Best tour to Neuschwanstein from Munich

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These tours are what are called, in Marketing parlance, "Value added", which really means price added or profit (for someone else) added. Why pay someone else a whole lot of your money to do for you what you can easily do for yourself. Going to Neuschwanstein is easy, and the guided tour of the castle is required to get in, and included with €9 admission (which is not included in the tour price). A Bayern-Ticket will cover your train and bus travel to the castle. See my webpage for help on traveling from the fuessen bahnhof to the castles.

(BTW, another thing I learned in marketing is called "cognizant dissonance". Those people who have already taken one of these tours will post and adamantly defend their position, unwilling to admit they made a mistake and wasted their money.)

I did a Radius tour to Dachau and was very glad I did. The tour guide was fantastic and I learned so much more than I would have on my own. I mention that so you know I am not anti-tour. For Neuschwanstein I definitely agree with Lee. You can do it on your own for less and on your own schedule. The guided tour is included with admission, so neither one of your choices will add anything to your experience.

Have a fantastic time in Bavaria!

Last September I toured Dachau. Since I was already on a Muenchen XXL Tageskarte (day ticket), the train out to Dachau Bahnhof and the bus to the Memorial was included. The tour of the Memorial itself, at the counter in Dachau, costs €3.

John,

I've taken tours to both Dachau and Neuschwanstein with Radius Tours and would certainly recommend them. On the trip to Neuschwanstein, the Guide not only arranged the train and Bus fares to the Castles, but also reserved the "official" tour of the Castle. Prior to the actual tour of the Castle, she provided a background of the history, which made the trip much more interesting for me. While I could have also read a Guidebook, it was nice to have a "live" Guide, as that provided the opportunity to ask questions. She also made sure we had time for a short visit to "the bridge" for the classic view of Neuschwanstein.

The same was true of the trip to Dachau. The Guide provided a description of the history (including some interesting facts that I had never heard before) and then allowed the group to wander on their own.

I'd like to stress that my recommendation is NOT a case of "cognizant dissonance" as Lee referred to it. I DON'T feel I made a mistake nor "wasted" my money in taking the tours. Rather, I feel it was the best choice for me and something that I enjoyed.

While I certainly could have taken the train ride on my own, it was nice to travel with a local Guide and a small group, and I met some really interesting people. When we arrived back in Munich, the Guide gave me some great suggestions on places to eat and Beers to try.

I've also taken the Radius "Munich Walks" and "Third Reich" tours and found them interesting.

I feel that the money I spent on the tours was good value, but realize that perhaps this is not for everyone. You'll have to decide if that sort of thing fits with your travel style.

Happy travels!

If you do decide on a tour, I do highly recommend the Radius tours. I don't think it matters how you get there (train vs. bus) but what the actual tour will do for you. And Ken, I agree that it is not a waste of money to do a tour if you get something out of it. For me, in the case of Dachau, I feel I learned so much more than I would have with one of their audio tours and reading signs.

Sometimes it's not about saving money, but having the best experience you can.

I kind of wish Lee would at least try a good tour to see what he has been missing. Unless you have done it both ways, it seems futile to "dis" one way or the other.

I see people walking around all the time with guide books in their hands and I know how much they are missing. These are the same people that go home and complain that such and such city was a waste, or was boring. Guide books that, when I have read them, contain many errors and never mention even half the good stuff a city has. The hidden treasures that are impossible for a guide book to keep up with.

To answer the OP's question, I think you will get a better experience with the Radius tours over the Gray Line tours. They are smaller and have a better reputation.

Jo, I wonder how many people who are recommending the tour have done it both ways.

Last time I saw Neuschwanstein, I was with my wife. Radius would have charged us €88 (including 2 castle tour tickets). For that we get train and bus transportation, which we could have gotten for €28 with a Bayern-Ticket and castle tour tickets, worth €18. For the other €42 (~$60) they show us where the train and bus are and where the castle is. I figured all that out myself and saved $60.

Of course, I took the guided tour of Neuschwanstein (no choice) and paid €3 for the Dachau Tour, but I don't need to pay someone to babysit me on the train.

To add to my earlier post, I didn't feel that the Guide was "babysitting" me on the train. It was more interesting to be travelling with a small group, and during the trip to Fussen I not only learned something about the history of the Castles, but also about the travels of the other people on the tour. I felt that I learned more and had a more rewarding travel experience by going with the tour than if I had gone by myself.

As I travel 'solo' most of the time (when not with a RS tour group) the cost of the Radius tours was not as much of a concern. Using day tours in some locations is something that I enjoy, but can understand why it's not for everyone.

Cheers!

So, what did they do that was worth $30 per person?

off a a tangent here, but we had not planned to spend the night in one of the hotels with views of both castles-but were pleasantly surprised at the nominal cost when we walked in to inquire abt availability and price- if you are interested p m me and I will look up the name of the hotel,

I have to say i totally agree with Lee on that one. You don't need a guided tour to go to Neuschwanstein, (and i like guided tours). However, if you want to take a tour, i would take the 2 castles tour from Gray line, you will get to see Neuschwanstein, Linderhof (completely different experience) and have a shopping stop in Oberammergau. It would be a long day, but i think you would get your money's worth.

Can the information on the Gray Line 2 castle tour be right? They say they meet at 8:30 opposite the Munich Hauptbahnhof, but they don't get to Hohenschwangau until 1 PM (1300). What do they do for 4½ hrs? Then they spend approximately 4 hours in Hohenschwangau before going to Linderhof. 1 PM plus 4 hrs is 5 PM and Linderhof closes at 6 PM. It's a short trip from Hohenschwangau to Linderhof, but still, that gives you less than an hour before closing. Can that be right?

Maybe they stop in Oberammergau for shopping on the way to Hohenschwangau. I'm not sure what will be open in Oberammergau for shopping after 6 PM when Linderhof closes.

By the way, that trip is $80.85 per person, almost $162 (€113) for a couple, and does not include castle admission.