Jakobsweg Tirol-Allgäu

At a Glance

• Start / Finish: Stams in Tyrol's Inn Valley (639 m), below the Cistercian abbey / Zell near Oberstaufen in the Oberallgäu (803 m), at the Gothic church of St. Bartholomäus
• Length: 137.1 km—around 90 km in Austria, 47 km in Germany; you cross the border at Oberjoch
• Duration: 7 stages, avg. 19.6 km (Camino Ninja division); the sponsoring regions also divide it into seven, with stage ends at Haldensee instead of Grän and Immenstadt-Bühl instead of Immenstadt
• Elevation: ↗ 2,616 m / ↘ 2,452 m—19 meters of elevation gain per kilometer, real mountain trails without climbing sections; around 2,040 of the 2,616 meters of ascent fall in the first four stages
• Highest point: 1,346 m at km 54.3 directly beyond Berwang; lowest point 639 m at the start in Stams
• Passes: Holzleitensattel (1,146 m, km 12.1), Fernpass (village marker 1,206 m at km 27.3; the route climbs to 1,266 m at km 29.9), Gaichtpass (1,139 m, km 72.7), Oberjoch (1,193 m, km 91.1)
• Landscape: Inn Valley, Mieminger Plateau, Gurgltal, landslide lakes at the Fernpass, Ehrwald Basin with views of the Zugspitze, mountain villages of the Außerfern, Lechtal, Tannheimer Tal, Ostrachtal, Iller Valley, Allgäu foothills with the Großer Alpsee
• Operator: no association, but a consortium of tourism regions on both sides of the border (Allgäu GmbH, Tannheimer Tal, Bad Hindelang, Tiroler Zugspitz Arena, Naturparkregion Reutte); developed as a Way of St. James in its own right around 2010, the route brochure was funded by the EU
• Waymarking: a yellow bundle of rays—the stylized scallop shell—on a blue background, the focal point shows the direction; plus blue arrows on a yellow background
• Traces of St. James: parish church of St. Jakobus der Ältere in Berwang (tower 1425, choir 1430) with the octagonal St. James fountain in front of it; chapel of St. Jakob at Oberjoch (permission to celebrate Mass granted May 20, 1732) with the ceiling fresco “Vier Pilger am Jakobsbrunnen”; according to the route description, a small St. James chapel near Konstanzer shortly before the finish
• Historic ground: first half along the line of the Roman Via Claudia Augusta over the Fernpass, second half from Weißenbach am Lech on the Obere Salzstraße, the Upper Salt Road from Hall to Lindau
• Accommodation: no pilgrim hostel on the route; inns, guesthouses, and hotels in all stage towns—plenty of beds, but high season in July and August
• Connecting routes: in Stams the Way of St. James in Austria (Vienna–Innsbruck–Arlberg), near Mötz the Jakobsweg Isar-Loisach-Leutascher Ache-Inn from Munich; in Zell the Munich Way of St. James to Lindau
• Best time: June to September according to the sponsoring regions; most beautiful in fall, when the larches turn color on the Mieminger Plateau. Before June, the Fernpass, Berwang, and Oberjoch may still hold old snow
• Difficulty: moderate—technically harmless except for the Wildbachtobelsteig near Oberjoch (bypass available), physically real mountain country

Overview

This route begins beneath the burial place of the princes of Tyrol and ends in front of a church whose founding charter names the Allgäu for the very first time. In between lie 137.1 kilometers and three passes: up out of the Inn Valley over the Holzleitensattel into the Gurgltal, along the Roman line over the Fernpass past the landslide lakes into the Ehrwald Basin, where the Zugspitze stands at your back, then climbing steadily to Berwang, the highest village on the route. From there the trail drops into the Lechtal, lifts once more over the Gaichtpass into the Tannheimer Tal, and crosses the border at Oberjoch—and then the climbing is over. The Ostrachtal, the Iller, the Großer Alpsee, and the hamlets around Oberstaufen are the soft landing, and in Zell you're standing on the Munich Way of St. James, which takes you to Lindau in two days.

Honestly, this isn't an old pilgrim route but an old trade route with a new shell: Romans drove over the Fernpass, salt carters over the Gaichtpass and Oberjoch—both are documented in charters; the pilgrimage is documented only in the brochures. The tourism regions of Tyrol and Allgäu signposted the line as a Way of St. James around 2010, without an association, without a guidebook, with an EU-funded brochure. In return, you get two St. James churches that earn the name, a village with a bed every evening, and an Alpine crossing that feels like a pilgrim route rather than a mountain tour. Little legend, lots of elevation, no hostel bed—that's the deal.

Other Names

The route is called the Jakobsweg Tirol-Allgäu—that's how the tourism regions on both sides of the border list it, that's what the trail signs say, and that's what we call it too. One section carries a name of its own: Außerferner Jakobsweg or Jakobsweg Außerfern for the 46.8 kilometers from Nassereith over the Fernpass, through Lermoos, Bichlbach, and Berwang to Weißenbach am Lech. The Tiroler Zugspitz Arena itself explains that the Jakobsweg Außerfern is “Teil des Jakobsweg Tirol-Allgäu von Stams zu Oberstaufen-Zell” (part of the Jakobsweg Tirol-Allgäu from Stams to Oberstaufen-Zell)—meaning the heart of our stages 2 through 4.

There's potential for confusion with the Tiroler Jakobsweg: that's the main trunk right across Tyrol from Lofer via Innsbruck to Stams and on to the Arlberg, which we treat as part of the Way of St. James in Austria. It touches our route at exactly one point, Stams—that's where you branch off to the north. Anyone who says “Jakobsweg Tirol” usually means that main trunk, not this branch into the Allgäu.

Who It's Ideal For—and Who It's Not So Ideal For

Ideal if you want an Alpine crossing that feels like a pilgrim route rather than a mountain tour: three passes in seven days, but every evening a village with a bed, a kitchen, and usually a train station or bus within reach. Ideal if changing scenery matters more to you than mileage—Inn Valley, larch plateau, Fernpass lakes, Zugspitze views, Lechtal, Tannheimer Tal, Allgäu foothills: on 137 kilometers, that's an unusually dense sequence. Ideal if you like churches that carry more history than their villages: Hafenegger's buildings in Bichlbach and Tannheim, Jörg Lederer and Holbein the Elder in Bad Oberdorf, three Strigel altarpieces in Zell. And ideal as a first long mountain hike, because the stages get easier after the Fernpass stage and you can bail out almost anywhere.

Honestly, though, it's not for you if you're looking for an ancient pilgrim route with a St. James legend. What's documented is the road, not the pilgrimage—the route brochures say that pilgrims to Santiago walked here in the Middle Ages; we haven't found any evidence. Not for you if you're counting on pilgrim hostels: there are none, you sleep in the inns and hotels of a well-booked vacation region and pay their prices. Not for you if you have to set out in May—the Fernpass, Berwang, and Oberjoch may still be holding old snow. Not for you if you shy away from elevation gain: 2,616 meters of ascent over seven days is no river valley, and stage 4 runs 27 kilometers with the highest point right at the start. And not for you if you understand quiet as seclusion—the Tannheimer Tal and the Ostrachtal are full in summer; you won't be walking alone here.

Route & Landscape

Three landscapes, separated by passes. Inn Valley to Fernpass (km 0–37): The starting point on our map lies in Staudach, a part of Stams on the Inn at 639 meters, a good 800 meters west of the abbey, exactly where the Way of St. James in Austria passes by—the lowest point of the entire route; from here it's all uphill. Across the Inn to Mötz, through the gorge past the castle ruin (km 6.9, 853 m) to the Klammer Mühle (km 8.6, 959 m), then up to the Holzleitensattel (1,146 m at km 12.1) and across the Mieminger Plateau with its larch forests down into the Gurgltal to Nassereith (km 19.7, 848 m). From there the Roman line climbs to the Fernpass (village marker km 27.3, 1,206 m; the route reaches 1,266 m at km 29.9), past the lakes created by a landslide around 4,100 years ago, and drops steeply to Biberwier (km 36.7, 976 m). Außerfern and Lechtal (km 37–68): flat through the Ehrwald Basin to Lermoos (km 39.6, 988 m) with the Zugspitze massif in view, then climbing steadily via Bichlbach (km 49.2, 1,080 m) to Berwang (km 53.9, 1,334 m). Just beyond, at km 54.3, the highest point of the route at 1,346 meters. Via Rinnen (km 56.6, 1,255 m) the trail drops 470 meters into the Lechtal to Rieden (km 65.8) and Weißenbach am Lech (km 67.8, 884 m). Tannheimer Tal and Allgäu (km 68–137.1): over the Gaichtpass (1,139 m at km 72.7) into the high valley, then almost level via Nesselwängle (km 74.2), the Haldensee (km 79.0), Grän (km 80.9), Tannheim (km 83.7, 1,098 m), Zöblen, and Schattwald to the national border and over the Oberjoch (1,193 m at km 91.1). From there 370 meters down via Bad Oberdorf (km 97.2) to Bad Hindelang (km 98.9, 825 m), over the Gailenberg (km 100.6, 972 m) into the Iller Valley to Sonthofen (km 107.5, 745 m) and Immenstadt (km 116.6, 730 m), along the Großer Alpsee and through the hamlets via Thalkirchdorf (km 129.7) to Zell (km 137.1, 803 m).

The effort is unevenly distributed, and you should know that: the first four stages bring around 2,040 of the 2,616 meters of ascent, the last three only about 570—stage 7 has 138 meters of climbing over 20.5 kilometers, which is stroll level. Anyone walking the route from the north has the passes at the end and the hard days last. Surfaces: asphalt through the villages and on the valley floors, forest and alpine-pasture tracks on the passes, narrow trails on the descents from the Fernpass and the Oberjoch. The major roads—the Fernpass road B179 and the Jochstraße with its 107 curves—run alongside, not underfoot. Water is no problem in the Alps, but the Fernpass and Gaichtpass each have a good two hours without a place to stop for refreshment.

Stages, Terrain, and Difficulty

We divide the route into 7 stages averaging 19.6 kilometers—Camino Ninja system, every stage town on the chain, each with beds and places to eat. The sponsoring regions also divide it into seven but set Haldensee instead of Grän and Immenstadt-Bühl instead of Immenstadt; we chose Grän because it has more beds, and Immenstadt because that's where the train station is. The kilometers come from the Camino Ninja map and are calibrated exactly to the 137.1 kilometers of our route data; we calculated the elevation gain per stage from the point elevations of the chain. Difficulty: moderate—the only technically demanding section is the Wildbachtobelsteig near Oberjoch, for which there's a bypass; physically it's mountain country, and almost all the elevation gain is packed into the first half of the week.

1. Stams → Nassereith (19.7 km)—↗ 628 / ↘ 420 m; across the Inn to Mötz, through the gorge to the Klammer Mühle, Holzleitensattel 1,146 m at km 12.1, Mieminger Plateau, a stop at the Gasthaus Arzkasten; down into the Gurgltal to Nassereith. The day's only long climb is in the first half.
2. Nassereith → Lermoos (19.9 km)—↗ 522 / ↘ 383 m; the Roman stage: Fernpass along the line of the Via Claudia Augusta, landslide lakes, steep descent to Biberwier (976 m), flat to Lermoos. Scenically the most spectacular stage.
3. Lermoos → Berwang (14.3 km)—↗ 476 / ↘ 137 m; Untergarten, Wengle, Bichlbach (1,080 m) with St. Laurentius and the guild church, final climb to Berwang (1,334 m) with the St. James church. Short on purpose: time for two churches and the highest village on the route.
4. Berwang → Grän (27.0 km)—↗ 415 / ↘ 625 m; highest point 1,346 m right at km 54.3, Rinnen (1,255 m), long descent via Rieden into the Lechtal to Weißenbach am Lech (884 m), climb over the Gaichtpass (1,139 m at km 72.7), Nesselwängle, Haldensee, Grän. The longest stage, can be split at Weißenbach am Lech (13.9 + 13.1 km).
5. Grän → Bad Hindelang (18.0 km)—↗ 196 / ↘ 492 m; Tannheim (1,098 m) with St. Nikolaus, Zöblen, Schattwald, national border, Oberjoch 1,193 m at km 91.1 with the St. James chapel, long descent via Bad Oberdorf. Bypass the Wildbachtobelsteig in wet conditions.
6. Bad Hindelang → Immenstadt im Allgäu (17.7 km)—↗ 232 / ↘ 326 m; Gailenberg (972 m), Vorderhindelang, Reckenberg, Tiefenbach, Sonthofen (745 m), Blaichach, Immenstadt (730 m). The stage with the densest infrastructure and the most asphalt.
7. Immenstadt → Zell (Oberstaufen) (20.5 km)—↗ 138 / ↘ 65 m; Großer Alpsee, Bühl am Alpsee, Trieblings, Konstanzer, Thalkirchdorf (744 m), Kalzhofen, Buflings, Zell (803 m). Practically no climbing—the gentle finale.

Anyone with eight days splits the fourth stage at Weißenbach am Lech; the total stays 137.1 kilometers. Anyone who wants just one week of Alps boards the train in Oberstaufen—anyone going on will find the connection at the end of this page.

The Road Is Documented, Not the Pilgrimage

The sponsoring regions write that the route follows “alten Römer-, Handels- und Pilgerwegen” (old Roman, trade, and pilgrim roads). Two out of three are verifiably true. The first half lies on the line of the Via Claudia Augusta: after the Alpine campaign of 15 BC under Drusus and Tiberius, Emperor Claudius had the road over the Reschen and Fernpass upgraded to be passable by wagon throughout and extended to the Danube. The milestone from AD 46, found in 1552 near Rabland close to Merano, is considered the oldest Roman inscription in the Alpine region that refers directly to the construction of the military road. By around 1430, less than ten percent of the trade between Augsburg and Venice still ran over this “obere Straße” (upper road)—the traffic left, the alignment stayed, and you walk it between Nassereith and Biberwier.

The second half, from Weißenbach am Lech on, is the Obere Salzstraße, the Upper Salt Road along which salt from Hall in Tirol was hauled to Lake Constance: Reutte – Gaichtpass – Tannheimer Tal – Oberjoch – Hindelang – Immenstadt – Lindau, exactly our line except for the last few kilometers. The chain of documents is dense: 1464 a bridge over the Lech near Reutte, 1471 a Rod station (carters' relay post), 1489 market rights granted by Archduke Sigmund, 1494 two salt warehouses, 1531 Ferdinand I buys the last rights in the Tannheimer Tal, 1540 to 1550 the Gaichtpass is re-routed as a carriage road, 1612 follows the Rodordnung, the haulage ordinance of the bailiff Burkhard Laymann. In Nesselwängle alone, 80 draft horses stood ready to help teams up the pass. What it felt like was described by Heinrich Noë at the Gaichtpass in 1867: “Der Wanderer steigt mit Schauer, wenn er zur rechten Seite die jähen Steinwände betrachtet, und mit Grausen, wenn er einen Blick nach der brausenden Tiefe wendet, den steilgebahnten Weg hinauf.” (The wanderer climbs the steeply cut path with a shudder when he regards the sheer rock walls to his right, and with horror when he turns his gaze to the roaring depths.) Immenstadt grew rich on salt storage and the linen trade, and the road ended in Lindau—right where your onward route ends too.

And the pilgrims? For the Middle Ages we've found no evidence on this line—no confraternity, no pilgrim hospice, no name. What there is are two St. James churches on roads that carters needed: St. Jakobus in Berwang with its tower from 1425 and the chapel at Oberjoch from 1732, built in memory of the wagon traffic over the pass. A road for salt and soldiers on which pilgrims walk today—that's less romantic than a legend and, if you ask us, more honest. The shell arrived around 2010, without an association, with an EU brochure. It sits well on this road.

Highlights Along the Way

• Stift Stams (start, km 0)—Cistercian abbey, founded in 1273 by Meinhard II of Gorizia-Tyrol and Elisabeth of Bavaria as the burial place of the princes of Tyrol; the first twelve monks came from Swabia; church consecrated 1284, high altar from 1610 with 84 sculptures, onion-domed towers 1690–1699, Baroque remodeling 1729–1733 by Georg Anton Gumpp, Holy Blood Chapel 1716; dissolved 1807, re-established 1816, general renovation completed in 2016 after 18 years, 750th anniversary in 2023. It has no St. James patronage—but it does have the most magnificent facade in the Upper Inn Valley.
• Fernpass and Via Claudia Augusta (km 27.3)—the pass landscape was formed around 4,100 years ago by a landslide that forced the Loisach northward and created the chain of lakes with the Blindsee and Fernsteinsee; the Romans upgraded their road here from AD 46/47. The trail keeps its distance from the B179 and climbs to 1,266 meters at km 29.9.
• Nassereith and the Schellerlaufen (km 19.7)—every three years the village turns into a stage for masks: Scheller, Roller, and Kehrer dance the “Gangl”—around 450 people are actively involved, and at 6 p.m. the masks come off. The custom has borne this name since 1951; in 2012 it was added to Austria's UNESCO inventory of intangible cultural heritage.
• Guild church of St. Josef in Bichlbach (km 49.2)—foundation stone laid May 15, 1710, consecrated 1711, built by the masons' and carpenters' guild, whose statutes Emperor Leopold I had approved in 1694; in 1738 the guild counted 1,042 master masons and carpenters, and it existed until 1849. A mountain village with a thousand master builders—the Außerfern exported craftsmen to half of Europe. Next door, St. Laurentius with frescoes by the Zeiller family of painters and the pulpit from 1774.
• St. Jakobus der Ältere in Berwang (km 53.9, 1,334 m)—the Gothic tower gives the year 1425, in 1430 the chapel was enlarged with the choir, in 1454 the curacy was established; in 1731/1734 a new nave was added while the Gothic north portal remained; crucifix by Mang Anton Stapf 1745, organ by Franz Weber 1879. In front of the church, the octagonal St. James fountain with a bronze figure—the first genuine St. James station on the route, in the highest village of the trek.
• Gaichtpass (km 72.7, 1,139 m)—gateway to the Tannheimer Tal and key point of the Obere Salzstraße, upgraded to a carriage road 1540–1550; on April 29, 1945, German troops blew up the Gemstobel bridge on the pass; the old road was later restored by volunteers and is today a hiking and sledding route.
• St. Nikolaus in Tannheim (km 83.7)—built 1722 to 1724 by Andreas Hafenegger, the same master builder as in Bichlbach, consecrated on October 17, 1725, its octagonal tower 47 meters tall; frescoes by Joseph Keller 1804, a complete set of Löffler bells including a weather bell from 1561. For a village this size, a church this size—Wikipedia lists it as the second-largest village church in Tyrol.
• Chapel of St. Jakob at Oberjoch (km 93.8, on the border)—predecessor chapel demolished in 1731, permission to celebrate Mass in the new building granted May 20, 1732; ceiling fresco “Vier Pilger am Jakobsbrunnen” (Four Pilgrims at the Well of St. James) with St. James enthroned, the twelve apostles in the vault cove rediscovered in 1951/52, high altar from the old chapel bearing the year 1681. On St. James's Day, July 25, the “Bearglarkirbe” (the mountain folks' church fair) is held here. Official stamping point of the route.
• Bad Oberdorf, Unserer lieben Frau im Ostrachtal (km 97.2)—the building is young (1937/38 by Thomas Wechs), the furnishings are not: high altar by Jörg Lederer from 1519 with the Coronation of the Virgin, a Madonna and Child by Hans Holbein the Elder from 1493, and a Gothic Palmesel (Palm Sunday donkey) with a life-size Christ that is drawn in procession to Bad Hindelang every year on Palm Sunday.
• Sonthofen and Immenstadt (km 107.5 and 116.6)—Sonthofen is the southernmost town in Germany; St. Michael first mentioned in 1449, burned down in 1540, badly hit by bombs in 1945 and rebuilt by Thomas Wechs five meters taller. Immenstadt appeared as “Imendorf” in 1275, received the right to fortify from Emperor Charles IV on July 22, 1360, and grew rich on salt storage and the linen trade; the Großer Alpsee next door measures 2.47 square kilometers.
• St. Bartholomäus in Zell (finish, km 137.1)—the charter of February 7, 817, in which an Alemannic man named Wisirih handed over his cell “Wisirihescella” to the monastery of St. Gallen, is also the first written record of the word “Allgäu” anywhere. The Gothic church of the 14th century replaced a wooden chapel; in 1440 the larger choir was added; the patronage changed from St. Alban via St. Stephan to St. Bartholomäus. Inside, three Gothic altarpieces by the Strigel family of Memmingen: the high altar of 1442 by Johann Strigel, one side altar from around 1500, the second from 1515 by Ivo Strigel; restored in 2012.

Four Pilgrims at the Well of St. James—The Chapel on the Border

The strongest trace of St. James on this route stands not in a village but on a pass. The chapel of St. Jakob at Oberjoch (km 93.8) had a predecessor that was demolished in 1731; the present chapel received permission to celebrate Mass there on May 20, 1732. Its ceiling fresco from the same year shows four pilgrims resting at a well, with St. James enthroned above them; in the vault cove sit the twelve apostles, rediscovered under later paint only in 1951/52. The richly figured high altar still comes from the old chapel and bears the year 1681 beneath the figure of Mary—possibly from the Dornacher/Scholl workshop in Vorderhindelang, the village you walk through the next day.

Here's the twist: the chapel wasn't built for pilgrims. It commemorates the wagon traffic over the pass—the salt carts that reached the highest point of their road here—and yet the painter painted pilgrims at a well. You'll find the same pictorial idea 40 kilometers earlier in front of the church in Berwang, as an octagonal fountain in stone and bronze: St. James at the water, twice, on one route. On July 25, St. James's Day, the village celebrates the “Bearglarkirbe” here; on every other day, the chapel is the route's official stamping point—and it stands exactly where you leave Austria. A stamp as a border crossing: it doesn't get more fitting than that.

How Pilgrims Find Their Way onto This Path

Most arrive by train: Stams has its own station in the Inn Valley, reachable by regional train and S-Bahn from Innsbruck, and it's a fifteen-minute walk from the platform to the abbey. Those who arrive on foot come from the east: the Way of St. James in Austria runs from Vienna via Salzburg and Innsbruck through the Inn Valley and passes Stams at its kilometer 698.9—the first 1.1 kilometers of our route even lie directly on its line. Anyone walking the long Austrian trunk faces a choice in Stams: continue west to the Arlberg and Feldkirch, or head north over the Fernpass into the Allgäu. This route exists precisely for that fork. From the south, the Jakobsweg Brenner arrives in Innsbruck, bringing the network of the Jakobsweg Südtirol over the pass into the Inn Valley—from there it's another two days to Stams.

The second feeder direction is Munich. The Jakobsweg Isar-Loisach-Leutascher Ache-Inn comes down 133.2 kilometers from the Isar and ends in Mötz—right on our chain at kilometer 3.4; between kilometers 2.1 and 4.8 the two lines run practically parallel. So if you start from Munich, you don't need to go all the way to Stams at all: you meet the route in Mötz and turn northwest there. And you can also walk the Jakobsweg Tirol-Allgäu backward, from Zell or Oberstaufen—then you have the easy stages first and the passes at the end, but the waymarks will constantly be pointing toward you.

Continue the pilgrimage?

Yes, and the connection is as exact as you could wish: in Zell the route meets the Munich Way of St. James precisely at its kilometer 244.0. At the end of the seventh stage you walk not into a dead end but onto a crossroads. From there it's another 38.4 kilometers to Lindau on Lake Constance—via Hopfen, Weiler-Simmerberg, Lindenberg, and Sigmarszell, two comfortable days. That's the line of the old salt road you've had underfoot since Weißenbach: it ended in Lindau, and so does your onward route.

At Lake Constance the great network opens up. From Lindau the route Lindau – Héricourt leads via Konstanz and Basel into the French Jura and on to the Via Podiensis; from Bregenz, ten kilometers farther on, the Via Jacobi Bregenz runs to Rapperswil, where it meets the Via Jacobi to Einsiedeln and Geneva. If all you wanted was the Alpine crossing, board the train in Oberstaufen—if you go on, these 137 kilometers mean you've already put the most strenuous part between the Inn Valley and Lake Constance behind you.

Preparation & Practical Information

Pilgrim passport and stamps. As on all German and Austrian Ways of St. James, you need a pilgrim passport (credencial) to collect stamps and, at the end, receive the Compostela in Santiago. It's best to order it online in advance so it reaches you in time for the start of your trip. On the German side, the Jakobuspilgergemeinschaft Augsburg is responsible: 6.00 € plus 1.80 € shipping, trilingual and recognized in Santiago (as of September 2026). Stamps are available in churches and tourist offices along the route; the designated official stamping point is the chapel of St. Jakob at Oberjoch—which stands exactly on the national border.

Brochure, waymarking, season. There's no guidebook, but there is a free route brochure with stages and accommodation recommendations, funded by the EU and available at tourist information offices along the route, including in Bad Hindelang. The waymarking—a yellow bundle of rays on a blue background, the focal point showing the direction—is set continuously, but in the Alps it's just one of many colors on the signpost; a GPS track here is no gimmick. The sponsoring regions recommend June to September: the route crosses four heights above 1,100 meters and the ridge near Berwang at 1,346 meters, and before June there may still be old snow up there. Ankle-high boots with tread; the only really steep section is the Wildbachtobelsteig near Oberjoch, slippery when wet—there's a bypass, take it if in doubt. Mountain rescue emergency number in Austria: 140, in Germany 112. According to the route description, your pack shouldn't exceed 15 kilograms; for seven stages with nights in inns, eight is plenty.

Booking and planning. You're walking through vacation regions, not empty country: the Tannheimer Tal, Bad Hindelang, and Oberstaufen are well booked in summer, and in Berwang, Grän, and Nassereith there are simply no rooms left on peak weekends. Reserve two to three days ahead, earlier in August; there's no pilgrim hostel anywhere on the route. The easiest way to do this is directly in the Camino Ninja App, where you put together your stages and plan suitable accommodations right along with them.

What the journey will cost you

Honestly, this isn't a cheap Way of St. James—there are no hostels, and you sleep at the prices of a vacation region. The only published ballpark figures for the route name 35 to 65 € in Stams, 50 to 120 € in the Tannheimer Tal, and 45 to 90 € in Bad Hindelang per night (as of September 2026)—room rates in inns, guesthouses, and hotels, mostly including breakfast; a single room sits at the upper end, a shared double well below it. The pilgrim passport costs 6.00 € plus 1.80 € shipping (as of September 2026); the route brochure is free.

Food: with dinner at the inn, figure on 25 to 40 € a day—Tyrolean and Allgäu cooking is good and the portions are large, but prices in the winter sports resorts are above the national average; with a supermarket and a packed lunch you'll come to 12 to 18 €. Realistic daily budget with a room and one hot meal: 65 to 110 € per person, so for seven stages roughly 450 to 770 € plus travel to and from. Both countries pay in euros. Money-saving tip: Immenstadt and Oberstaufen have a broader range than the mountain villages—you'll stay cheaper there than in Berwang or Grän.

Getting Here

To the start. Stams lies in Tyrol's Inn Valley on the rail line west of Innsbruck and has its own station served by regional trains and the S-Bahn; from Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof you're there in a good twenty minutes, from Munich via Innsbruck or via Garmisch and Mittenwald in around three hours. Stams station is only partially accessible—ÖBB recommends booking its mobility service at least twelve hours in advance. From the station to the abbey and on to the starting point on the Inn is just under two kilometers; factor in the abbey, it's worth an hour.

From the finish and along the way. Zell is a village without a train station, but Oberstaufen is 2.4 kilometers away and has a station on the Kempten–Lindau line, with connections to Munich, Ulm, and Lake Constance. Immenstadt and Sonthofen also lie on this axis—so the last two stages are easy to do as day trips. In the middle of the route, the Außerfernbahn serves Biberwier, Lermoos, Ehrwald, and Reutte, so stages 2 and 3 are also reachable by rail. Not reachable by rail are Nassereith, Berwang, the Tannheimer Tal, and Bad Hindelang—there you take the bus: the Tannheimer Tal has a dense regional bus network, and Bad Hindelang and Oberjoch depend on the bus from Sonthofen.

• Rail Austria: oebb.at—ÖBB, Stams station and Außerfernbahn
• Rail Germany: bahn.de—Kempten–Lindau line with Sonthofen, Immenstadt, and Oberstaufen
• Route description and brochure: badhindelang.de—Tourist Information Bad Hindelang
• Stage descriptions: allgaeu.de—all seven stages with maps
• Pilgrim passport: pilgern-schwaben.de—Jakobuspilgergemeinschaft Augsburg