Berchtesgaden sits in the far southeast corner of Germany, in a pocket of Bavaria that pokes into Austria, and the mountains here do not bother to be modest. The Watzmann, at 2,713 metres Germany's second highest mountain, stands above the valley in a long ridge, with the pale wall of the Hochkalter opposite. The town is the end of the German Alpine Road, which runs from Lake Constance, and it feels like the end of the line, with the peaks closing in on all sides. For centuries the local economy rested on salt, and the salt mine, worked since the sixteenth century, is open to visitors who put on miners' clothes and slide down the wooden chutes.
The area has a heavy twentieth century history as well. On the Obersalzberg above the town, the Nazi leadership built a compound with Hitler's residence, and the Documentation Centre there explains the story honestly and in detail. The Kehlsteinhaus, the so-called Eagle's Nest, built on a ridge top as a gift for Hitler, is reached by a narrow road and a lift cut into the rock, and it is now a restaurant with views. Many visitors find the contrast between the beauty of the scenery and the history uncomfortable, which is probably appropriate.
Nature is the main reason to come. The Königssee, a deep green fjord-like lake south of the town, is reached by electric boats that glide below cliffs of grey rock to the pilgrimage chapel of St. Bartholomä, with its red domes. The Berchtesgaden National Park protects the high country around it, with chamois, marmots and golden eagles. For riders, the Roßfeld panoramic road, a toll road that climbs to a high ridge above the valley, offers some of the best views in the region, and nearby roads wind through meadows and forest. Surfaces are good, but traffic is heavy in summer, particularly at weekends.
Fuel, food and accommodation are all available in town, though prices rise in high season. Cafés and inns serve local dishes such as Kaiserschmarrn, a sweet shredded pancake with fruit, and cold Bavarian beer, and the evening light on the Watzmann is a quiet reward at the end of a long ride.