Sleeping Beauty Castle... in Bavaria?

[Rikki-Tikki-Alex]

Hi Everyone!

I recently took a backpacking trip through Europe and had a chance to stay in Munich for a few days and take in some of the Bavarian culture. Being the Disney fan that I am, I also made the two hour train ride from Munich to Fussen (and from there the short bus trip up to Hohenschwangau) to go see "Neuschwanstein Castle," which is supposed to have been one of the sources of Walt's inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty Castles at Disenyland and Hong Kong Disney. I'm sure similar trips to this castle have been posted before but I figured that if nothing else this can just be an update to let you know that the everything remains intact! Enjoy!


There had been a couple of snow flurries in Munich, but being a native of California I wasn't quite expecting to see so much of it when I stepped off of the bus in Hohenschwangau.



However with uncharacteristic foresight I was bundled quite warmly that day, so with my scarf wrapped tight and my camera in hand I set off up the hill undeterred.



...But not without verifying my directional instincts of course.




Walking around to the ticket booth I stopped to snap a quick picture of a lovely castle that I would unfortunately not have time to visit that day.




As is to be expected, immediately after purchasing my ticket for the castle I was planning on visiting my camera's rechargable battery promptly died. Luckily for me however, I had made friends with another solo traveler while on the train and he was kind enough to send me the following pictures after the trip (thanks Eugenio!)


A view of our target destination from the bottom of the hill.



...followed by the long road up said hill.



Fortunately just behind the trees we had some inspiring views to buoy our spirits.



Getting closer...



And to cut a long walk shot, our final arrival outside the castle!



Just to the left was the entrance to the inner courtyard.



And just beyond that, some of architecture inside. In my mind the visual alignment of the three towers when viewed from this angle is definitely reminiscent of Sleeping Beauty castle.



After this we took a rather unexpectedly brief tour of the interior (where it is forbidden to take photos due to an apparent copyright issue) and then made the long trek back to Munich! I was hoping to have some more detailed pictures for you all, but alas beggars with dead cameras don't get to be photographic choosers. Thanks for browsing.

[TDRFAN25]

how far is the castle from Munich?

[Rikki-Tikki-Alex]

From Munich it is a two hour train ride from the hauptbahnhof (main station) to Fussen, and then from the Fussen station only about a 10 minute bus ride to Hohenschwangau. Once you buy your ticket it is about a 20-30 minute walk up the hill to the castle unless you opt to ride in a carriage instead.

[Stitchy]

wow! It's beautiful!