Linderhof Palace/Oberammergau/Neuschwanstein Castle/Munich – Day 5 of a 10-Day Trip in Europe
I booked a tour through Viator on Day 5 which ventured outside of Munich and took me to a palace, a fairy tale town, and a Disney castle (sort of). My purpose for this tour was to visit the Neuschwanstein Castle – the inspiration for Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle. I was pleasantly surprised visiting the Linderhof Palace as the interior was very extravagant. Oberammergau is skippable in my opinion, but I may have felt that way because it was pouring rain and miserable outdoors. If you have a car, I would recommend doing this tour on your own (although make sure to book your attraction tickets ahead of time as tours are timed and each tour is led by a guide. Self-guided tours are not an option). As a solo traveler with no car, it was great for me. It is important to note that booking the tour on Viator may not include purchasing tickets for the attractions (check the tour details/booking). You’ll have the option to pay for the actual tickets to the attractions on the bus.
Day 5
Linderhof Palace/Oberammergau/Neuschwanstein Castle/Munich
Check-in for the tour started at 8am and the meeting zone was at Karlsplatz. The meeting zone is pretty obvious – there will be a few tour buses parked along the road and there are attendants to direct you to the correct tour bus. There is also signage indicating which bus is for which tour and in what language. We departed just past 8:30am and after a two hour drive, arrived at Linderhof Palace. Linderhof Palace is higher up in the mountains and colder than Munich. In Munich, most of the snow from the cold snap the week before had melted. Near Linderhof Palace, there was still a few inches of unmelted snow. Linderhof Palace was built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria. The construction completed in 1878 and was the only palace/castle that was completely finished within his lifetime. The other two castles built by King Ludwig II – Neuschwanstein and Herrenchiemsee – were incomplete at the time of the King’s death. Linderhof Palace is the smallest of the three. The exterior of the Linderhof Palace is quite simple – white brick and ornate walls. The interior was absolutely mesmerizing. The wall designs are so detailed, intricate and made completely of gold. No photos of the interior are allowed unfortunately; you can however look up the palace online and it will show the interior photos. The photos don’t do it justice though.
After Linderhof Palace, we all got back onto the bus and drove ~15 minutes to a town named Oberammergau. Oberammergau has a population of just over 5000 people and it has a fairy tale-like air about it. Some of the buildings have fairy tale artwork painted on them. Oberammergau is known for woodcarving and its Passion of Christ Play that happens once every ten years. The story behind the Play is interesting. In ~1630, the plague hit Bavaria and claimed the lives of over 80 people in Oberammergau. Then in 1633, the village leaders prayed to God and vowed to perform the Passion of Christ every ten years if the village was spared any more deaths. As what seemed like an answer from above, there were no more deaths and the plague passed. Since then, the Passion of Christ has been performed every ten years (although there have been some missed plays here and there due to other world events). The town was cute, but it was heavily raining, so it was not very enjoyable walking around the town. It is mostly restaurants and small stores in the central area of Oberammergau. There was only about 30 minutes of free time in Oberammergau so not really enough time for a meal, but maybe a coffee.
Next destination Neuschwanstein Castle! Well actually, Schwangau, which is where the parking lot is. From the parking lot, it is about a 30 minute (slightly) uphill walk (or 10 minute horse carriage) to Neuschwanstein Castle. It is not a hard walk up, so unless you want to experience a horse carriage, I’d recommend walking up. Note that the horse carriage only goes up about 3/4 of the way due to width of the pathway. The tour scheduled about 3 hours in Schwangau. This gave me enough time to have lunch, explore the town, walk up to Neuschwanstein Castle, attend the tour, and walk back down to the bus. The tour time was already reserved by the guide and they let everyone know the time before exiting the bus. It was organized so that there was about 2 hours of free time, then 1 hour for the tour and return time to the bus. There is a second less-famous castle in the area called Hohenschwangau Castle which can be visited (might need reservations and be timed entry however). Hohenschwangau Castle was built by King Maximilian II of Bavaria and it was the castle where King Ludwig II grew up. Anyways, for my free time before the tour, I stopped at Muller Bistro Cafe for a sandwich. I chatted with a group of travellers from the US and they commended me for my solo trip. After lunch, I walked around the town for a bit, then started my ascent to Neuschwanstein Castle.
Neuschwanstein Castle is one of the three castles built by King Ludwig II (the very same that grew up in Hohenschwangau Castle). He also built the Linderhof Palace, which was the first castle visited during on this tour. Interesting enough though, King Ludwig II was not alive to see the completion of the Neuschwanstein Castle. Neuschwanstein Castle was completed in late 1886 whereas the King’s death occurred in June 1886. His death is still a mystery to this day. At the age of 40, King Ludwig II was declared mentally ill and sent to Berg Castle, where he could be watched. Three days after arriving, the king went on a walk with his physician, Dr. Gudden, and disappeared. Their corpses were found in the lake a few hours later. Their deaths were declared to be suicide by drowning, but there has been speculation that it was a murder as the King was a strong swimmer, the lake they were found in was only waist deep, and there was no water found in his lungs.
On a more positive note, Neuschwanstein Castle is also famously known as being the inspiration for Disneyland Magic Kingdom’s Castle in Anaheim, California. You can really see the similarity in the spires. There is a viewing platform at the base of the Neuschwanstein Castle where you have the castle on one side and countryside view on the other.
There is a bridge around the back side of the castle + a bit more walking that gives a great view of Neuschwanstein Castle. I was glad that it was open. I read online that when the weather is poor (i.e. snowy and icy), the bridge is closed to visitors. There was a cold snap the week before, but luckily the warmer weather and rain had cleared out the snow. Along the way to the bridge, there is a lovely viewpoint of Schwangau. The dark yellow castle in the background is Hohenschwangau Castle.
After a little bit more walking, I arrived at the bridge and snapped the iconic photo of the Neuschwanstein Castle. This trek was definitely worth it and you’ll probably need about 30 minutes to an hour (depending on the number of photos) to explore the route between the castle and the bridge. Plan accordingly so you do not miss your tour!
I walked back to the castle for my tour. Once it is near the tour time, the attendant will allow entry to the castle courtyard. To enter the castle itself, there are gates for scanning the attraction ticket. These gates only allow entry about 5 minutes before the reserved tour slot.
Unfortunately, there are no photos of the interior of Neuschwanstein Castle. The castle vibe is very different than a classic castle. It has a very fairy tale feel and a lot of bright colours. There is even a grotto-like hallway, similar to a cave. The artwork on the walls follow the journeys of three main characters – the poet Tannhäuser, the swan knight Lohengrin and his father, the Grail King Parzival. Their adventures tell intricate stories of love, guilt, repentance, and salvation.
After the tour, everyone returned to the bus for the two hour trip back to Munich. I arrived back at Munich around 7pm and decided to return to the Christmas Market at Marienplatz for dinner. I saw a spaetzle stall the other day and I had to try it. On the way to Marienplatz, I walked past the church, St. Michael’s, and decided to make a spontaneous stop.
Finally, for dinner, I had spaetzle and a bratwurst hot dog (topped with sauerkraut). Spaetzle consists of egg noodles covered in a creamy sauce and topped with fried onions. It was yummy! What a perfect ending to my Munich stay!
Complete Day 5 Itinerary
*Travel times may vary. Check Google Maps for most accurate travel details.
8:00am: Check-in at Karlsplatz for the tour to Neuschwanstein Castle. If booking the same tour, the day will consist of Linderhof Palace, Oberammergau, and Neuschwanstein Castle. The tour will arrive back in Munich ~ 7pm.
7:00pm: Have Spaetzle for dinner!
10-Day Europe Itinerary
Click “Download” below for an excel version of my 10-Day Europe Itinerary to Czech Republic, Germany, and Austria. Feel free to use the excel file as a planning template for your own trip!
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Travels with Carolyne 