This is the hike to pick when the walk has to be easy and the ending has to be worth it: pastures and cows on the way, and a path that takes you behind a 60-metre waterfall at the end.
Why this hike works for families
Nothing about the approach is steep or long. From the free car park at the Gnadenalm huts the “Alles Alm” experience trail rolls across open pasture with themed stations — alpine life, cows, milk, honey, wood and water — and playground stops that break the hour into short legs. Shortly before the alm huts a signpost points left to the waterfall, and the sound of falling water does the rest of the motivating. From our hike, the cows grazing on the pasture were the first highlight, and the roar building up on the last stretch had everyone hurrying.
The waterfall reward
About 200 steps lead to a viewing platform and then to the part that makes this walk special: a secured path that runs along the rock wall directly behind the Johanneswasserfall. You stand in the spray with the whole valley framed by the curtain of water. The kids walked behind the fall — the kind of finish that turns “are we there yet” into a story they tell at dinner. The fall has been a natural monument since 1931 and is named after Archduke Johann, who had the first railing built here.
Good to know
- Allow about an hour each way at family pace, or 2 to 2½ hours for the full loop with the platform and the passage behind the fall.
- The steps and the path behind the water are wet and slippery: shoes with grip, one hand free for small children, and a light rain jacket if you want to linger in the spray. This last section is not for strollers or carriers with a wide base.
- Shorter option: start from the alm huts near the fall, or from the lay-by on the Tauern pass road (B99) just above it — roughly 200 steps straight down to the curtain and back up.
- Pick a dry day; sunny mornings light the curtain best, and rain makes the steps slick.
- The Gnadenalm huts at the car park serve hut food in season, so the loop can end with lunch.
- Gnadenalm and the waterfall lie on the Pongau side of the Tauern pass (Untertauern), a few minutes below Obertauern — about 30 minutes from Mariapfarr.
The linked Garmin activity is retained as supporting route evidence; trail conditions, parking and hut opening information should still be checked for the day of the hike.