Holiday in Mittenwald

About Mittenwald

Mittenwald is a picturesque Alpine town on the Austrian border, located at the foot of the imposing Karwendel mountains — at an altitude of 920 meters in the Upper Bavarian Werdenfelser Land. Goethe called the place a living picture book, and indeed, Mittenwald, with its magnificent Lüftl paintings, looks like something out of a fairy tale. The tradition of violin making has made Mittenwald world-famous: Since Matthias Klotz brought violin making from the Italian Cremona here in 1684, the town has been a center for string instrument construction. The Mittenwald School of Violin Making, founded in 1858, is one of only three state violin-making schools in the world. Historical master instruments can be admired in the Violin Making Museum. The Lüftl painting characterizes the town's image: Artistic facade paintings on the townhouses depict religious motifs, hunting scenes, and everyday life. The parish church of St. Peter and Paul, with its richly painted tower, is the landmark of the town — the ceiling fresco inside is considered a masterpiece of Baroque church painting. The Leutasch Gorge, a spectacular ghost gorge on the Austrian border, offers a steel walkway over 75-meter-deep gorges with roaring white water. The Karwendel Panorama Trail and the Dammkar Hut are among the most beautiful hiking destinations in the Bavarian Alps. In winter, Mittenwald transforms into a cross-country skiing paradise: Over 100 kilometers of groomed trails, along with the Kranzberg descent and the historic jump at Tonihof — this is where the German Nordic Ski National Team trained.