A wonderful little church up a mountain. It did take quite the trek with our rental car to reach…read morethe church as the paths up the mountain can get winding and narrow, but we managed to snag a parking spot right by the church in an empty lawn-sort of area. You get amazing panoramic views from the church, and it is a great location to meditate and pray at with its peaceful ambience. Nearby there were trails that led towards the philosophenweg and the cable car station. We saw many locals walking their dogs or doing hikes up the area.

This church is so beautiful inside, the ceiling frescoes, gold leaf lectures and alters and…read morespaciousness are fabulous

Currently under massive renovation. According to The guidebook they didn't use to charge for…read moreadmission but now they charge a 10 euro donation for the renovation. Inside is completely filled with scaffolding. The only worthwhile feature is that since the scaffolding is built all the way up to the ceiling this is your chance to see some of the murals on the ceiling really close. But you can't see a lot as you are only allowed to go up the one narrow central staircase and can't walk around on the planks which are only for the workmen. Better wait till the reno is finished by the end of the year, otherwise it's not really worth the 10 euros to just see the scaffolding and a very small part of the frescos. The rating is for the condition it is in right now. No doubt it'll be great when the renovation is finished.

Standing in contrast to the Gothic and Roman Cathedrals of Frankfurt, Cologne and Trier The…read morePilgrimage Church of Wies appears as a bright white structure on approach of Steingaden, the relatively humble exterior in no way preparing visitors for the glorious Rococco spectacle inside. Built between 1745 and 1754 to house a statue said to have shed tears, and designated by UNESCO in 1983, do put this on a list of places to visit when traveling through Bavaria.

This place is one of my favourite spots to visit in Bavaria. The first time we visited here was…read morefour years ago in the winter and, this place was standing almost all by itself in the middle of nowhere. I was in awe when we walked into this empty church and looked around. It's a UNESCO World Heritage site and is my favourite church in Bavaria. The insides are done in traditional Bavarian style with beautiful paintings all throughout and beautifully sculpted walls and statues. Take the time to sit down and observe all the detail and enjoy the peaceful surrounding of the church. A must visit in Bavaria.

It is the Catholic parish church of Oberammergau in the Garmisch-Partenkirchen District (Bavaria),…read moreis an important example of the southern German Baroque. It was built from 1735 to 1749. The sculptures were created by Franz Xaver Schmädl, the pictures and frescoes by Matthäus Günther. A pre-Romanesque predecessor church was probably built as early as the ninth century, possibly replacing an even older wooden church. At this time, the Welfe Ethiko withdrew here with twelve companions to a life in a monastic community. In 1167, the Kempten monastery was given twelve courtyards with the right to present themselves through the church. In 1295 and 1362 they became the property of the Augustinian monastery in Rottenbuch. All pastors of Oberammergau can be completely documented from 1432 to the secularization of the monastery in 1802; they all were Augustinian Canons. The Oberammergau parish was founded in the 12th century by the Rottenbuch canon monastery, with which it remained pastorally connected until secularization. The first church was replaced by a Gothic building in the High Middle Ages. This had become so dilapidated at the beginning of the 18th century that the new baroque building was tackled. The middle picture of the high altar shows the Mother of God as the heavenly helper of those who ask for intercession and contribute gifts. It is replaced by a figure of the risen Christ during Easter and the Passion Play. The statues of the apostles Peter and Paul as well as the outside of St. Joseph and Joachim with their attributes are remarkable. The Lamb of God is enthroned on the book with seven seals above the tabernacle . The two side altars on the choir arch are dedicated to the theme of redemption through Christ's sacrifice on the cross. The left altar shows in a rare representation God's decision to salvation as an "inner conversation" of the Trinity. The saints Martin and Gregory the miracle worker appear at the side. The right altar shows Christ on the cross -- this cross is considered to be the one in front of which the Oberammergau residents took their vows of the Passion Play in the year of the plague in 1633 -- with Mary and John and, on the outside, the "good thief" Dismas and Mary Magdalene . The altars in the side extensions are dedicated to the holy clan (left; altarpiece by Günther) and Saint Anthony of Padua (right; picture by Johann Jakob Zeiller ). It's a very gorgeous sanctuary to say the least (photos).

We visited Ettal for a schnapps tasting via the Edelweiss resort's tour program and it was…read morewonderful. I wish I could buy the hueyliquer in the US! Unfortunately, you can only get it here. I didn't want to deal with shipping it home so I did not get any and now I have regrets!

Kloster Ettal (Ettal Abbey) is a Benedictine monastery in the village of Ettal close to…read moreOberammergau and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany. With a community of more than 50 monks, with another five at Wechselburg, the Abbey is one of the largest Benedictine houses. Ettal Abbey was founded on 28 April 1330, Saint Vitalis of Milan's day, by Emperor Ludwig the Bavarian in the Graswang valley, in fulfilment of an vow, on his return from his coronation in Rome, on a site of strategic importance on the primary trade route between Italy and Augsburg. The foundation legend is that Ludwig's horse genuflected three times on the site of the original church building, where a marble statuette of the Madonna and Child ("Frau Stifterin" or the "Ettal Madonna") now stands. The statuette was brought by Ludwig from Pisa as a gift for his new foundation. It soon became an object of pilgrimage. The church is dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin. The foundation originally consisted of a Benedictine double monastery -- a community for men and another for women -- and also a house of the Teutonic Knights. The original Gothic abbey church, built between 1330 and 1370, was a modest structure in comparison to the great churches of medieval Bavaria. The abbey suffered great damage during the Reformation at the hands of the troops of Maurice of Saxony, but survived the troubles of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). In 1709, under Abbot Placidus II Seiz, the golden age of Ettal began with the establishment of the "Knights' Academy" ("Ritterakademie"), which developed into a highly successful school and began the educational tradition of the abbey. In 1744, the abbey and the abbey church were largely destroyed in a fire. The subsequent spectacular re-building in the Baroque style, with a double-shelled dome, was to the plans of Enrico Zuccalli, a Swiss-Italian architect working in Munich, who had studied with Bernini. The decoration was primarily carried out by Josef Schmutzer of the Wessobrunn School of stuccoists and Johann Baptist Straub, who was responsible for the altars and the chancel. Ettal's importance as a place of pilgrimage grew with the new buildings and it became one of the most important monasteries in the Alpine region. For my personal interest: during the winter of 1940-1941, the German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) spent some months at the monastery as the friend and guest of the Abbot. Like Bonhoeffer, a number of those in the Ettal community were involved in the conspiracy against Hitler. While at Ettal, Bonhoeffer also worked on his book Ethics. Catholic priest Rupert Mayer was kept at the Abbey under house arrest from 1939 to 1945 by the Nazis to prevent him from further anti-Nazi preaching. In 1993, Ettal re-founded the former Wechselburg Abbey in Saxony, an old monastery of the Augustinian Canons, as a Benedictine priory. Ettal maintains a Byzantine Institute. This Benedictine monastic building complex is magnificent. It's worth your visit when you are in the area for sure.