Birthdays and Princess Castles: Neuschwanstein

I’ve wanted to visit the Neuschwanstein Castle since I first moved to Germany. It reminded me of all the princess castles we watched in movies growing up. It looked so perfect in photographs and I wanted so badly for it to be that beautiful in person. Unfortunately, King Ludwig II died before it was completely finished. The castle was opened to the community and millions of people visit this incredible piece of history every year. Aunt Karin and our cousin Jenny helped us plan a trip to Neuschwanstein the weekend of my birthday to celebrate our marriage.

We were up late the night before at the local Octoberfest celebration. We woke up later than planned and started our road trip. To be honest, Dan started driving and I napped gracefully in the passenger seat. He was so sweet to snap this picture of me…

We finally made it to Aunt Karin’s house. She made a delicious homemade breakfast and fresh coffee —> we definitely needed that! As we got back into the car to continue our road trip, Aunt Karin talked us into taking the scenic route. We agreed immediately. The fall weather was warm and sunny. The gorgeous German countryside was well worth the extra hour to get there.

When we arrived we scoped out the castles and did some shopping. We stopped for pizza, beers and of course cappuccino! I loved the atmosphere of this chill little restaurant named “Relax” in Fussen, Germany.

We were exhausted from a long day of travel so when we finally made it to our hotel on the border of Austria and Germany we slept so hard. The next morning we woke up to a delicious European breakfast including freshly baked bread, rolls, meats, cheeses and fruit. We had such a great experience at this hotel!

We went back to the Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau castle. Dan and Aunt Karin were waiting in line to get tickets. I was picking up cappuccinos and hot, freshly baked pretzels. What an amazing breakfast! We didn’t end up getting tickets to tour the castle. I remembered reading blogs saying we should buy tickets ahead of time but I forgot to! oops! We didn’t want to delay heading back home (It’s football season! The Eagles were playing at 7pm Germany time and Dan wouldn’t miss a game).

We took a carriage ride up to the castle and toured the exterior and the courtyard. The views from where the castle sits nestled into the mountains were breathtaking. It was everything I could have ever hoped it would be.

Thanks for spending my birthday with me Aunt Karin!