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Visiting both Neuschwanstein/Hohenschwangau and Train Question

Posted by on

My husband and I are going to Germany for the first time this December. I want to go see Neuschwanstein, but was wondering if we will have enough time to seen Hohenschwangau as well. We will be staying in Munich and taking the 8:53 train to Fussen, then the bus to get to the castles. From the info I am finding we will get to the village around 11:15. Does that get us there early enough to see both castles or should we just go with Neuschwanstein?

Also, random train question not related to above trip. We are going from Munich to Nuremberg on the 23rd of December. Should I go ahead and make a reservation for seats? I've read that normally there is no need, but we're planning on leaving in the afternoon/evening and it's the Friday right before Christmas.

Any advice would be much appreciated as this is our first big trip by ourselves!

Posted by
4684 posts

I don't know if the reservation will be vital to get a seat on that date, but German trains don't "fill up" - even if all the seats are occupied you can still travel on the train if you're willing to stand.

Posted by
8889 posts

For Intercity trips like Munich to Nuremberg, it is not just a question of finding a seat, it is a question of price.
Going to the German Railways site ( https://www.bahn.de/p/view/index.shtml ), for the 8th December (the timetable past 10th December is not yet posted) prices start at €25, including reserved seats. Full price is €55, which is the price you would pay if you buy on the day.
It is cheaper to buy tickets as soon as they become available. You can get "print-at-home" tickets. But, once you buy tickets, you are committed to the one train you have chosen.

Posted by
2 posts

I should have also stated we have rail passes, so we don't need to buy tickets. Just wondering if we should get reservations or not.

Posted by
12040 posts

Getting to Füssen at 11:15 gives you more than enough time to visit both castles. This is a very common daytrip from Munich.

Posted by
796 posts

Definitely make reservations for the two castles online before you go. This will save you a lot of time standing in line.

Posted by
2480 posts

I should have also stated we have rail passes, so we don't need to buy tickets.

So, just arrive 10-15 min before departure at the platform.

Posted by
19275 posts

Reservations cost 4,50€ per seat and direction. Although I don't think you will need the reservations, it's pretty inexpensive insurance.

There is one nonstop ICE hourly from Munich to Nürnberg and at least one more almost as fast one stop ICE as well, plus some ICE connection with one change and one direct RE connection every two hours. Most if not all of these trains begin at Munich Hbf, so there will be no one in the unreserved seats when the train comes into the station. There's plenty of opportunity to find a seat without a reservation.

Posted by
776 posts

Make sure to allow enough time between your bus arriving in the Hohenschwangau village area and your ticket pickup time for the castles. When we were there in late September, they moved the lines three times. Even though we had reservations, it was a mess. We arrived at about 10:15 and didn't get our tickets until close to 11:00. We had allowed plenty of extra time, but others with us came close to not getting to the front of the reserved line before their ticket pickup time ended.

Reserve your tickets here: https://www.hohenschwangau.de/430.html

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