geocalia
Day itinerary · 47.04° N · 12.84° E
Leave Munich early, walk the Käfertal at Ferleiten, go up the Edelweiss-Spitze, eat at the Edelweisshütte and finish facing the Grossglockner at the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe.
Part of Hohe TauernAlps
The plan
Any part can be swapped for another without spoiling the day.
via Salzburg or via Lofer to Bruck and the Fusch valley
Ferleiten car park, €4 for four hours · 20 min walk with a pushchair to the Oberstattalm
Ferleiten toll booth · €46.50 per car (2026)
cobbled spur from the Fuschertörl, or a 30 min walk
hot food 9:00 to 18:30, every day of the season
5672 Fusch an der Großglocknerstraße · +43 6545 7425
free car park · 1.4 km panoramic path facing the Grossglockner
return via the Hochtor and Ferleiten; in Munich around 21:00
Adds up the activities and meals in the plan at their published prices; travel and accommodation not included.
The route
The Grossglockner Alpine road climbs 48 km and 36 bends between Fusch and Heiligenblut, up to the 2,504 m of the Hochtor, and it is the most spectacular day trip you can do by car from Munich. It is a long day: about two and three-quarter hours to the north toll booth, the same time back and the road in between. It is worth it with a clear sky. You begin with an easy walk through the Ferleiten valley, eat at the highest point a car can reach and end facing the Grossglockner, with the Pasterze glacier below.
Fly to Munich, which has direct flights from several Spanish cities, and hire a car there: the road cannot be done well without one, except with the Glocknerbus from Zell am See. If you arrive the day before, sleep in Munich or, better, already in the Fusch valley, at the Hotel Lampenhäusl, and you save yourself the early start.
6:00 · Leave Munich. By the motorway towards Salzburg and then towards Bruck, or via Lofer.
8:45 · Käfertal. Park at Ferleiten, next to the toll booth (€4 for four hours), and walk 20 minutes with a pushchair to the Oberstattalm, with its marmot play area. If you feel like more, the Käfertal path continues for about 4 km, almost flat.
10:15 · Enter the road. Pay at the Ferleiten toll booth: €46.50 per car in 2026, or €36.50 per motorbike. The bends begin.
11:00 · Edelweiss-Spitze. At the Fuschertörl the cobbled spur leads to the Edelweiss-Spitze, 2,571 m. Drive up or, if it is full, leave the car below and walk half an hour.
12:00 · Lunch at the Edelweisshütte. The Lederer family's 1935 hut serves hot food until 18:30: Wiener Schnitzel, Tiroler Knödel or an Almjause, and the apple strudel with vanilla sauce.
14:00 · Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe. Cross the Hochtor into Carinthia and go up to the viewpoint, at 2,369 m. The car park is free. Walk the 1.4 km panoramic path facing the Grossglockner and above the Pasterze; on the way, with luck, you see marmots. The visitor centre is open from 10:00 to 17:00 and is included in the toll.
17:00 · Return. Come back over the Hochtor and down to Ferleiten. Allow about four hours to Munich.
Yes, if you like mountains seen from the road and short walks. With children it works: the Käfertal is designed for them and the marmots never fail. No, if you don't want to spend more than five hours in the car: then sleep a night in the area and do it at leisure.
Where to eat
Lunch is half the plan: book before you set off.
What to order: a Wiener Schnitzel or an Almjause on the terrace, and for dessert the apple strudel with vanilla sauce, the dish the house highlights most.
What to order: Kaiserschmarren, or a Kaspressknödel soup if it is cold; with a coffee, the apple strudel.
What to order: some of its grass-fed beef or the house pork, and try the South Tyrolean-style Graukäse, made in its own cheese dairy.
Map
With where to park at each one.
Getting there
When to go
Only with the road open. The company that runs it announces a season from early May to early November; in November 2026 it says it is closed until early May 2027, with no exact date yet. From June to August it opens from 5:30 to 21:00 (last entry 20:15); until 31 May, from 6:00 to 20:00, and from September, from 6:00 to 19:30.
Tips
With low cloud you can't see the Grossglockner. If the day is overcast, change plans.
The road opens at 5:30 from June to August. By mid-morning there is a queue at the toll booth.
Driving at night is forbidden. In September the last entry is at 18:45.
Questions
From early May to early November. In November 2026 it is closed until early May 2027; the exact date has not been published.
€46.50 per car per day in 2026; €40 for an electric car and €36.50 for a motorbike. After 18:00, a car pays €36.50.
About two and three-quarter hours to the Ferleiten toll booth, depending on traffic.
Yes. The walk to the Oberstattalm can be done with a pushchair, and at the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe there are marmots and a visitor centre.
More plans like this
geocalia.com/en/austria/carinthia/hohe-tauern/itineraries/grossglockner-road-from-munich
Prices, opening hours and times are approximate: check them before you go. Each place has its own page on Geocalia.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/austria/carinthia/hohe-tauern/itineraries/grossglockner-road-from-munich
