In the footsteps of the pilgrims

From the train station, walk one and a half kilometres to the Hotel Mühldorf. First follow Bahnhofstraße, then the station footpath southwards until you come to Stadtplatz.

Depending on availability, the Hotel Mühldorf offers e-bikes for hire, and a children's e-bike is also available for hire.
However, you should enquire in advance by phone or email whether hire bikes are available and register for the hire.

Now start the journey to Altötting, which runs along the banks of the Inn for long stretches. At Winhöring, you will pass the Silbersee lake. In the summer months, the lake is popular for swimming and its banks for sunbathing.

At Neuötting, you cross the Inn and cycle along the Prälatenweg, a nature trail, along the Mörnbach stream into Altötting. At the end of the Prälatenweg, you come directly to the Papal Basilica of St Anna.

With a length of 83 metres, a height of 24 metres and a vault width of 27 metres, St. Anne's Basilica is one of the largest churches built in Germany in the 20th century. The church can accommodate 8,000 people. In 1913, one year after it was consecrated, Pope Pius X granted it the status of a papal basilica. Visitors can therefore see the coat of arms of the reigning pope above the portal.
Such a large church had become necessary due to the increasing number of pilgrims. There had already been plans for a large church building in Altötting in the 17th century. With the connection to the railway network at the end of the 19th century, even more people flocked to the town in the hope of finding spiritual answers to their respective questions in life.

The architect Johann Baptist Schott designed the church around 1909 in the neo-baroque style.
The 12 side altars and the magnificent high altar are considered a cultural speciality. The altarpiece was painted by Leonard Thoma, a Munich artist. It depicts St Anne with the still-youthful Virgin Mary. The ornate gable of the entrance façade extends three storeys upwards. The sculptures on the lower level depict the ancestors of Christ, while the highest point is adorned with a relief painting of St Anne, Mary and the infant Jesus.

Just a few steps away from the basilica, you enter Altötting's Chapel Square and approach the places that are still visited by pilgrims today. First, however, you will learn all about the legendary miracles of this place and the history of pilgrimages to Altötting in the diorama show.

The big world in miniature. As a visitor, you stand in front of it in amazement, like a giant and time traveller at the same time. Scenes from over 500 years of pilgrimage history in Altötting are vividly brought to life. After the first miracle of the Virgin Mary in the 15th century, there were further events that are interpreted as an expression of special divine grace and are shown here in the diorama display. The history of the pilgrimage itself, rituals and highlights of religious practice are also staged here.

22 three-dimensional pictures, painted in colour, modelled from clay and other materials and illuminated with depth - these works of art were created by the painter Hans List, the painter and sculptor Reinhold Zellner and his wife Dora in the years 1957-59.
In the film room of the Altöttinger Marienwerk there is a historical treasure of a completely different kind to marvel at: historical films. These include the famous Altöttinger Marienfilm from 1950, a documentary film that is probably the most frequently screened film of its genre.

In the centre of Kapellenplatz you will find the historic pilgrimage site of Altötting, the Chapel of Grace. According to legend, the first two miracles of the Virgin Mary took place here.

It is no longer possible to say exactly when it was built. Early parts date back to the 8th to 10th century, such as the octagon of the baptistery. The nave and spire were added in the 15th century, the corridor around the octagon in the 16th century and the sacristy in the 17th century.

The first two Marian miracles in Altötting are said to have taken place in the Chapel of Mercy in the 15th century. A boy who drowned in the Mörnbach stream is said to have been brought back to life in the Chapel of Mercy. Later, another child, who died under a horse-drawn cart, was brought back to life on the altar of the Chapel of Mercy, according to legends, after prayers from his mother.

The chapel is considered a Bavarian national shrine and continues to attract pilgrims from Germany and abroad, and the image of grace, a black Madonna made of lime wood, probably from the 14th century, has been carefully guarded by the local faithful over the centuries.
Pope Benedict XVI laid down his papal ring in front of her, which has now been attached to the sceptre of the statue of the Virgin Mary.

Kapellplatz offers many more sights. For example, the "House of Pope Benedict XVI - New Treasury and Pilgrimage Museum", which houses a large number of artefacts and liturgical objects as well as a precious 15th century altarpiece of the Virgin Mary, the so-called "Golden Horse Inn".

A stop at the "Zeitsprung" restaurant in Burghauser Straße 1 in Altötting will certainly fit in well with your journey through time. Your tour takes you along Bahnhofstraße past Burghauser Straße and the Zeitsprung restaurant. It is open Monday to Saturday from 10 am to midnight and on Sundays from 10 am to 10 pm.
You can get good home cooking here for small and large appetites.

Leaving Altötting, you first cycle parallel to the railway line. Then follow the Way of the Cross along the Mörnbach stream to another place of pilgrimage, Heiligenstatt in Tüßling.

The church village of Heiligenstatt is part of the market town of Tüßling.
The Heiligenstatt pilgrimage church is located directly on the pilgrimage route. The church was consecrated 650 years ago, on 20 April 1373, by the Bishop of Lavant-Thal.

Pilgrims venerated a host, a figure of Christ with "living" hair and a relic of the cross, which the lords of Tüßling had once brought with them from the Holy Land. The church's treasure trove of relics also includes a 70 cm high monstrance made of gold and silver from 1721 and the foot relic of an "innocent child". The relics can be viewed in the side altars. The church is also still the burial place of the owners of Tüßling Castle.

A miracle legend grew up around the host in question and attracted a large number of pilgrims. In the 14th century, a woman is said to have stolen a host from the church of St Rupert in Burgkirchen am Wald in order to sell it. However, the host fell to the ground on the Easter meadow and an angel appeared. The woman then ruefully carried the host back to the church, even three times, but each time the host was returned to the Easter meadow, so that a church was eventually built in her honour, the Heiligenstatt church.

It is worth taking a look at the beautiful market square of Tüßling and Tüßling Castle on your way back. The castle was built between 1581 and 1583 by Johann Veit Graf von Tüßling and still exists in its original form today, with a few changes made in the 18th century.

Cycle back to Mühldorf via Polling, where you can stop for a bite to eat on the way back to the railway station, for example at the Geigerhaus at Stadtplatz 31, where Bavarian beer and regional dishes are served. The Geigerhaus is open Monday to Thursday from 11:30 to 23:00 and Friday to Saturday from 11:30 to 24:00. Sunday is a day off.