Neuschwanstein Castle from Fussen by CandiceHalee
Neuschwanstein Castle is easy to get to from Fussen. The public bus departs from across the street from the train station at least every hour and drops you off at the tourism office in the town of Hohenschwangau which is where the castle is. A round trip ticket cost 3.40euros per person. There is also a walking trail just off the main road which is about 3km long.
You can only visit the inside of the castle on a guided tour. You purchase tickets for the tour just up the street from where the bus drops you off (it opens at 8am).
Once you have your ticket, you have to get up the hill to the castle. You can walk, take the bus or a horse drawn carriage. You have to wait inside the courtyard until the time on your ticket is displayed, then you can go through the turnstile and up the stairs to the first floor where your tour will start.
The first tour of the day is at 9am, and I highly recommend arriving as early as possible to avoid the large groups who like to sleep late. Our tour was at 915am and there were only 6 people on it!
After the castle tour (about 35min) you can go onto the Marienbrucken (Mary's Bridge) which offers a nice view of the castle. You can also visit the waterfall below by going downstairs. If you cross the Mary's Bridge, you can follow that winding path up the hill to the look off. There are no railings, so you must be extremely careful! There is even a marker for a person who fell off the cliff as reminder of the danger. The trail branches part way up, but goes nowhere in particular. It stops at a log across the path, but is a nice hike if you like hikes.
A bathroom tip: bathrooms in and around the castle are clean and free. In Hohenschwangau, they are crowded and cost about 40cents. Go when you can!
