Getting our Culture In...Neushweinschtein "Castle"

While on our European adventure, we figured we'd throw in some history/culture along the way to even out the beer drinking and revelry.  Not that you can't be cultured and drink beer, but by the middle of the week, our livers needed a little break.  Plus my cousin had "See a Castle" on her Must Do list for the trip.

So, I found a tour on Viator.com which hooked us up with a day long trip to Schloss Neushweinschtein that included train travel to and from the castle (2 hours each way), an English speaking guide, and tickets to the castle tour.  If you are interested in making this trek, I highly recommend booking a tour to take care of all the parts...these guys did a great job and made our trip easy.  However, if you have more time to stay in the area, it looked like a great place for day trips, hiking, and the sorts.

One quick note, the castle sits perched above the cute little town where the bus from the train station drops you.  So you have 2 options, start hiking up the hill (45 minutes, decently steep) or pay $1.25 Euro for the bus ride to the top.  I took the bus and on this kinda warm September day, worth every penny. Oh, and don't forget to wear good walking shoes, I promise you'll be glad you did.

Now the castle is not really a castle, as it was never fortified and was not ever prepared for battle.  So...technically, it's a palace and in castle world, a mere infant at 125 years old.  Now I'm not going to go through all the history (just check the Google), but if you're close, this is worth seeing.  The palace was occupied less than one year in total and opened as a tourist spot 6 weeks after King Ludwig the Second's death. (This was HIS castle.) With the limited habitation, the place is in perfect condition.  No wear and tear, no nicks or scratches on the wall, no dust even...pretty sure it'd pass the white glove test.  One down side of the inside tour is no pictures of any kind are allowed.  So until you make the trip, you'll just have to trust me when I say it's beautiful. 

After the 45 minute inside tour was over, we trekked back downstairs and through two gift shops before being deposited on the side of the large building.  Now there are several ways down the hill...the bus (quickest way), a wide walking path (easiest, shortest walk down) or the scenic, longer way down (45 minutes). A, B & I took the long way down...past beautiful tall trees, mossy rocks, a roaring stream cascading over rocks.  The shaded walk provided a serene break from the hustle and bustle of people and city we'd been immersed in for almost a week.

Here are a few pictures from our visit...

Exterior Door...I loved the Cross

Door Decorations

Side Tower of the Castle

View of Neushweinschtein from the Bridge

View from Inside the Castle...yes, you can take pictures out the window, just not of the windows.

Part of the walk down the hill

The water was beautiful

Little lens action added color to this shot, but still beautiful.

A beautiful, relaxing walk down to the village.

So with an item marked off the To Do list, we headed back to Munich.  In a couple of hours, we were back to the station, back to the hotel, and headed to the Hofbrauhaus to get back to beer drinking.

Until then, happy travels and many laughs...