Footsteps of WWII · Western & southern Germany
Obersalzberg Documentation Centre
Museum · 1928–1945
The story
Hitler rented a chalet on the Obersalzberg above Berchtesgaden in 1928, bought it in 1933 and rebuilt it as the Berghof. Martin Bormann turned the mountainside into a fenced 'Führer zone' with houses for Göring and Bormann, SS barracks and a network of bunkers. It became a second seat of government: Hitler spent much of August 1939 here preparing the attack on Poland, and his last stay ended on 14 July 1944. On 25 April 1945 RAF bombers wrecked most of the buildings, and the SS set fire to the Berghof before US and French troops arrived. Bavaria demolished the ruins in 1952. The Institute of Contemporary History opened the documentation centre in 1999; a new building and exhibition opened in 2023.
What to look for
The exhibition 'Idyll and Atrocity' links the mountain retreat to the crimes planned from it, then leads down into part of the original bunker system. The Berghof site itself is a short walk away in the woods, with only traces left.
Plan your visit
Open daily 9:00–17:00, last entry 16:00. Adults €4.50, under 18 free. Closed 1 Nov, 24, 25 and 31 Dec, 1 Jan, and for maintenance 16–24 Nov 2026 and 1–8 Mar 2027. Free multimedia guide. Check the website before you go.
Things change, so check opening times before you travel.
Nearby sites
- Kehlsteinhaus (Eagle's Nest) · 2 km
All 160 sites in Footsteps of WWII →
Footsteps of WWII: Europe 1939–1945
A free field guide for your phone: the route, the maps and the stories built in, even with no signal. The whole Second World War in Europe, from the first shots at Westerplatte on 1 September 1939 to the German surrender in May 1945: Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain, Normandy, Arnhem, Bastogne, Stalingrad, Berlin and the camps, in 15 areas from Britain to Russia.
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