Fodor's Expert Review Salzbergwerk Berchtesgaden

One of the region's main attractions, this salt mine was once owned by Berchtesgaden's princely rulers. Where once only select guests were allowed to see how the source of the city's wealth was extracted from the earth, today an hour-long tour will transport you via a miniature train nearly 1 km (½ mile) into the mountain to an enormous chamber where the salt is mined. Included in the tour are rides down the wooden chutes used by miners to get from one level to another and a boat ride on an underground saline lake the size of a football field. You may wish to partake in the special four-hour brine dinners down in the mines. These are very popular, so be sure to book early.