Trip to Schloss Neuschwanstein 

If you’re visiting Bavaria, you can’t miss the famous Neuschwanstein Castle that served as inspiration for Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle. It was built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria in the 19th century on the ruins of two medieval castles. Neuschwanstein is located in southern Bavaria, near the Alps and the Austrian border. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a global symbol of the Romanticism era, often featured in movies.

On May 29th, my friend Ella and I decided to visit Neuschwanstein. We started our journey at Munich’s Hauptbahnhof, catching regional train 74 to Buchloe. From there, we transferred to train 77 to Füssen, and finally took a bus to the castle. The trip took 2 hours and 7 minutes because of some construction work, but the scenic views from the bus made it worth it.

Once we arrived, we began the hike up to the castle. It was more of a long walk than a hike, but it was pretty uphill. Despite it being a Wednesday, the castle was packed because of the upcoming national holiday. Neuschwanstein gets over 1.3 million visitors a year, so the crowds were kind of expected. Luckily, the weather was perfect—not too hot, not too cold.

We decided to skip the paid castle tour, following our friends’ advice that it wasn’t worth it. Instead, we went to Marienbrücke for an even better view of the castle. On the way up, we saw Hohenschwangau Castle, built by King Ludwig’s father, Maximilian II of Bavaria, as a summer residence. The lakes Alpsee and Schwansee were visible from the castle too.

After soaking in the views, we started heading back down and treated ourselves to some fries. Just as we got to the bus stop, it started raining. Tip: never forget your umbrella in Munich! We got soaked but stayed in line because we didn’t want to lose our spot. After a delayed bus ride, we had to wait 40 minutes in Füssen for the next train. The bus was packed, so we had to stand for the 70-minute ride back to Buchloe, followed by another train to Munich.

Despite the minor hiccups, visiting Neuschwanstein Castle is an awesome day trip from Munich, especially with the Deutschland ticket making travel free. Just remember to bring an umbrella!