(Part 2) Germany's Bavarian South: Disneyland in Germany?? You Betcha!!

- December 21, 2018, Friday.

- OK, so maybe I fooled you, but also, not quite. Yes, I know that Germany does not have a Disneyland as the only Disneyland in Europe is located in Paris, but Germany has the castle that inspired Disneyland's Cinderella Castle and Sleeping Beauty Castle. This castle is located in the far-flung municipality of Schwangau, specifically in the village of Hohenshwangau (roughly translates to "Upper Swan County.") If you wish to go to Hohenschwangau, then please bear the long introduction below as there are plenty of things that have to be prepared and considered before going to Hohenschwangau.

- Hohenschwangau has three main attractions: the Neuschwanstein Castle which I mentioned (read as "noy-shvan-stayn" where "stayn" rhymes with the English word "line" or "dine"), the Hohenschwangau Castle, and the Museum of the Bavarian Kings. If you're interested in going inside any or a combination of these three, it is HIGHLY ADVISABLE to RESERVE tickets online (click here for the online ticket office). There are options in the website for you to choose at what time you wish to enter your first castle for the guided tour. The compulsory guided tours inside the castles have limited slots, so there is a risk of not getting a ticket to see the castles if you buy entry tickets on the spot without reservations at the physical ticket booth. How fast do they sell out? I'd liked to tell you that I had to change my date of visit to Hohenschwangau because tickets inside the castles were already sold out on my original planned date of visit - and this was a month before my trip to Hohenschwangau, and during low season!! Another inconvenient thing about the online tickets is that since the online reservations are just reservations, you need to pick up your ticket and pay for your actual ticket at the ticket booth on the day of your visit; since you already have a reservation, you don't have to line up and can simply go straight to the "reserved tickets" section. There is a ticket pick-up time written on your ticket reservation, which is 1.5 hours before your first or only guided tour depending on which kind of ticket you chose, and you must follow the time written on the reservation. (In my case, since entry to my first castle was 11:10am, I had to pick up my ticket the latest at 9:40am on December 21, which was the day of my visit. I was not allowed to pick up my ticket the day before, and while I could pick up my ticket at 9:40am or any time before that within December 21, I could not pick up my ticket beyond 9:40 and in case I were late, I would have needed to purchase a new ticket as if I never reserved.) Likewise, if you missed your castle-entry time on your ticket, you would also need to purchase another ticket (ex. if I missed my 11:10am entry at Hohenschwangau Castle, I couldn't enter anymore and I would need to buy another ticket.)

- Now that your tickets are settled, you can now proceed to booking a train ride to Hohenschwangau! Actually, the nearest town with a train station is Füssen, and there are multiple trains departing Munich for Füssen daily and it might be good to compare train departure times with the time you're supposed to pick-up your ticket from the Hohenschwangau ticket booth. How much time allowance is needed for the whole journey? Well, if you're based in Munich, I'd suggest around 3-4 hours prior to your ticket pick-up time. My ticket pick-up time was 9:40am, and I left Munich around 6:45am; I was very thankful that I stayed near Munich Hauptbahnhof (main station,) so I did not have to factor in my travel time to the main station since it was just a 3-minute walk (or less) from my hostel. You can buy a train ticket online (click here for the Deutsche Bahn website) or buy a ticket from the Deutsche Bahn ticket machines at Munich Hauptbahnhof (main station) that goes from Munich to Füssen. There are trains that go directly to Füssen, but most of them will start around 9am. If you were able to purchase a "Bayern Ticket," which is one of the special tourist tickets offered in the Bavarian region, then you can only start using this ticket and ride the train at 9am. However, for people like me who need to be at the Hohenschwangau ticket office way earlier, I had not choice but to take the earlier train, and transfer at Buchloe Station (alternatively, sometimes the transfer is at Kaufbering Station.) As in many cities around the world, you may arrive at the train platform around 5-10 minutes before your departure, though I'd always suggest going a bit earlier, just to be safe. Another important piece of advice, always check the train schedules EVEN AFTER you have purchased your train ticket beforehand. In my case, my original train was scheduled to leave around 10 minutes earlier than scheduled, and instead of transferring at Kaufbering, I had to transfer at Buchloe Station. However, since the ticket I bought was called "flexpreis" (flexible price) ticket, I was allowed to take any train within the day as long as it goes between Munich and Füssen, so I did not have any problem even with the schedule and transfer changes. For other Deutsche Bahn questions and problems, they can be reached through their e-mail or phone (check the DB link I placed above), or you may simply go to any of their customer-care kiosks or offices at any train big station such as Munich Hauptbahnhof.

- I left Munich early in the morning, and honestly, my train ride to Füssen was one of the most picturesque train rides I've ever had. Not only was the view of the Bavarian Alps impressive, but the snowfall the night before in the area made everything look like a white winter wonderland bathed in the gentle golden rays of the early morning sun. The view was so picturesque that even the train conductor (who probably has seen such views before, and who probably has gone on the same route before or routes with similar views) took several photos of the snow-covered mountains and forests with her phone after checking everyone's tickets.

Good morning Bavaria!!

Countryside.

Splash of colors.

Merry Christmas.

- The moment I reached Füssen's train station, I immediately ran to the bus stop outside the station. It was probably a 20-second run as Füssen's train station is one of the smallest train stations I've been to in Europe. I took bus 78 (can also be bus 73) going to Hohenschwangau. Buses going to Hohenschwangau usually leave a few minutes after a train arrives, and the next bus to arrive would usually be 30 minutes to an hour after. Since I didn't have much time to stall, I had to make sure that I'd get on the next bus to Hohenschwangau. I bought a round-trip ticket directly from the driver, so I wouldn't have to buy a separate ticket on the way back. The trip from the station to Hohenschwangau takes around 10 minutes.

The Neuschwanstein Castle, Disney's inspiration for its Cinderella Castle and Sleeping Beauty Castle.

Every summer, this lake called Alpsee is full of swans.

- I got my ticket at the ticket booth, and since I had around 1.5 hours to spare before my entry to the Hohenschwangau Castle, I decided to admire the snowy scenery and visit the Museum of Bavarian Kings. Although the museum itself opened in 2011, the building that houses the museum used to be hotel called "Alpenrose". The museum explains the family tree of the Bavarian Kings, and shows many of the fancy things the Bavarian royal family owned. Photography inside, unfortunately, is not allowed; the same goes for the castles.

Museum of the Bavarian Kings.

- Later on I hiked up the small hill going the Hohenschwangau Castle to rest and wait for my entry time at 11:10. As mentioned by many travelers and bloggers, the hill where the Hohenschwangau Castle is located is a good place to see and take photos of the Neuschwanstein Castle. This yellow 19th-century castle was built by King Maximilian II of Bavaria, and was the childhood house of his son, King Ludwig II. Although painted mostly in yellow, it is bursting with colors inside. By the way, if you know the Wedding March, which is probably the first melody that comes to mind when you think of weddings ("dun dun du-dun, dun dun du-dun,") the composer of that piece named Richard Wagner spent a lot of time in this castle. This is because King Ludwig II was an enthusiast of the arts, and he was the biggest fan (and patron) of Richard Wagner.

The Hohenschwangau Castle.

Neuschwanstein from Hohenschwangau.

I was hungry so I bought a small pretzel.

Front side of the castle.

- After visiting the Hohenschwangau Castle, I had to rush off to the Neuschwanstein Castle since it was quite far from the Hohenschwangau Castle, and I did not want to miss my 1:10pm entry time. There are three ways to reach the Neuschwanstein Castle. First is by walking, which can take around 30-40 minutes from Hohenschwangau Castle. However, this may be difficult since the path going to the castle is inclined, and it could be harder when there is rain or snow. Another alternative is by shuttle car, although it wasn't available when I went there. Since it snowed the night before in Hohenschwangau and it was quite hard to go uphill because of the rather slippery path, I decided to take the horse carriage up the hill. The line at the horse carriage was quite long, but I was glad that the carriages came and went quite frequently. It also took me around 15-20 minutes to go uphill.

The horses are larger than life. 

They look like they're twice the size of horses here in the Philippines.

Neuschwanstein Castle.

- The Neuschwanstein Castle, or "New Swanstone Castle," again, is read as "noy-shvan-stayn" where "stayn" rhymes with the English word "line" or "dine" as I've mentioned above. The castle was finished in the late 1800s, and it is one of the most ornate castles that I have ever encountered - both inside and out!! No wonder Disney used this as one of its inspirations for its theme-park castles. King Ludwig II paid for this castle with his own money, during a time of political confusion in Bavaria. He lived in this castle for several months, until he was mysteriously found dead in a nearby lake. Until today, no one knows if it was suicide or murder. Even worse, just a few days after he died, the castle was opened to the public as a museum, just like how it functions today.

In true Disney fashion, it is in the middle of the forest.

See the Disney resemblance?

I like the playfulness of the castle's design.

- One good tip I can give you when visiting the Neuschwanstein Castle is to NOT go during winter like I did. Normally, people would explore the hiking trail behind the palace to go to the Marienbrücke or Queen Mary's Bridge to take photos of the most popular angle of the castle. Unfortunately, authorities close off the pathway during winter because of the intense winds that blow through the mountains, and the winter snow and rain make the pathways more slippery and dangerous. I do know that some people sneak in despite warning signs, and they probably got way better photos than I did, but the warning signs are there for a reason - at least for me, I don't want to slip and roll a long way down to my death.

Instead, I took a photo of the Marienbrücke from the castle. *Sobs.*

- Despite feeling sad since I couldn't get my own photo of the castle from Marienbrücke, I was able to find an alternative near the Hohenschwangau Castle after walking downhill from the palace (the horse carriage can still be taken for those who want to, but I wanted the scenic route, and it was easier to walk downhill.) I know the Neuschwanstein was the basis for Disney's Cinderella Castle and Sleeping Beauty Castle, but I dressed up as a male Snow White - complete with a tiny apple I bought in Munich. By the way, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Snow White are all German folk tales!!

So it's a cross between Snow White and the prince.

This location was in plain sight but not usually seen by most visitors, so not one else bugged me during the photoshoot. The only things I had to deal with were the wind and the occasional rain.

- After being almost blown away by the wind and rain, I finally had a late German lunch at Hohenschwangau, and later on, rode the bus and train back to Munich. Fortunately, my train ride back home was a direct train, so I did not have to change trains at Buchloe Station anymore.

Another traditional dish, pork knuckle!!

- My trip to Hohenschwangau was like a trip to Disneyland with far less people, no rides, but heaps and heaps of history. However, this magical fairy tale feeling was the positivity I needed in preparation for my trip the following morning. The next day, I was headed to where no one wanted to go more than half a century ago - the Dachau Concentration Camp.

- Please don't forget to read about my other adventures in Germany, Austria, and Slovakia here:

GERMANY:

Berlin and Potsdam: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

Munich and Schwangau: Part 1 here, Part 3 here, Part 4 here

AUSTRIA:

Salzburg: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

Vienna: Part 1 here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here

SLOVAKIA:

Bratislava: Click here