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On the list of must see fairytale castle’s in Germany, near the top of every list is Neuschwanstein Castle. There isn’t a bad time to visit, the winter months or the summer months, both will offer a unique visit. This castle is beautiful wether it is covered in snow, surrounded by fall foliage or bathed in warm summer light. From the castle you have beautiful views of the village of Hohenschwangau and the surrounding areas below. This famous castle is a snapshot back in time and well worth visiting even if you have limited time.

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Neuschwanstein Castle

Ticket Prices: 20.5 Euro per Adult

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Our Visit to Neuschwanstein Castle

The BEAUTIFUL Neuschwanstein castle in southern Germany is a dream! It is the castle that inspired Walt Disney when he thought up Sleeping Beauty’s castle and it does not disappoint. My husband and I traveled to Germany in the off season which was great because of the low tourist volume it kind of sucked because of all the renovations that were occurring at all the big sites. Neuschwanstein was no exception. The entire front entrance was covered in scaffolding. Additionally due to inclement weather we couldn’t hike out to the lookout bridge that is the best for taking pictures.

BUT I would still count this castle as a must see.

The Build-up

Robin and I visited Neuschwanstein in the mid-end part of November. It was my birthday present and we had so much fun! Like I mentioned above, traveling in the off season has good and bad sides to it but in the end what you get out of your travels is up to you. I had really built it up in my head that seeing Neuschwanstein castle was going to be awe inspiring and just the best thing I had ever seen. AND I planned the perfect “princess” outfit, we brought along our nice camera, and I had done a TON of research. I knew where everything was, the ticket price, and our transportation options (foot, bus, and horse-drawn carriage). Nothing was going to get in my way of feeling like a princess in her castle.

Getting to the Castle

Well many things went wrong. It snowed the night before we got there, which wasn’t a problem in itself but we were seeing the castle on a day trip from Munich. Where it hadn’t snowed. I was wearing white flats and apparently the road up to the castle is a dirt road. So, we get to Hochenburg (the town that Neuschwanstein is located in) and we go to buy our tickets from the ticket office. We got there at about 9 or 10 in the morning and there was absolutely no line! I have heard tales of incredibly long lines during peak season so I recommend getting to the ticket center early. Then since our tour time to enter the castle wasn’t for about an hour and a half we went and grabbed some lunch.

Now everything up until this point had gone great. Our plan was to ride the shuttle bus up and the carriage ride down because that was the cheapest option that still allowed us to ride in the horse drawn carriage (because of the princess thing, you know). However, because of the snow the bus wasn’t running so after searching for a while we decided to take the carriage up to the castle. They stuff those things as full as they can, great for business, less good for experience. But we still got a cute picture!

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Now we still had a bit of an uphill walk to get to the castle and that is when the dirt path covered in half melted snow (mud) started to become a real problem to my white flats and floor length skirt, but I pushed through. 😉 Then when we got there we found all the scaffolding covering the front gate and entire front portion of the castle. That is one downside of off season travel, construction. Finally, we went into the courtyard for our entry time. Everyone has a time slot for the guided tour through the inside of the castle. There are no pictures allowed of the interior of Neuschwanstein castle unfortunatly. But the tour was so fun and informative. I loved learning about the history and construction of Neuschwanstein Castle, the Swan King and small details from life in the middle ages. The kings favorite animal was swans and they were all over the place inside, especially in the throne room. SO FUN!!

The Outlook Point: Mary’s Bridge

After going through Neuschwanstein castle we came out expecting to climb up to the look out bridge (Mary’s Bridge) only to find it closed. This was because of the snow. It was a little disappointing. We saw other people going up the path despite the barriers but it would have meant more mud and snow. And my shoes just wouldn’t allow it. Not my best choice.

Well we found an alternate place to take pictures with Schloss Neuschwanstein and they turned out pretty well. After that we walked back down to the bus station to catch the bus back to Munich.

Neuschwanstein Castle

So my final thoughts are that Neuschwanstein castle was awesome and a definite must see. However, if possible I would recommend seeing it closer to peak season. Of course that comes with bigger crowds. There are positives and negatives to both side. So pick your poison. 🙂 I hope this is helpful for planning your own visit to the stunning castle of Neuschwanstein!