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Welcome to Ruhpolding

Ruhpolding, with its 6,500 residents, is a big, enchantingly romantic village in Upper Bavaria, serving up nature at its finest in every season of the year.

Ruhpolding is an El Dorado for anyone who loves nature, and for those in search of active recreation amid wonderful scenery, combined with the warmth and hospitality for which Bavaria is so renowned.

Our guests have a broad variety of accommodation options from which to choose, ranging from four-star hotels, to cozy B&B’s and vacation apartments. Around 700 lodging establishments offering a total of some 6000 beds, along with 80 eateries of various kinds, ensure you will feel right at home here in Ruhpolding.

In winter, visitors are drawn by our magnificent, variety-packed ski slopes and cross-country trails. Ice-skating and a game of ice stock (in essence, an Alpine version of curling) at the Ruhpolding indoor ice rink, provide wintertime fun for the whole family.  And if sports are not really your “cup of tea”,  you couldn’t fail to enjoy the wintry landscapes as you take a ride on a horse-drawn sleigh. Sports fans can decide whether they wish to be active participants, or be spectators at international winter sporting events, where they will literally be within arm’s reach of stars from around the world.  Every year, Ruhpolding hosts the Biathlon World Cup and a World Cup event in the Nordic Combined, transforming this idyllic village into a mecca for thousands of fans.

In springtime, as nature slowly awakens to renewed life, romantic strolls through fragrant meadows, hikes along the banks of the Traun, excursions by bike and a few rounds on the golf course are a beautiful way to catch those first rays of sunshine.

Mountain-bike expeditions and high-country walking tours reward you with glorious Alpine vistas, making your vacation a truly one-of-a-kind experience. Simply hop aboard one of Ruhpolding’s cable lifts and float up to the Rauschberg or the Unternberg, where you will be greeted by spectacular views out over the main range of the Bavarian Alps.
When the summer sun shines down from the sky in full force, the open-air pool and lakes in the surrounding countryside invite you to enjoy a refreshing dip. The Ruhpolding Amusement Park is a special attractions for the kids, whisking them off into a magical world of the imagination.

Autumn is the ideal time of year in which to hike through forests ablaze with color, or to take a stroll and allow your feet to rustle through the leaves.  A glorious opportunity to let the fresh air permeate your body and to store away a few rays of sunshine to see you through the winter.

Aficionados of art and culture can learn about Ruhpolding’s rich history during a visit to the Heritage Museum, located in a former hunting lodge, develop a true sense of the hard life once led by forestry workers during a tour of the Woodcutters Museum, trace the fine art of the bell smith, or gaze in awe at the Baroque parish church of St. George with its 12th-century Romanesque Madonna.

Numerous heritage events and appearances by locals in folk costume are a further reflection of authentic Bavarian traditions.  The Raffneralm and Unternberghof invite you to join them for a high-spirited evening “knees-up”, while a broad selection of first-class restaurants and hotels serve up culinary delights plucked both from Bavarian and international cuisine.

There are also countless places of interest to discover in the region which surrounds Ruhpolding: Take a trip to Lake Chiemsee and tour Herrenchiemsee Castle, visit the old salt works in Bad Reichenhall, travel to Lake Königssee and ride the ferry to St. Bartholomä.  And of course, a flying visit to the Salzburg, the “City of Mozart”, would not go amiss either.