Worthy of a visit: The Glentleiten Open-Air Museum in the district of Upper Bavaria

Those who are traveling through the Tölzer or Werdenfelser area should not miss the opportunity to spend time at the Glentleiten Open-Air Museum in the municipality of Großweil, located above the Kochelsee. Here, visitors can gain fascinating insights into the daily life of people in the various rural regions of Upper Bavaria on an area of approximately 40 hectares, with almost 70 historical buildings that have been dismantled and rebuilt on the museum grounds in their original location.

Das Freilichtmuseum liegt auf etwa 750 m Meereshöhe auf der Grenze der Landkreise Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen und Garmisch-Partenkirchen. — The open-air museum is located at an altitude of approximately 750 meters above sea level on the border between the Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen and Garmisch-Partenkirchen districts.

The world of work, customs and traditions with their regional differences can also be experienced at Glentleiten through the extensive folk collection. This includes around 80,000 historical objects, mainly furniture, textiles, tools and household items as well as religious objects.

In the historical buildings, daily demonstrations of old craft techniques are shown from March to November. Here, almost 30 specialists in traditional professions demonstrate their multifaceted and largely forgotten skills such as spinning wool, weaving or making knives and ropes.

In the knife-making workshop, knives are shaped according to tradition, and bread is baked on Thursdays

Old fruit and vegetable varieties in the gardens

The area of Glentleiten is a historically developed cultural landscape with traces of its previous use. Before the museum was founded, the area was used as a summer pasture for the Großweiler livestock. The centuries-long grazing and wood exploitation created a pasture landscape called "Hutung". Typical examples are large individual trees, mostly oaks.

Many of the courtyard gardens, which are arranged according to their geographical origin, have always had gardens that were located in close proximity to the dwelling and were surrounded by a dense fence to protect them from small animals. The last inhabitants of the historical buildings were asked by the museum staff about their gardens and the vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers that were grown in them. On the basis of this information, over 15 gardens could be reconstructed in their original form.

In the farmer's gardens, food, spice and medicinal plants are grown

In addition to the house gardens, there are also thematic gardens at Glentleiten, such as the one from the Middle Ages. This is based on historical plans and lists from monasteries and shows an ideal planting with food, spice and medicinal plants. Also, a herb garden, which was once found on almost every local area, invites visitors to visit.

In the gardens, numerous herb and vegetable varieties are planted throughout the year. Here is only a small excerpt from the planting list of old vegetable varieties for 2026:

Salate: „Altöttinger Großkopfada“, „Brauner Trotzkopf“, „Forellenschluss“, „Guter Heinrich“

Bohnen: „Monstranz“, „Steirische Käferbohne“, „Rotholzer“

Wurzelgemüse: „Stoppelrübe aus der Wildschönau“, Bayerische Rübe“, Rote Beete „Crapaudine“

Winterweizen: „Graf Törring“, „Berchtesgadener Vogel“, „Laufener Landweizen“; Winterroggen „Waldstaudekorn“

Kohlgemüse: „Ismaninger Kraut“, Kohlrabi „Böhmischer Strunk“, „Wildkohl“

The cultivation of some varieties dates back to the 16th century. Through the breeding of more productive modern varieties, many of them have become forgotten. The open-air museum, in the person of gardener Peter Miller, makes an important contribution to preserving the genetic heritage here.

Auch das einst hochgeschätzte, inzwischen extrem seltene „Ismaninger Kraut“, ein „Arche Passagier“ von Slow Food, wird auf der Glentleiten angebaut. Ihm haben wir ein Portrait unter „Sorten und Rassen“ gewidmet. — The once highly valued, now extremely rare "Ismaninger Kraut", a "Ark Passenger" of Slow Food, is also grown at Glentleiten. We have dedicated a portrait to it under "Species and Breeds".

Fruit trees of once widely used apples, pears and plums also bear witness to the former genetic diversity and variety of Upper Bavarian farms. And they may also inspire someone to plant these robust, climate-adapted varieties themselves.

Fruit trees of regionally typical varieties also grow on the site

Rare animal breeds graze in the pastures

In addition to the original forest and tree stock and the gardens, visitors can also visit pastures where endangered animal breeds can be seen.

Like with the plants, the open-air museum also presents its visitors with a wide range of species that were once widespread and popular in (Upper) Bavaria, but have gradually disappeared over time due to the intensification and industrialization of agriculture. And this, despite the fact that they have special properties such as longevity, fertility, thrift, suitability for dairy and grazing on poor soils and excellent meat quality.

It is worth seeing at Glentleiten two strikingly beautiful breeds of poultry. Firstly, the Bavarian Land Geese, which were previously kept in various colors - pure white, wild-gray, blue, brown and two-colored - in almost all regions of the Free State due to their meat quality.

Die Bayerischen Landgänse kommen in verschiedenen Farbschlägen vor — The Bavarian Land Geese come in various colors

Secondly, the colorful Bavarian Land Chickens are found in the meadows. These lively animals were also considered extinct until a few years ago, when small remaining populations were rediscovered on a handful of farms. They also have a wide range of colors, so these animals come in wild brown, yellow, red, black, with or without spots.

The colorful rooster and the black and white hen show the great color variation of the Bavarian Land Chickens.

This breed is a so-called original dwarf breed, which was bred from the beginning as a small form and does not represent a later-developed miniature version of a typical large breed.

As a typical three-purpose breed in the region around the Open-Air Museum, the Murnau-Werdenfelser Cattle were long popular. In addition to their meat and milk quality, the strength of the draft oxen was also appreciated.

Wiesenumbruch in der Egartfläche im Loisach-Kochel-Moos mit Murnau-Werdenfelser Ochsen, um 1930 — Meadow conversion in the Egart area in the Loisach-Kochel-Moos with Murnau-Werdenfelser oxen, around 1930

In the past, the most common breed in Upper Bavaria was mainly found in the wetlands and pastures of Upper Bavaria with up to 62,000 animals, until it stood on the brink of extinction with just 160 purebred specimens due to the displacement by more productive breeds. Today, it is thanks to a dedicated support association and a "MuWe Marketing Company" that the qualities of the "Oberländer" are increasingly appreciated by farmers and consumers.

Im Sommerhalbjahr grasen auf den Weiden des Museums Murnau-Werdenfelser Rinder eines Bauern aus der Region — In the summer months, cattle from a local farmer graze on the museum's pastures.

Three sheep breeds, which are native to the Bavarian Alps region, are kept in the Open-Air Museum. The ancient Alpine Stone Sheep, which has its main distribution area in the Berchtesgadener Land, is one of the oldest sheep breeds. We will introduce it in detail in the section "Breeds and Races". The animals are characterized by their resilience, low demands, surefootedness in the high mountains and fertility.

Rassetypischer Bock des Alpinen Steinschafs mit Schneckenhorn — Typical buck of the Alpine Stone Sheep with spiral horn

In the Bavarian Alps region, the mountain sheep was also the typical sheep breed. They - like the specimens kept at Glentleiten - are mainly white and slightly brownish, and very rarely you can still find specimens of the black color. In the meantime, all mountain sheep breeds are considered endangered.

Attractive events attract numerous visitors

The extensive program, which also includes a special offer for children, is provided on the museum's website. There you will also find descriptions of temporary special exhibitions.

Aussteuer-Schrank in der Sonderausstellung „Alltagsschätze“ in 2026 — Storage cabinet in the special exhibition "Everyday Treasures" in 2026

The special exhibition "Animally useful. Man and his livestock" thematized livestock farming in the past, present and future.

In some years, an "Apple Day" is held in autumn, at which residents from the region can bring their ripening apples or pears from their gardens, which are then determined by pomologists and horticultural experts.