When my eyes spy a little sign that says "Sommerrodelbahn" I make sure to tell my non-German speaking husband to bust a u-turn. We have got to go, and we have got to go now!
My poor unsuspecting stepdaughter had no idea what she was in for, but the fun began taking the one-person sesselbahn up the mountain. Dangling under a cable with nothing more than a thin metal railing to keep her from plummeting down the mountain was a bit of a culture shock, I'm afraid.
If only she understood German she would have known that Sommer rodelbahn, rodelbahn and alpine coaster all mean the same thing. A fun-as-hell, fast ride down a mountain!
The rodelbahn, or (dry) toboggan run, is essentially a little cart on wheels, seated in a low metal half pipe with a stick to operate it. Push the stick forward and you go faster, pull it towards you and it slows you down.
My Mr and I are big kids at heart (and assholes..) so we whipped down the run with as little braking as possible. Be careful though, you'll quickly reach high speeds and it is possible to fly out.. especially around tight corners. Stepdaughter took the cautious approach, but she ended up loving it!
This über popular summer past time is fun for kids of all ages, and at around €7 a pop why would you not? Tickets include a lift ticket up to the mittelstation and a rodel down. If you feel like hiking up instead of taking the lift, rodeling is even cheaper. read more