The railway was built between 1928 and 1930 and opened in three stages. The first was the long centre section between Grainau and the Eibsee which went into operation on 19 February 1929. On 19 December 1929 it was followed by the long section between Garmisch and Grainau, including the important tourist connexion to the main railway network of the Deutsche Reichsbahn. On 8 July 1930 the last long section between the Eibsee and the - now closed - summit station of Schneefernerhaus was opened, including the final long Zugspitze Tunnel.