Skip to main content



Summer Blooms - The Rose Island in Lake Starnberg

On beautiful summer days, many are drawn outdoors – out of the city and into the countryside! Today, we recommend the Rose Island in Lake Starnberg to all romantics and flower lovers. Lake Starnberg is just 30 minutes from Munich and easily accessible by S-Bahn (Line S6) or bicycle. The Wittelsbach family appreciated its charm early on, building a fortress there and later a pleasure palace.

Today, the lake is closely associated with the last days of King Ludwig II, whose mysterious death is surrounded by numerous legends. However, the Bavarian kings' close relationship with the island of Wörth began with Ludwig's father, King Maximilian II. He originally planned to build the Maximilianeum south of Feldafing as an educational establishment close to the shore. The island of Wörth in Lake Starnberg, on the other hand, was to serve as the 'Prince's Island' for his sons to relax on after their education. He acquired the island from a fishing family for this purpose."

From the Island of Wörth to the Island of Roses

View through the rose garden at sunset.
The sun sets on the Rose Island, photo: Starnberger Fünf-Seen-Land

As we know today, however, everything turned out differently - the Maximilianeum was built in Munich and so the plot of land on Lake Starnberg was free for the construction of a holiday home. The island turned out to be a real gem, perfect for undisturbed holidays for the royal family with friends and relatives. Peter Joseph Lenné, who had already redesigned the park at Sanssouci Palace for Frederick the Great, transformed the island into an intimate idyll. His garden design with beguilingly fragrant lilac bushes and numerous roses helped the geometrically laid out rosarium to achieve its splendour - the lady-in-waiting Luise von Kobell raved about an "ethereal olfactory concert". This is how the island of Wörth became the "Rose Island".

King Ludwig II shared his father's enthusiasm for the island and acquired it after his death. Invoices show that he had more roses added to the original plantings. The island served him as a private retreat, which he often visited by paddle steamer from Schloss Berg. Only hand-picked guests, such as Empress Elisabeth of Austria, Richard Wagner and Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Prussia, were allowed to enjoy the idyllic island. Empress Elisabeth in particular had a close personal connection to Lake Starnberg - her family's summer residence in Possenhofen was only a few kilometres away within sight of the Rose Island. She often visited the island alone and left poems to her cousin, to which he also replied in verse. To this day, these letters fuel legends about a possible love affair between Sisi and Ludwig, but there is no further evidence of this. The Island of Roses will probably never break its silence...

After Ludwig's death in 1886, the garden became increasingly overgrown and was lavishly redesigned with historical rose varieties from 1997. Their floral splendour enchants visitors every summer: the main bloom begins in June, the second bloom takes place in August.

Casino auf der Roseninsel (Casino on the Rose Island)

The casino is situated in the midst of the blooming rose garden. In front of the casino stands an intricately decorated blue-and-white striped column.
A view of the Casino auf der Roseninsel (Casino on the Rose Island), photo: Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung
The wood-paneled dining room of the casino features a round table in the center, surrounded by five chairs.
The dining room on the first floor of the casino, photo: Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung

The two-storey Casino auf der Roseninsel (Casino on the Rose Island) was designed by Franz Jakob Kreuter and built between 1851 and 1853. Incidentally, the name "casino" has nothing to do with gambling, but probably comes from "casino di caccia", a type of hunting lodge that had been very popular with the Italian upper classes since the 18th century. The architect modelled the design on Roman wall paintings, such as those found in Pompeii. Depictions of nymphs and river gods alluded to the casino's island location, but the gods of hunting, wine and the fine arts can also be found here. There were rooms here for the royal family to spend quiet hours of leisure, as well as a dining room for smaller parties. Next to the splendidly decorated dining room, the quiet rooms seem just too spartan.

Several terraces and balconies connect the building with the garden. Visitors could watch the sunrise over the Rosarium from the main terrace.

The casino has also been extensively restored and is now open to visitors with a new splendour. It can be visited as part of a guided tour (external link, opens in a new window) , which offers insights into the history of the house and the royal family. If you would like to find out more about the history of the Wittelsbach family on Lake Starnberg, we also recommend a visit to the Museum Starnberger See (Museum Lake Starnberg ) in Starnberg.

An Invisible Settlement: The Prehistoric Past of the Rose Island

Aerial view with Rose Island at the center.
Rose Island in Lake Starnberg, aerial view, (c) Bavarian Palace Administration (Photo: Bavaria Luftbild Verlags GmbH)

Many visitors appreciate the idyllic atmosphere of the Rose Island. However, few people realise that something much older lies dormant in the shallow lake shore around Roseninsel. People settled here as early as the Neolithic Age. This is indicated by 6,000-year-old pottery shards found on the Rose Island site.

There are also remains of up to 5,000-year-old pile dwellings from the late Neolithic, Bronze Age and early Celtic periods in the shore area - a rare find in the foothills of the Bavarian Alps. They were one of the first underwater monuments to be declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. However, the structures are mostly invisible to the observer. There also seems to be no trace of the Bronze Age dugout canoe. This is because the wooden piles are still in their original locations today - under a thin layer of silt and sand in the water. This preserves them perfectly, as the water prevents the wood from decomposing quickly due to the effects of oxygen. For this reason, you should not swim around the island, otherwise the historic artefacts will be trampled underfoot (buoys and signs mark the World Heritage zone)!

A tour of the island invites you to learn more about the prehistoric history of the island and its exploration.

The Best Time to Visit the Rose Island

The casino covered in snow during winter, with the roses wrapped for protection.
The Casino auf der Roseninsel (Casino on the Rose Island) in its winter slumber © Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung

The Casino auf der Roseninsel (Casino on the Rose Island) (external link, opens in a new window) is open from 1 May to 15 October and can be visited as part of a guided tour. A visit is particularly recommended during the rose blossom season in June and August.