Jasmine's 2011 Trip: Füssen

I came to Füssen because a couple I met on the trip suggested I go to see the two castles just outside of the town, Hoghenschwangau and Neuschwantstein.
Hoghenschwangau was built in the 1830's over the ruins of a medieval castle/fortress that had been destroyed in the Napoleonic Wars and was a summer residence of the royal family. It was built in the Romantic style popular at the time and all of the walls were covered in murals painted directly onto them (rather than hung, framed paintings) depicting European legends. Each room I visited resembles a giant picture book, telling a story. Hogheschhwangau left a big impression on Prince Ludwig II, who spent a lot of time there as a child. When Ludwig became King, he built, among other ambitious projects, the fairytale castle Nueschwanstein.
Today, Ludwig would have been considered eccentric, but back then, people believed he was crazy for buildingq impractical, fantastic castles and putting himself in massive amounts of debt to do so. In 1886, he was declared mentally unstable by other nobles and bureaucrats. A few days later, he and his doctor were discovered dead in a lake. Contemporary critics considered Nueschwanstein to be kitsch, but when the castle was opened to visitors shortly after Ludwig's death, it soon became a popular tourist destination. This is the castle that was the inspiration for Disney world's Cinderella castle, and is now considered one of Germany's most iconic attractions. Ironically, although Ludwig died in massive debt, because of tourism, within a decade all debts were settled and it became the main source of income for his family. Then, when Bavaria became a republic, it became the property of the country.
Nueschwanstein was never finished, as work stopped when Ludwig died/was murdered. Only 17 of the 55 rooms were completed, and they are amazing!
All of the walls in Nueschwanstein depict scenes of the operas of the composer Richard Wagner, of whom Ludwig was a devoted fan. It felt more like a beautiful, giant theatrical set than a castle. I found out later it was first designed by a theatre set designer, then an architect. There is a man made grotto, a Byzantine inspired throne room, and an immense Opera room. Statues of knights, dragons, and swans everywhere. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed inside the castles, but I managed to get plenty of exterior shots.
After I checked into the hostel, I took a bus out to the castles (there are two that run out of Füssen's main train and bus station every 30 minutes).

The House LA City hostel

First view of Nueschwanstein castle... Haha I kept hearing the theme song to Sleeping Beauty during the tours...these castles are everything I thought a castle would be when I was little, so glad I was able to make the trip!

You can take a bus, a carriage or hike between the castles.

Hoghenschwangau Castle

You can look into the kitchen while you wait in the courtyard for your tour to begin.

The tour begins

I had about an hour and a half before my second tour, of Nueschwanstein Castle, began, so I hiked it rather than take the bus, or carriage. It takes about 40 minutes to get from one castle to the other.