Biking from Füssen to Neuschwanstein Castle

I haven't done this personally, but the ride from Fuessen to the parking/ticketing area of the castles looks like it would be pretty easy. Less than a few miles, at most, and over relatively flat terrain. You probably could ride the bikes all the way up the hill to Neuschwanstein if you so choose, but I doubt you would find a good place to lock the bikes up there. Whereas, you could easily find a post or a fence (there may even be bikeracks, for all I know) at the bottom of the hill.

Drat. I stopped in Fuessen in September just to photograph and note things that travelers frequently ask (lockers at Fuessen, location of the TI office, route from the bus stop to the ticket kiosk, etc) for my webpage, but I didn't think to look for bike racks. The people at the TI office did say that travelers could stash their bags behind the counter, but I didn't see room for bikes.

According to Google maps it's 4.1 km (2½ mi). The bus takes eight minutes, as I recall. I've ridden out on the bus a few times. It's a relatively flat road, but fairly narrow from the river out to Hohenschwangau and fairly busy. There might be some less traveled side roads or even paths that would make the trip longer but with less traffic.

P.S.: The full sized picture I took of the TI office (before reducing the size for my webpage) does show what looks like at least four bicycles at the extreme right of the picture. I can't tell if they are in a rack, or just leaning against the fence there, but it looks like people do leave bikes at the TI office.

Another possibility, the station plan for Fuessen does show a bicycle symbol at the P&R lot, so there are probably bike racks there. You could leave your bikes at the Fuessen Bahnhof and ride the bus out and back. Ask the driver for a round trip (Hin- und Rüchfahrt). That should cost about €3,00 pP.

Thanks for the replies! I should have made myself a little clearer, sorry! I was wondering whether we could rent bikes in Fussun and then bike to the castles. Lee-thanks for the website, I love being able to see detailed pictures of where I am going before I get there!

That station plan (link in my previous posting) shows a bicycle rental (Fahrradverleih) just off the end of the tracks, but I know nothing about it. You could ask there about places to safely put the bicycles at Hohenschwangau. I assume they will speak some English.

I believe the bus will be cheaper than the bicycle rental and less hassle concerning where to put bikes in Hohenschwangau, but the ride out could be fun. Ask them for a map and for possible alternative routes with less traffic.

Here is a link to the national bicycle touring club of Germany. They have a very cool interactive search for interesting bike tours and route maps for all the bike paths in Germany. At one point, I found a link that presents most all of this in English, but I can't find it again. I'll update the post later if I find it. Still, if you click around, you may be able to decipher enough to make it useful. They also list a whole series of small hotels or guest rooms that cater to bicycle tourists (locking up bikes indoors, packing lunches, etc.) There are also community tours you can join to tour a particular stretch in the company of German bicycle enthusiasts, families, women-only or whatever. It's a very cool site. I found an off-road tour that went near Fuessen, but I didn't see anything that listed Neuschwanstein specifically. Maybe you just wanted the short tour you mentioned - but here's a new world of opportunities!

http://www.adfc.de/

I found the English link. it's not the full site but still informative.
http://www.germany-tourism.de/ENG/nature_active_recreation/activity_cycling_experience.htm

Lee-you're right, it is cheaper to go by bus, but by this point, we will have done a lot of public transit, and thought it would be fun to do a little biking. Nelly-thanks for the website! It is awesome, has some really good info. Thanks again to everyone for all the replies, it is really appreciated!

Lizzie, using Nelly's link, I see that the route from Fuessen out to Hohenschwangau is a little part of the Bodensee Königssee Radweg, which is a Radweg (bikepath) extending completely across the southern border of Bavaria along the Alps, from Lindau to Berchtesgaden. The website for the Bodensee Königssee Radweg has a map of the entire route, and if you zoom in on just the section from the Lech bridge to Hohenschwangau, it shows a "bikepath" on the right hand side of the road all the way out. Unfortunately they put a line over the top of where the path might be, but google maps shows a paved lane alongside the main road.

Good luck and gute Reise.

One more site, then I'll quit! I've enjoyed this site a few times. I haven't yet done my fantasy bike tour of Germany, but I'll be there this summer and my kids' legs are now longer than mine, so I'm hoping they'll do some riding without excessive whining.

http://bicyclegermany.com/