Das Achental – from riding stables to three Michelin stars

Das Achental Resort sits on broad grounds in Grassau, in the Chiemgau between Lake Chiemsee and the Kampenwand massif, roughly equidistant from Munich and Salzburg. Between the lake and the mountains, this is modern-rustic Bavarian hospitality on a large scale: 179 rooms and suites, 143 of them standard rooms and 36 suites, built around a spa, an 18-hole championship golf course and a culinary programme that runs from hearty alpine cooking to genuine fine dining. The MICHELIN Guide gives the resort itself Two Keys, and inside it houses the real distinction of the address: es:senz, the dining room run by chef Edip Sigl, which took its first star within months of opening in 2021, added a second in 2022, and reached three in March 2024. Few hotel restaurants in Germany have climbed that fast, and the resort around it has been built, deliberately, to match the ambition in the kitchen.

01The house

The architecture keeps a traditional, gabled Bavarian restraint on the outside even where the interiors have become thoroughly contemporary, the classic materials of the region updated with modern bathrooms and a clean design sensibility. Inside, the look runs to brushed wood finishes, soft leather furniture, brass hardware forged by a local blacksmith and pieces from B&B Italia, set against a mid-century shell once used as a riding and stud centre.

That equestrian history is still part of how the owners talk about the place, and it sits oddly alongside the scale of what Das Achental has become: a year-round resort with its own golf course, a 2,000 m² wellness wing and a growing roster of culinary awards, all run as an independent luxury brand within the Chiemgau.

02Rooms and suites

Of the 179 rooms and suites, 143 are standard rooms and 36 are suites, almost all with a private balcony or terrace looking out over gardens, golf course or the Chiemgau mountains. The Achental Suite is reached by its own spiral staircase and spans 93 square metres of sleeping, living and relaxing space, while the Suite Chiemgau goes further still, its 90 square metres extended by a 30-square-metre rooftop terrace with a view across the driving range to the mountains beyond.

Insider tip

Reached via the A8 motorway between Munich and Salzburg; free on-site parking with EV charging.

Materials throughout favour reclaimed timber, loden fabric and pale natural stone bathrooms, keeping the alpine-modern language of the public rooms consistent down to the smallest junior suite.

03Where to eat

The gastronomic centre of gravity is es:senz, where Edip Sigl serves two tasting menus — "Chiemgau pur", built entirely around the region, and "Chiemgau goes around the world", which sets local ingredients against international technique. Sigl arrived with pedigree: at Restaurant Les Deux in Munich he was promoted to head chef in 2019 and won two Michelin stars there, before taking charge of es:senz at its opening and earning a third star for the Achental kitchen in March 2024.

His sourcing is pointedly local — quail from a family farm near Bernau, cooked on the carcass, has become one of his signature dishes, and he works directly with a cattle breeder supplying Wagyu raised within sight of the resort, as well as with the Lex family's fishery on Fraueninsel in the Chiemsee for freshwater fish.

Below the gourmet room, Weißer Hirsch serves regional ingredients and refined alpine cuisine through the day, and the Vinothek pairs Mediterranean cooking with an extensive wine list. A lakeside hut on the golf course and a transplanted mountain hut in the gardens round out the resort's wider dining world, the latter turning into a fondue restaurant over winter.

04The bar

The Lounge & Bar is the resort's social hub, its team serving aperitifs, cocktails and a short menu of snacks into the evening. When the weather allows, the scene moves out into the guest garden, with the lawns and old trees of the grounds as a backdrop before dinner.

05Spa and wellbeing

Das Achental Spa covers around 2,000 square metres, with an indoor infinity pool, a seasonal outdoor pool, three saunas, two steam baths and a fitness area built around new Life Fitness equipment. The sauna programme is unusually specific about its materials: a herb sauna built from reclaimed wood with a copper kettle, a slate stone sauna, and a Finnish cabin lined in Austrian stone-pine, finished off with a classic steam bath and a salt-infused steam bath in natural stone. Treatments lean on the organic, biologically certified Team Dr Joseph line for well-ageing work.

06The neighbourhood

The resort's own 18-hole course winds through moorland, small lakes and water hazards, backed by a covered driving range with 24 bays and its own lakeside Seehaus for refreshments between rounds. Beyond golf, the activity list runs from e-biking and fly-fishing to sailing on the Chiemsee, alpaca walks, bouldering and biathlon training, all organised through the resort.

Grassau is a registered climatic health resort reached directly off the A8 motorway between Munich and Salzburg, with Lake Chiemsee and the Kampenwand cable car close by, and Ludwig II's unfinished island palace at Herrenchiemsee around sixteen kilometres away.

07Making the most of a stay

es:senz seats guests Wednesday to Saturday from 6.30pm to 11pm, and operates a handful of extra opening and closure dates through the year — in 2026 the kitchen takes its main breaks from 31 August to 13 September and from 2 to 15 November, so it is worth checking dates before booking a stay built around dinner there. Reservations for the restaurant run separately from the hotel switchboard.

Pets are allowed at the resort on request, for an additional charge, which is worth knowing for guests travelling with dogs and planning golf or spa time around them.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.