Wankberg hiking route for children to play.

And of course, it was just a beautiful hike. From the Wankberg and during the hike, we had stunning views of the German Alps and Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Since we could take the cable car up, we didn’t have to hike uphill. Hiking only downhill is much easier, though it’s still quite intensive for your calves. And even though we were mostly going downhill, the hike wasn’t monotonous.

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