Alps and Lakes

The easiest tour in the Edelweiss range, and deliberately so. Six nights from Munich through Salzburg and the Austrian lake district, designed for riders who do not want a week of demanding high passes and for passengers who would rather look at the view than hold on.

Salzburg comes first, reached through the Chiemgau region with a stop at Herrenchiemsee, the island palace King Ludwig II modelled on Versailles and never finished. The old town is Mozart’s birthplace and is best walked rather than ridden. Gmunden follows, by way of the Salzkammergut lakes and a visit to Hallstatt, a village so photogenic that a full-scale replica of it was built in China.

Kaprun provides the rest day, at the foot of the Grossglockner. The High Alpine Road is the one serious piece of mountain riding on the trip, and it is the right one to include: wide, superbly engineered and spectacular without being intimidating. An optional detour drops briefly into South Tyrol in Italy, with a stop at the Edelweiss peak, before the return to Erding.

Edelweiss include a choice of BMW motorcycle, six nights in comfortable middle-range hotels with Alpine character, a guide and a tour book. Flights are separate, and a guided city tour of Munich can be added at 350 euros per person with a 65 euro single supplement. Prices are per person for 2026. Anyone shopping for a first guided motorcycle holiday, or for a trip that will not exhaust a passenger by day three, should start here rather than with the pass-collecting itineraries, and the scenery is no worse for the gentler pace.