Is Neuschwanstein Castle worth a Drive-By?

Munich to Geneva is actually a pretty full day of driving, even without taking a detour. You can see the castle from the B17 road. You can also briefly see it from A7, but you have to know where to look or you'll miss it. And of course, if it's an overcast day (likely), it will be even harder to distinguish. Although I think Neuschwanstein is usually worth the trip, with the full day of driving you have and the relatively brief peek you'll get doing a drive-by, I don't think it's worth it. Lindau sits along your directly along your route of travel. I recommend stopping here for lunch, although I can't guarantee that any restaurants, other than the McDonalds on the outskirts of town, will remain open on Christmas Eve. But if you have a clear day, that view from the harbor across the lake to the Alps is priceless.

Thanks! I think we're just planning on buying some food for our cooler at the grocery the day before so we don't have to worry about finding an open restaurant, but it is good (I guess?) to know that McDonald's will be open as a last resort. Either way, Lindau looks like it might be a pretty place to stop and get out of the car for a while. Thanks for the suggestion!

I agree completely with Tom's comments . Allow me to add two logistical considerations . Christmas eve is close down time everywhere ( just like here at home ) . Finding a gas station if you need to fuel up along the way might be a real trick . Also , consider the likelihood of snowy roads and difficult driving conditions at that time of year . Last week an unexpected ten inches of snow closed the rail line from Munich to Oberau ( going down to Linderhof from Munich ) for two days .

I think you can get good views of the castle, but I wouldn't drive 90 minutes extra on a long day of driving. Save it for another trip (and always assume that you will have another unless you are very old). I don't know if gas stations will be hard to find, I do remember one open in Mondsee, Austria on Christmas, - good place to get some food in the attached convenience store.

"Finding a gas station if you need to fuel up along the way might be a real trick ." Won't be a problem at all on the Autobahn network. The service stations never close. As for snow... if the snow is coming down as you drive, then that could be a problem. But if not, the road crews in Germany usually have the routes cleared very quickly. Even in southern Bavaria, which usually gets the most snow.

No!