It's raining. The children are at the window by eight, the lift is not an option, and somebody is already asking when it will finally stop. Here is what we would tell you at the door.
In summer it rains in the Wilder Kaiser on about one day in three, mostly in the afternoon, sometimes all day. That is no reason to let it spoil the holiday, but it is a reason to have a plan. We have sorted the twelve ideas by travelling time: first what works in the house, then the village, then the outings. And right at the end is what is in the box you'll find in each of our apartments.
In the house: zero minutes away
1. Make Kaiserschmarrn
The recipe card is in the rainy-day box, and the supermarket in the village (10 minutes' walk) has the ingredients for this shredded pancake: 4 eggs, 250 ml milk, 150 g flour, a pinch of salt, a spoonful of sugar, butter, and raisins for those who like raisins. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, fold them in, cook it in the pan, tear it up, eat it with icing sugar and apple sauce. With children it takes an hour, twenty minutes of which is clearing up. The best lunch a rainy day can have.
2. The Bear's Den as a reading den
In the Grizzly Suite the children's room, the Bear's Den, has a bunk bed with a curtain, which makes a very good cave with a torch. Grizzly's adventure stories are in every apartment as a little book; on a rainy day they may be read at eleven in the morning too. In the apartments a blanket over the dining table does just as well.
3. A sauna slot for the parents, a bath for the children
The house sauna is free for all guests; you book a slot with Martina. The suite also has a separate bath, and with bubbles and half an hour's peace a four-year-old is happier there than in any leisure pool. Honestly.
4. Board games from the box
See below. The rule in our house: whoever loses clears up. Rule two: adults don't lose on purpose. Children notice.
In the village: up to 20 minutes
5. KaiserBad Ellmau (1.6 km)
A leisure pool with slides, a children's pool and an outdoor area, plus a sauna world. Family ticket €28, adults €13, children €6.60, sauna world €28.60 (as of 2026, please check), reduced with the Guest Card. When it rains it is busy, so come at opening time or after 3 pm, when the day visitors leave. Take towels from the chalet and you save the hire charge.
6. A wellies walk to the Kaiserbäckerei
It sounds too simple, and it works: raincoat, wellies, ten minutes downhill into the village, a slice of Kaiserschmarrn cake at the Kaiserbäckerei Gschwendtner bakery, then back through every puddle. For children under six that is a full morning's programme. For parents it is an hour with a coffee.
7. The Bergdoktor film locations by car
The Bergdoktor's surgery is in Ellmau, the Gruberhof farm in Söll. You can tick off both by car in 15 minutes without getting out, if it is pouring. For parents who like the series it is a small triumph; for children it is a reason to be allowed to go to the KaiserBad afterwards.
Outings: 20 to 75 minutes
8. Kitzbühel (20 minutes)
The old town with its arcades is lovely in the rain too, the Kitzbühel museum is small and done in an hour, and the cake shops are the real destination. Park in the underground car park by the centre. Not on a Saturday afternoon, when half of Bavaria is there.
9. Kufstein fortress (25 minutes)
Up on the panoramic lift, then casemates, towers, and the Heroes' Organ concert every day at noon (in summer also at 6 pm; as of 2026, please check). Many rooms are under cover, the paths between them are not, so the raincoat stays on. Admission for a family is in the region of €30 (estimate, please check). For children from five who like climbing on walls.
10. Swarovski Kristallwelten, Wattens (1 hour)
The Chambers of Wonder are for the adults, the play tower and the maze in the garden for the children, and the play tower has a roof. A whole day including the drive along the Inn valley motorway. Admission is not cheap (families should reckon with €50 and up; as of 2026, please check), but this is the rainy day the children talk about at home.
11. Berchtesgaden salt mine (1 hour 15 minutes)
A mine train, two wooden slides, a raft trip across the salt lake: the mine is dry, a cool 12 degrees, and suitable for children from about four (younger ones come along but may not use the slides; please check). Reserve online, because on rainy days it is fully booked. Combine the outing with the Königssee lake if it clears up in the afternoon.
12. Hexenwasser in light rain (12 minutes + lift)
The exception to Alois's rule: in drizzle Hexenwasser is still worth it, because the children get wet there anyway and some of the stations are under cover. The witches' bakery, where children bake bread, is the rainy-day classic. In a thunderstorm the lift doesn't run, so ring first.
What's in Grizzly's rainy-day box
The box is in every apartment. Contents as of August 2026:
- Two board games, one from age 4, one from age 8
- A card game that grandparents know too
- A 200-piece jigsaw of the Wilder Kaiser
- A colouring book and pencils, with Grizzly already drawn in outline
- The recipe card for Kaiserschmarrn (see above)
Is something missing, or has a piece disappeared? Tell Martina and we'll top it up. And if it rains for three days running: you now have twelve ideas, which is enough for four.
“I don't mind rain, I have fur. For you lot I've packed the box. The jigsaw has 200 pieces. 199 are in there; Elfi's grandson lost the last one in the ski room. If you find it, let me know.”Grizzly, the house bear
