47.21° N · 12.17° E · Hohe Tauern
Austria's highest waterfalls fall 380 metres in three drops. The Wasserfallweg, a trail built by the Austrian Alpine Club, climbs beside them with viewpoints and balconies: the first fall is 15 minutes from the car park and the top one an hour and a quarter further. Admission costs €9.
Part of Hohe TauernAlps
Step by step
From the car park you pass the ticket office and the information point and reach the Kürsingerplatz (1,070 m), at the foot of the lower drop. Access is barrier-free up to here.
The path climbs in bends past the Riemann, Regen, Sendtner and Jung platforms, between 1,110 and 1,210 m. At the lowest ones the spray soaks you.
Via the Jaga Sprung and the Bergersteig you reach the Schönangerl (1,306 m), beside the middle fall, where you can stop for a meal.
The Staubige Reib, the Bergerblick and the Schettkanzel (1,460 m) look out over the top drop. The trail continues up the high valley of the Krimmler Achental if you want to go further.
Quicker than the climb, but take care: wet stone is slippery.
The Krimml Waterfalls are the highest in Austria: the Krimmler Ache river falls 380 metres in three drops as it leaves its valley, above the village of Krimml, at the western end of the Hohe Tauern National Park. The upper drop is 140 m; after an almost flat stretch, the middle one falls another 100 m, and the lower one, the Achenfall, more than 140 m. They have been part of the national park since 1983 and in 1967 the Council of Europe awarded them the European Diploma for Protected Areas.
Beside them climbs the Wasserfallweg, the trail maintained by the Warnsdorf-Krimml section of the Austrian Alpine Club (ÖAV). The first stepped path to the lower fall opened in 1835 for travellers and Romantic painters.
The Wasserfallweg is 4.15 km long and climbs 431 m. It is well surfaced and zigzags through woodland with ten balconies over the water.
Allow two to three hours to do the whole thing without rushing.
According to the ÖAV's 2026 leaflet, the trail is open from early May to late October, every day from 8:00 to 18:00. Prices:
The fee pays for maintaining the path, the toilets, including accessible ones, and protection of the area. You do not need to book.
Krimml is at the head of the Salzach valley, west of Zell am See, following the river upstream. If you come from Innsbruck or the Zillertal, you arrive by the Gerlos Alpine road. Beside the falls there are pay car parks for cars and coaches, P1 to P4, and a bus and taxi stop at the entrance.
The flow depends on the snowmelt: in June and July the river carries 30 to 40 times the water of February, and the day's peak arrives at night, between 21:00 and 24:00, because the water takes hours to come down from the glacier. Go first thing to have the viewpoints to yourself.
With small children, stay on the lower part: the Kürsingerplatz and the information point, which has a water game with piano keys to step on. With a pushchair you can reach the Kürsingerplatz; higher up there are slopes and steps. Along the way you have the Gasthof Richter, the Gasthaus Hanke, the Gasthaus Schönangerl and kiosks. The free Krimml Waters app suggests a guided route of about two hours along the trail and the village. With a dog, remember that in the national park a lead is compulsory.
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That is when the river carries the most water, 30 to 40 times the flow of February.
Admission is included in the Krimml guest card, the Nationalpark Sommercard and the SalzburgerLand Card.
If you are with children, the €15.90 combined ticket adds the aquapark and the P4 car park.
Questions
€9 for adults and €4.50 for children aged 6 to 15. The combined ticket with the WasserWelten costs €15.90.
About 15 minutes to the lower fall and an hour and a quarter to the upper one. With the descent and stops, two or three hours.
Up to the Kürsingerplatz, at the foot of the lower fall, access is barrier-free. From there the trail climbs in bends and with steps.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/austria/carinthia/hohe-tauern/things-to-do/krimml-waterfalls
