Piding: Trails, Culture and Special Discoveries
Accommodation in Piding
Discover Piding along trails through varied landscapes, among striking architectural history and regional specialities. A family outing on the Bee Trail, a panoramic walk with views of the Berchtesgaden mountains or a look at the distinctive St. John’s Church each offer something different. For your stay, you can choose whether nature, culture or both should be the deciding factor.
File:Schloss Staufeneck, Piding, Berchtesgadener Land 5.JPG
Photo: Wald1siedel via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Hiking on Högl and the Bee Trail
The Högler circular hiking trail starts at the Högler Straße hiking car park in Piding. Along the loop are the small monuments Haasen-Taferl and Högl-Steinbruch; there are also panoramic views of the Berchtesgaden mountains. If you like to combine a hike with insights into small monuments when planning your holiday, this is a specific starting point for your tour.
Another route idea is the Piding Bee Trail. It leads from the Neubichler Alm through mixed woodland, past fruit trees and across flower meadows to the Johannishögl mountain inn. As an enjoyable walking route for the whole family, it offers a shared outing with changing landscapes along the way. Visitors can learn about the importance of bees to natural and cultural landscapes, as well as to nutrition and health. The trail’s stations also provide an opportunity to talk with children about the role bees play in different areas of life.
The Johannishögl inn stands on Högl and offers views across all of Salzburg. The Piding via ferrata offers a different focus: it runs through the north faces of Hochstaufen and can be reached from Piding or Urwies via a forest road followed by a hiking trail.
Church, Nativity Scene and St John’s Fire
At Johannishögl stands St. John’s Church, with 14th-century frescoes, Romanesque walls, a late Gothic vaulted ceiling and a Baroque tower. The different architectural features give the church building a multifaceted character. Visitors interested in church art and historic architecture will find several specific details to look out for here.
Another cultural discovery is the year-round Nativity scene in the Old Rectory above the Piding Tourist Information Office. The Old Rectory has housed it since 2013; it was created by Wally Nitzinger. The Alpine-style scene includes more than 220 figures, 60 birds and native wild animals such as chamois, deer and ibex. The Nativity scene therefore offers a distinctive theme for a visit focused on regional craftsmanship and animal depictions.
Every year on 24 June, the church’s patronal feast is celebrated at Johannishögl, followed after the service by the church dedication festival at the neighbouring inn. A traditional St John’s fire is then lit and burns until evening. The set date and sequence of events offer a special insight into local traditions.
Regional Products and Rail Connections
At the Berchtesgadener Land dairy’s production site in Piding, the milk shop offers its own dairy specialities, regional delicacies and fair-trade products. If you would like to include regional produce in your travel experiences, you’ll find a specific range of food and delicacies here.
Piding has its own railway station on the Freilassing–Berchtesgaden line. Trains operated by Bayerische Regiobahn run on this line and continue as suburban trains to Salzburg. When choosing a holiday apartment, the rail connection may be a factor if you’re also planning to travel by train.
More destinations: Berchtesgaden, Saaldorf-Surheim, Anger, Schneizlreuth, Bad Reichenhall, Marktschellenberg, Teisendorf, Weißbach A.D.Alpenstraße.
For the main travel overview: Berchtesgadener Land.
