Discover Bernried on Lake Starnberg

Bernried on Lake Starnberg brings together a protected park, named themed trails, and art-historical landmarks. These offer different points of focus when planning your trip: the landscape, a particular route, or individual works of art. If you are looking for accommodation, first consider which of these themes you want to shape your stay.

Bernrieder Park: landscape and heritage protection

South of Bernried, Bernrieder Park covers about 80 hectares and is protected for both its landscape and historical significance. The area indicates the park’s scale; the two forms of protection identify its landscape and heritage value. This makes the park a distinct focal point alongside the local churches and the routes that pass through Bernried.

Routes through Bernried

The eastern loop, “Reflecting Waters,” of the Holy Landscape Pfaffenwinkel Pilgrimage Hiking Trail leads via Weilheim to Bernried, then continues via Seeshaupt, Penzberg, Benediktbeuern, and the Osterseen lakes back to Peißenberg. The sequence of places gives a clear sense of the loop’s route and shows Bernried as one section of the pilgrimage hiking trail.

The Upper Bavaria Water Cycle Paths’ Art Loop follows a different route. As a cross-connection, it leads from Gauting via Starnberg, along Lake Starnberg through Bernried, and via Seeshaupt through the Osterseen lake district, continuing to Murnau. The names distinguish the two offerings: one is the pilgrimage hiking trail, the other the Art Loop within the Upper Bavaria Water Cycle Paths. The places listed provide concrete orientation for each route.

Another route option is Bernried’s Nordic Walking Technology Route: it is 1.4 km long and rated easy. Check current trail conditions locally before setting out.

Churches and art from different periods

St. Martin’s Parish Church was renovated between 1652 and 1663. Its artworks include a chancel screen slab from the Carolingian period and a Gothic winged altar from a Munich school, dating to around 1500. The dates draw attention to different periods: the Carolingian era, the period of the Gothic altar, and the 17th-century renovation.

Built in 1362, the Hofmark Church has a crypt chapel with a Gothic Vesperbild, a Pietà, and an example of 14th-century Bavarian woodcarving. The history of the church building and medieval sculpture and woodcarving emerge as distinct points of interest. The monastery courtyard offers another local highlight: it is an ensemble with magnificent old plane trees.

The Buchheim Museum nearby

North of Bernried, in Höhenrieder Park on the shore of Lake Starnberg, lies the Buchheim Museum. It features an Expressionist collection of paintings, watercolors, drawings, and prints, as well as decorative arts from around the world, Bavarian folk art, cultural objects from Africa and other non-European countries, and works by Lothar-Günther Buchheim. The collection thus ranges from regional folk art to art and cultural objects from various parts of the world.

In the Imagination Lab, the museum gives children and adults the opportunity to try out artistic techniques for themselves. Check with the museum to see whether the program is available at the time of your visit.

More information in the wider Starnberg travel destination

The wider Starnberg travel destination offers other points of interest, clearly distinct from Bernried’s local attractions: The Bismarck Tower near Assenhausen was inaugurated on July 1, 1899. The listed Feldafing lido is still largely in its original 1927 condition. At Bucentaurpark in Starnberg, bathing and swimming in Lake Starnberg are prohibited by order of the lake navigation authority because the shipyard harbor is immediately adjacent. Check this regulation before your visit.

Discover more destinations: Starnberg, Feldafing, Andechs, Seefeld, Gauting, Herrsching on Lake Ammersee, Tutzing, Inning on Lake Ammersee.

Go to the main travel overview: Starnberg.