Schloss Neuschwanstein, Munich

Schloss Neuschwanstein is located in southern Bavaria in a town called Fuessen. Books say it's supposed to be the inspiration for Walt Disney's castle, but where did Ludwig II get the inspiration for the Schloss? Probably drugs. Ja, es ist mir sehr gut!

Anyway, there's not much on the inside of the castle that you can't see anywhere else, but the castle has that "something special" about it. The only way to tour the castle is a guided tour, which are scheduled throughout the day in several languages. Most people tend to buy the Neuschwanstein ticket along with the Hochenschwangau tour, so a combo ticket is probably you're best bet.

7 EUR/person/castle
13 EUR/person for both castles

You can be cheap and walk to the castle for free (40 min), take a horse carriage (7.50 EUR roundtrip), or take the bus (2.60 EUR roundtrip).

Don't forget to check out the view from the Marienbrueckte!

Neuschwanstein is a fairy tale castle (actually, Disney used it as his inspiration for Cinderella's castle in Disneyland). In castle terms, Neuschwanstein is young. The castle was constructed between 1869 and 1886, on a peak overlooking the dense green forests of Bavaria. The entire region abounds with nature's finest clear lakes and mountains.
The man behind the castle was King Ludwig II. In many ways, the castle mirrors the personality of it's eccentric creator. His strange behavior still provokes heated discussions among local people. Historians may call him "Mad King Ludwig" but others feel the label "eccentric" is a more fitting title.
Ludwig cared little for the duties of royalty, preferring to retreat into isolation. He found escape in the mountains. It was said he held imaginary talks with Madame de Pompadour and brought his horse to dine at the dinner table. Building dreamlike, romantic castles was his passion. His other great loves were history and opera, in particular the works of Richard Wagner.

Most people don't really come on any special trip to see Schloss Hochenschwangau, but since it's on the way to Schloss Neuschwanstein, you might as well go and see it.

I think Ludwig II lived here as a kid, but really the only thing I can remember about the castle is that it's YELLOW. Actually, I enjoyed touring the rooms much more than the rooms at Neuschwanstein. Full of rich history, it's definitely worth stopping by while you're at Fuessen.

7 EUR/person/castle
13 EUR/person for both castles

If you visit Schloss Neuschwanstein, don't forget to go to the Marienbruckte located right behind the castle. It's got a great view of Schloss Neuschwanstein for those postcard-perfect pictures. Best of all, the Lederhosen Man lurks back there taking pictures of people for tips!

If you look closely in the background of this picture, you can see the Lederhosen Man doin' a hip-hop dance!

Yes, it's true! The legendary Lederhosen Man does indeed exist!

This mythological being haunts the Marienbrueckte right behind Schloss Neuschwanstein. If you need a helping hand, he's there to help you take a picture of you (and your loved-one) for tips!

Of course, you don't have to leave a tip, but he's the Lederhosen Man!!!

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If you don't have time for anything else, you must do this. We took an escorted tour for this trip from Munich. We drove the two hours through the Bavarian Alps which are incredible and stopped in the town of Oberammergau, which was spectacular. After that, we arrived in the town of Fussen and had lunch before taking the hike up to the castle. There were two castles in Fussen but not many restaurants. Schloss Hohenschwangau is a 14th century castle that sits on top of a hill. After lunch, we walked up-hill 30 minutesto reach Schloss Neuschwanstein. It was very tiring, but worth the effort...there were natural waterfalls on the path and one of two refreshment stands on your way up the hill. If you don't mind waiting in line (we were on a time schedule) you can share a horse-drawn carriage which looked cool. Seemed easy enough to find and get tickets. But be prepared and wear comfortable shoes....its a l-o-n-g hike! As you get closer, the castle (one of Ludwig II's most famous) gets bigger. When you get to the top you see a breathtaking view of the castle which is situated on an outcrop of rock and towers over a deep gorge. A guide takes you through the castle....there are 200 rooms but only 18 were finished due to the Kings early death. From the entrance to the castle, you can also see a cast-iron brigge that spans the Pollat gorge. Really fabulous.

From Munich Hbf buy a train ticket to Fussen. The ticket cost around 45 Euros round trip. You may have to change trains at Kaufbeuren.
Once you've exited the train at Fussen, head to the back of the train station and wait for the bus that will take you to the castle ticket center.The bus will cost about 4 Euros per person. The bus will drop you off and you have to walk up the hill towards the ticket center. From this point you can see both Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau if you look around.
Once you have your tickets you can get to the castles one of three ways...
1.) walk, which is the longest (taking 20-45 minutes depending on which castle you go to) but it's FREE
2.) bus, which is cheap (3.60 Euros round trip) and takes about 10-15 minutes
3.) horse carriage, which is most expensive but still relatively cheap. However, they pile as many people into the carriage that will fit, so it's NOT the romantic ride we were looking for.
Once the bus drops you off you have to walk down the road to the castle. It is a hike and it does incline.
If you bought a ticket to enter the castle the tours start around to the back, you have to wait for your time to show up on the screen before you can enter.

The tour was very short. It was decent, but I don't recommend going inside. The views from the grounds were amazing and worth trip alone.

Schloss Neuschwanstein or the Neuschwanstein Castle was a dream castle of the fairytale king Ludwig II..
King Ludwig's father has died when he was around 18 and was supposed to become the new king.. as any teenage he refused for a while then had to do what he had to do!!! The king had a fascination for castles, so he raised taxes in order to build his dream castle: Schloss Neuschwanstein! It took around 17 years.. After 168 "days" he was found dead with his therapist in a knee-deep pool!!! *the poor guy*!

The castle was built in a town called Fussen on the beautiful mountains.. the landscape is GREAT and the castle is so magical..
Don't miss it.. it's worth all the trouble..

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Neuschwanstein Castle is an awesome site to see. Make sure to climb up the hill to get to the castle. You will have great views of the castle from a bridge that is built between two mountains. Take the 30 minute castle tour to check out the inside.

Neuschwanstein was never occupied because King Ludwig died before the castle was completed.

From Munich try to travel in a group of 5 people. You can buy a train pass good for 5 including the bus ride once you get to Fussen. It cost us about 5euro each for the train ticket and if you choose to do the castle tour, that was about 14euro. Package tours were charging about 50euros and up.
Do this trip on your own- it is MUCH more worthwhile!!!

--When you go to the bridge for pictures make sure to look for the German guy wearing his lederhosen. He'll take pictures and pose in pictures for you.

Not only is this castle enchanting, so is the little town situated at its foot. If you're there, have a real black forest cake from the restaurant, then burn it off as you walk up the hill to the castle. It's about a 20 minute uphill walk (30 in snow) so that cake should be long gone by the time you get to the front gates!