Setzberg via Wallberg

The plan was Risserkogel

The original target for the day was Risserkogel — the taller, longer objective further along the same ridge from Wallberg, usually done as a 5.5–6 hour round trip. By the time I'd ridden the Wallbergbahn up and reached the top station, it was clear that plan didn't fit the day anymore: too late a start, not enough daylight margin to do Risserkogel justice and still get back down at a sane hour. So I shortened the route — Wallberg, then on to the Wallbergkirchl chapel, past the Altes Wallberghaus, and out along the ridge to Setzberg (1,706 m) instead. Risserkogel stayed visible the whole way — close enough to look almost reachable, not close enough to actually go for it that day. It's on the list for a return trip with an earlier start.

Up the Wallbergbahn

The Wallbergbahn cable car runs from its valley station near Rottach-Egern, 8:45–17:00 in summer season, and covers most of the climbing in under fifteen minutes — a round-trip adult ticket is €28. If you'd rather skip the cable car and hike the whole way up from the valley station, official signage puts that climb at 3.5 hours. I've done it before on an earlier visit and managed it in 2.5 — but plan around the posted 3.5, not my pace, the same rule as anywhere else on this route. Bus 356 from Tegernsee (departure stand 1) runs out to the valley station if you're not driving — but budget real time margin around it. Both the bus out to the cable car and the bus back were close to full — around 95% — and once that happens, the driver doesn't stop for anyone waiting further along the route. It only runs every half hour, so if you're not at the start of the line, there's a real chance you simply don't get on. At the top station there's a proper restaurant terrace — the Panoramarestaurant Wallberg — right where you step off the gondola, with its own Speisekarte and Getränkekarte boards (a beer up here runs €5.50 — mountain-top prices), plus the usual ticket-kiosk and audio-guide QR code inside the cabin for anyone who wants the potted history of the mountain on the way up. Free toilets at both the top and bottom stations. If you only want to go one way — hike up and ride down, say, or the reverse — a single-direction ticket is €15. If you're driving, parking at the valley station is free for Wallbergbahn passengers (your ticket's QR code gets scanned at the machine on the way out); a flat daily fee applies otherwise, around €5. Don't leave it too late either way: by around 11:00 the lot was already about 90% full.

A chapel with its own herd of cows

A short walk from the top station brings you to the Wallbergkirchl — a small chapel sitting right on the ridge, with Tegernsee already visible below. When I got there its usual company was in: a small herd of cows grazing right up to the chapel walls, completely unbothered by the hikers and photographers stepping carefully around them. It's the kind of shot that doesn't need any composing — the cows, the chapel, the ridge and the lake all line up on their own.

Altes Wallberghaus, and on to Setzberg

The paths around the top station and out toward the chapel and hut are nicely maintained — well-kept gravel, the kind of surface I saw people pushing strollers along without a second thought. From the chapel it's about 20 minutes further along the ridge to the Altes Wallberghaus, a hut with its own chalkboard menu and a posted opening-hours sign worth photographing before you plan around it: closed Mondays and Tuesdays, open 10:00–16:00, kitchen until 15:30. I didn't stop — from there the signposted time to Setzberg is officially 30 minutes; I did it in 20, at a steady pace. The final push up to Setzberg itself is a different story from the graveled path behind you: a genuine steep climb, and parts were slippery and muddy underfoot — on a wetter day some of it would double as a decent slide on your backside rather than a walk. Poles help a lot on this last stretch, and they're worth bringing regardless of how dry the forecast looks.

Haki tip: If Risserkogel is genuinely the goal, be at the top of the Wallbergbahn by 10:00 at the latest — the full loop from there runs 5.5–6 hours, and you still need enough daylight and cable-car time left to get back down. If you're running later than that, Setzberg is the honest shorter version of the same ridge, not a consolation prize.

Three hours at the top, and more than 25 paragliders in the air

Setzberg's summit cross sits on an open, grassy top with a direct view across to Risserkogel on one side — no phone signal at all on that side of the ridge — and back down to Tegernsee, signal restored, on the other. I ended up staying close to three hours: partly the views, partly just watching the paragliders. At one point I counted more than 25 of them in the air simultaneously, launching from the grass just below the ridge and riding the thermals out over the lake. The wind was clearly doing exactly what they wanted that day. One thing I didn't do: put on sunscreen. Three hours of open, exposed summit later, I found out about it properly that evening, in front of a mirror.

Haki tip: Sunscreen, even on a day that doesn't feel that hot — an exposed grassy summit at 1,706 m for three hours will get you regardless of the air temperature. And bring poles: parts of the ridge between the Altes Wallberghaus and Setzberg get genuinely muddy, and on a wetter day some of it turns into a decent slide on your backside rather than a walk.

Back down, and a beer in Tegernsee

The descent retraces the same ridge back past the Wallbergkirchl to the Wallberg top station and down by cable car — and the same bus crowding applies here too. The bus back from the valley station was just as full as the one out, and it didn't stop for anyone at the intermediate stops either. Don't plan on strolling into Tegernsee first and picking the bus up somewhere along the way — build in real time margin instead, because getting on partway isn't something you can count on. Off the bus near the Gymnasium in Tegernsee, it's worth a short detour to the abbey church right by the lake — Tegernsee Abbey, standing directly next to the old ducal brewery tavern (Herzogliches Bräustüberl), a genuinely beautiful stop, and a quiet one after a day on an exposed ridge.

Inside the abbey there's a card-payment machine for donations, €5 a tap — a small, easy way to support the church if you don't have cash on you.

The brewery tavern's own terrace was full — no table to be had — so the walk continued along the main road by the lake instead. That's where the real find was: a lakeside beer garden with a proper view and noticeably cheaper prices than the main HTB terrace, about a 10-minute walk from the train station. Self-service, card accepted: €4 for 0.5 l, €7.80 for a full 1-litre Maß — a fair bit less than the €5.50 up at the Panoramarestaurant Wallberg, and worth knowing if the main terrace is full anyway.

Getting back to Munich

On a Saturday or Sunday, don't cut it close — Tegernsee is a popular day-trip finish and trains fill up. If you have a choice of departures, take the earlier one rather than the one you'd planned for. The direct BOB regional train (line RB57) runs from Munich to Tegernsee in a little over an hour, with no change needed — hourly on weekdays, half-hourly on weekends during the morning and afternoon peak windows.

If you'd rather skip the hike

You don't have to walk any of this. Ride the Wallbergbahn straight up and back down and you've still got the chapel, the cows, and the summit views for the price of the ticket. Or hike up and pay €15 for the one-way ticket down instead of the full return fare. And if hiking isn't the point of your day at all, Tegernsee itself is worth the trip on its own — a walk around the lake, a stop for a refreshment somewhere along the promenade, or a scenic boat trip on the lake instead of a summit.