Königshof Alpacas – a great experience for the whole family

Born and bred in Pongau the mountains are my second home and I love hiking, mountain biking and skiing. As I know all too well, that wasn’t always the case – as a child, my parents had to more or less “drag” me up the mountain - as hiking wasn’t my thing!“How do I motivate my children to go hiking?“In the Salzburger Sportwelt you’ll find a number of themed trails, adventure playgrounds and alpine events appealing to the younger generation – but that’s not all! Recently the Königshof in Eben im Pongau started to offer an alpaca hike as a way to get all ages hiking. Adventurous as I am, I gave it a go rightaway.

Alpaca hikes - accompanying animals on Gasthofberg with animals

The hike starts at the Königshof Alpaca Farm, where the farmer’s wife, Brigitte König, shows us the farm, her fleecy four-legged friends and tells us all about breeding the animals and the specialities of their hollow fibre wool.
Afterwards we head off accompanied by the alpacas to the nearby Unterreithof Farm. When we get there we’re treated to a fabulous view of the Enns Pongau plus coffee and cake – and Christine Grünwald offers us new insights into beekeeping and the production of her home-made honey and beeswax produce. Really impressive being able to take a look behind the “honeycombs“

Alpaca Morning - get creative with wool on the Gasthofberg

Talking to Brigitte, she tells me that she works the fine alpaca wool so as to later produce hand-made crafts. By the way – in addition to the alpaca hikes “Alpaca Mornings“ take place every Wednesday at 9.30 am at the Königshof. Brigitte offers felt and craft workshops giving those interested the opportunity to get to know the fine alpaca wool, to learn how to work it and to creat personal souvenirs to take home.

Königshof Alpaca Farm - interesting details on the side

Currently 17 alpacas and two alpaca foals live on the Königshof Farm. Quite considerable when you think that Brigitte and her husband Rich started out around ten years ago with just two young animals. Brigitte also reveals, that when giving the alpacas names, she’s always inspired by the alpacas‘ origin: “Ramos“ for example origingally comes from the Andorra region and therefore has a Spanish name, whereas “Wonderflower“, who comes from Australia, has an English name.All in all, a very exciting and interesting day out, which I can warmly recommend for families (who are looking to motivate their children to go hiking).

Tips & Info: Alpaca Hike

Every Friday, 9.30 amMeeting point: Königshof, Gasthofsiedlung 35, 5531 Eben im PongauDuration: 45-60 mins. (hike, followed by stop at the Unterreithof)Level of difficulty: easy - mediumTo book tel: +43 (0) 6458 8194Cost: € 15,00 for adults and € 5,00 for childrenDepending on the weather. Good footwear recommended!

Alpaca Morning

Every Wednesday, 9.30 am
To book tel: +43 (0) 6458 8194
Cost: € 12,00 per person
More information >>
Photo credits: Stephanie Rettenegger