Kleinwalsertal is a high mountain valley consisting of three localities; Riezlern, Hirschegg and Mittelberg and is located from an altitude of 1100 to 1250 metres.

Towards the east and southeast it is boarded by the Lechtaler Alps, towards the north and the west the Vorarlberger and Swabian pre-mountain plains open up. The "Großer Widderstein" with a highest point of 2536 meters borders the valley to the south, to Bregenzerwald and to Tannberg. The two parallel running valleys, the Breitach, in which the settlements lie, and the Schwarzwasser, which is solely an alpine area, cover an area of 97 square kilometres.

Originally Kleinwalsertal depended exclusively on agriculture. The long trip to the markets however could only be made through the high mountain passes, which separate it from the motherland.
This was a fairly restricting condition for the economy which was subsequently resolved with the creation of the German Boarder Contract. The general development of tourism after the world war created new possibilities for Kleinwalsertal due to the scenic and climatic conditions being well suited for this industry.

Today the population of the valley lives almost exclusively from tourism and due to the many newly created establishments it has become one of the most-visited tourist destinations in the northern alpine region.
Kleinwalsertal is combined with its three localities mentioned beforehand into one political municipality, which carries the name of the oldest settlement of the valley, MITTELBERG. The three localities are independent parishes. Whilst the political border lies in the north at the so-called "Walserschanz", it also exists on the mountain ranges surrounding Kleinwalsertal, and it is this boarder which cuts the valley off from its motherland.

Due to the centuries-lasting separation and the independent existence of the Walser, their special customs, including but not limited to the Swiss dialect and the special women’s historical dress, have been maintained since the Middle Ages and this is still the case today.
Evidence of this and definitely worth seeing for this express reason is the Walser marriages, the spring processions and the Heimatabend. Interesting to note is also the architectural style of the old Walser houses with their housing tradition. The Walser museum in Riezlern and the Walser culture trail offers a folkloristic overview.