How to plan a perfect trip to Neuschwanstein Castle?
Neuschwanstein Castle
Located in the Bavarian region, Neuschwanstein Castle is one of the most popular attractions in the region. It even inspired Walt Disney to have it built in Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. The stunning castle was designed by King Ludwig II, also known as the Mad King Ludwig.
Although it may seem easy to visit the castle, it is not. From booking your tour slot to planning your trip, it's not as easy as visiting Disneyland. Even with advance booking, you may not even get the slot you want. Sometimes money does the trick. However, if you are planning to do a trip to Neuschwanstein Castle, do continue to read!
King Ludwig succeeded in the throne at the age
of 18. His real interest has always been in art and music. Since he was overly
obsessed with extravagant artistic and architectural projects, King Ludwig had
spent all his royal revenues to this hobby. With that, he had earned himself the
name “Mad King”. Thanks to his love for art, we are able to witness this
beauty. Today, Neuschwanstein Castle has become one of the most important
tourist attractions in Bavaria.
As a young prince, Ludwig had spent most of his childhood in the summer palace - Hohenschwangau, Schwangau. So when
we arrived at Neuschwanstein Castle, we are not surprised why King Ludwig
decided to built Neuschwanstein Castle there.
Nestled in the Bavarian Alps, the summer palace
has one of the best natural view - Alps & Lakes! It’s quiet from the city
and definitely not as accessible as it would be today. Sadly, King Ludwig did
not survive to witness the completed piece of art. He was found dead with his
doctor in the river and the reason for his death was never known.
Getting to
Neuschwanstein Castle from Munich
By Car
The easiest way is definitely by car. It’s a 1
hour 45-minute car ride from Munich Hbf compare to the 3-hour public transport
ride from Munich. Plus, driving gets the flexibility and perks of enjoying the
beauty before all the tour arrives. However, parking may be a challenge as the
roads to Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau
Castle is closed for public traffic. The public has to one of the 4 carparks in
the surrounding area. Read more about parking here
Parking Fees (per day):
Bus/ coaches € 15,00
Caravan/ camping cars € 8,50
Motorbikes € 3,00
By
Train
One can travel to Neuschwanstein Castle by taking the train to Füssen. The entire journey is a 2h 30 min (one-way) ride. You can check
DB train for time schedule and price. After you arrive at Fussen Train station,
Take a bus RVA/OVG 73 or RVA/OVG 78 in the direction of
Schwangau. Both buses will bring you to the village of Schwangau. Check the train schedule here
Luggage Locker at Fussen Station
For people who are travelling with luggage, you can find the storage area at the Fussen station.
Bayern
Ticket
We got Bayern Ticket for the
day trip and it was a pretty good deal. The Bayern ticket offers an unlimited number of trips within Bavaria for a day. We had to get this because the one-way ticket to Neuschwanstein Castle
would have cost us €32.20. Bayern Ticket starts from €25 and you can add €7 euro for an additional traveller (up to 5 pax per group).
The tricky part is that you can
only start using the regional train pass from 9am on weekdays. Thankfully there
is no restriction on the weekend. Read more about Bayern Ticket here
By Bus
There is no direct public bus
from Munich to Schwangau but there are bus services operated by Flix and it cost 19.90 Euro per trip. They are definitely not the cheapest option or most comfortable way but it’s definitely fuss-free since its a direct route. Check your Bus schedule from Flix here
Getting
your Neuschwanstein Castle Tour Ticket
To enter the castle, one must
book a guided tour. Although it is free to view the castle from outside, it is
best to get the ticket since you already travelled all the way to the village
of Schwangau. There are 3 ways to get the tickets and we got ours from the
ticket office.
We didn’t pre-book our tickets
to Neuschwanstein Castle Ticket because our itinerary was not firm. In the end, we
didn’t manage to reserve our tickets. To be honest, we were a little hesitant
on this day trip because we read that the ticket may be sold out before noon
during peak period.
Imagine spending 6 hours (include return) to get
to Neuschwanstein Castle and didn’t manage to get the tickets. We will be so
sad. In the end, we still went ahead and set some expectation
because it’s the AUTHENTIC sleeping beauty castle! Here we go!
1.
Online Reservation
One can reserve the tickets in
advance via their official website. Do note that you need to reserve at
least 3 days in advance. You can select your preferred timing but it’s not
guaranteed. Do note that a service fee also applies for reserved tickets.
Reserve your tickets here
2.
Ticket Office
After you alight the bus in the
village of Schwangau, head over to the ticket office as soon as you can! We saw
people running to the office and we started to panic too. We were practically
crossing our fingers and hope there are still tickets when it's our turn.
Thankfully, we visited during off-peak season and there are tickets for us!
3.
Getting from Tour Package
On the other hand, we were glad
that we didn’t sign up for any tour because they are pretty expensive! It was
our last resort if we were visiting during peak season. These tours usually include transportation to the castle and guarantee your tickets. Do note that not all tour includes the entrance fee to the castle. So, be sure to check the price before you buy. Check out the tour tickets to Neuschwanstein Castle here
Choosing
your time slot for Neuschwanstein Castle
Tour
If you are planning to visit Neuschwanstein Castle with Bayern
Ticket, the earliest you will arrive in the village is 12:30pm. So, please do
not book the timeslot before that! Also, you need time to get to the entrance
of Neuschwanstein Castle. Your best bet will be from 1:30pm if you are
only planning to visit the castle straight away
Do note that you need at least 45 min
travelling time from the shuttle service to the entrance of Neuschwanstein
Castle. Once you miss your slot, you cannot change.
If you are driving and did not
reserve the tickets in advance, your best bet is to arrive at the village at
7:30am. Be the first to buy a ticket and enjoy the scenery before all the tour bus
arrives. You can even walk up to the castle at your own pace and be the first
to enter the castle!
Guided tours are offered daily
from:
10.00 a.m. - 4.00 p.m. (Winter opening
times)
9.00 a.m. - 6.00 p.m.
(Summer opening times)
Tickets
 |
| Source: Here |
Getting
from the Ticket office to Neuschwanstein Castle
Credit: Neuschwanstein Castle
By Foot
The estimated time by foot is 40 minutes but I would suggest you add another 10 - 20 min buffer time.
By
Horse Carriage
Uphill: € 7,00 Downhill: € 3,50
Duration of the ride: approx.
20 minute + 15 min walk
Payment directly to the horse
carriage driver.
Bus stop valley: at the
"Alpsee" parking area P4 (below Hohenschwangau Castle)
Bus stop castle:
"Marienbrücke" Mary's Bridge (above Neuschwanstein Castle)
Price per person: Uphill: €
2,50 Downhill: € 1,50 Roundtrip: € 3,00
Duration: 45 Min ( 15 mins wait
for shuttle + 10 min drive + 20 min walk)
1 Day
Itinerary to Neuschwanstein Castle
Tip: Bring some snacks with you! We didn't have enough time for a sit-down lunch and was thankful that we brought some sandwiches with us!
The first order of business is to
purchase our tickets from the ticket office. Initially, we wanted to get Swan ticket which includes all three attractions which include Neuschwanstein
castle & Hohenschwangau castle & Museum of the Bavarian Kings.
However, after considering the
time and the purpose of our trip, we got the Prince ticket instead. The prince
tickets include the entrance to Neuschwanstein castle & Hohenschwangau
castle & Museum of the Bavarian Kings.
Museum
of the Bavarian Kings
We decided to visit the Museum
of the Bavarian King before our guided tour in Neuschwanstein castle and we are
glad that we did so. The museum is very informative and even had a detailed
timeline of the Bavarian Kings. Visiting the museum also allows us to
understand King Ludwig and the story of the royal family. Highly recommend
anyone who plans to visit the castle to visit the museum first!
So, the ticket officer told us
the Museum of the Bavarian King can be completed in 1 hour and she was kidding
us. If you listen to the audio guide chapter by chapter, you need at least 2 hours
to complete. We didn’t and left after 1 hour. We were running very late.
Neuschwanstein
Castle Tour
Our scheduled tour starts at 2:25pm and we were lucky that we made it to the tour. We board
the shuttle bus at 2pm and had to run to the castle from Mary’s Bridge. It was
insane. Thankfully it was downslope. I can’t imagine it to be uphill.
Fortunately, we arrive at the Castle right on time.
Note: You need at least 45
minutes to get to the entrance of Neuschwanstein castle from the ticket office.
The tour was amazing! Even
though it was just a 20-minute tour, We saw the maid’s corners and the room
that King Ludwig stayed. Everything in the castle is the original items. The
paintings on the wall are very impressive! One room that amazed me was the open
shower concept that the King had designed. It was said to have a stunning view
of the lake from the bathroom. The open concept bathroom was not completed.
After the tour, we grab a quick
bite at the cafe in the castle. Definitely not the best but we didn’t have much
time before that. Thankfully we brought some snacks with us.We continued our journey and walked to the bridge and it’s one
of the best places to view the castle. Also, the snow came unexpectedly. &
Everything feels so magical.
Hohenschwangau
Hohenschwangau was built in the
16th century and was destroyed during different wars. It was in 1832 that it
became the summer palace and the place where King Ludwig would spend his
childhood summer here. Very different from Hohenschwangau castle, this castle
was rebuilt in neo-gothic style.
Guided tours are offered daily
from:
10.00 a.m. - 4.00 p.m. (Winter
opening times)
9.00 a.m. - 5.00 p.m.
(Summer opening times)
Linderhof
Castles
 |
| Photo credit source: WikiCommon |
Linderhof Castle is one of the
three palaces that were built by King Ludwig and the only one that is completed.
The interior design of the castle was inspired by Versailles. It is very grand
and many details were added to complete this look.
For travellers who drive, do
add a trip to Linderhof Castle. It is one of the attractions that may include
during the day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle. Apparently, Linderhof Castles is
more popular with the locals than Neuschwanstein Castle because there are more
things to see. Prior to our trip, we were still deciding if we should visit the
Linderhof Castle but decide to give a miss since we had plans to visit
Versailles in Paris.
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