Buy Neuschwanstein Castle tickets online well in advance, as admission tickets to Bavaria’s most famous castle sell out on most days.
Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle has been a must-see sight since the death of King Ludwig II of Bavaria in 1886. The romantic, fairy-tale Schloss Neuschwanstein and nearby Hohenschwangau Castle, where Ludwig spent his youth, are some of Bavaria’s most visited tourist attractions and very popular day-trip destinations from Munich. Although opening hours are long, tickets often sell out, so buy tickets and reserve time slots online well in advance of visiting. Day-trip tours from Munich are popular ways to get tickets to visit the castles and explore the beautiful Schwangau area without your own transportation.
Schloss Neuschwanstein at a glance:
🎟️ Book online weeks ahead in summer
⏰ Timed entry required
🚶 Allow 30–40 minutes uphill to the entrance
🚌 Tours from Munich often include guaranteed admission and easy transportation
👨👩👧 Children under 18 enter free (reservation still required)
⭐ Why visit?
Fairy-tale Schloss Neuschwanstein is the most-famous castle in Bavaria and a must-see sight on any trip to Germany.
Most visitors should buy tickets directly from the official ticket office. If official tickets are sold out, guided day trips from Munich are usually the easiest alternative and often include guaranteed admission. Public transportation from Munich requires at least three hours each way — it is best to leave from Munich at least four hours before your scheduled entry time.
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Ticket Prices for Schloss Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau Castle in 2026
Ticket prices for Schloss Neuschwanstein, Hohenschwangau Castle, and the Museum of the Bavaria Kings in Schwangau are as follows in 2026:
| Castle | Adult | Children | Reduced | Booking Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neuschwanstein | €21.00 | Free under 18 | €20.00 | €2.50 |
| Hohenschwangau | €23.50 | €12.00 for 7 – 17 Free under 7 | €19.50 | €2.50 |
| Museum der bayerischen Könige | €14.50 | Free under 18 | €13.50 | €2.50 |
Notes: Every visitor needs a time-slot reservation ticket, and a €2.50 booking fee is added to every online ticket, including children and passes. For example, the booking fee for a family of four is €10 even if one child is a baby. Similarly, combination tickets for both Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau have a €5 fee.
You need at least half an hour to reach the Neuschwanstein Castle entrance from the town center (parking, bus stop, ticket office).
Reduced-price tickets (Ermäßigt) are generally available for visitors aged 65 and older, students, and certain other eligible groups. Proof of eligibility may be required.
The Bavaria Castles Ticket is a wonderful savings deal but is not valid at Hohenschwangau or the museum. It is accepted at Neuschwanstein, but an online time-slot reservation is essential.
Combination tickets for both castles give only a €1 discount. Allow at least 2.5 hours between visits if buying tickets for both castles.
Tickets are for specific time slots, and all visits are on guided tours only — either live in German or English, or by audioguide in various languages. (You select the language or audioguide option when booking.)
In a change to previous policy, individuals cannot reserve tickets by telephone or email. It is mostly no longer necessary to pick up a paper ticket at the Ticket Center itself. Follow the instructions on the ticket, but usually, simply scan the QR code on the phone at the castle entrance itself.
When do Neuschwanstein tickets go on sale? Tickets usually become available several months in advance, although the booking window may be shorter around the seasonal timetable changes in spring and mid-October. The booking calendar clearly shows all bookable dates for the desired number of visitors.
Buying Tickets for Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle in 2026
Schloss Neuschwanstein is one of the top, must-see tourist sights in Germany. It is one of Germany’s most visited attractions, with tickets to see the interior of this fantasy castle selling out on most days. In summer, school holidays, and long weekends, tickets are often sold out weeks in advance. Tickets for Schloss Hohenschwangau are usually easier to buy, but even here, time slots also sell out on busy days.
Buy Neuschwanstein Tickets Online — Best Despite the Surcharge
Tickets for individuals to both Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangau are best bought online from the official Hohenschwangau Ticket Center or as part of day trip tours, mostly from Munich. It is highly advisable to buy time-slot reservation tickets well in advance in summer, especially July, if not booking a day trip.
The €2.50 advance reservation fee per ticket is annoying but worth it if you really want to see the Wagner-inspired interior decorations.
Avoid resellers offering only tickets and an audioguide tour of the castles. This adds nothing to the regular, official tickets that include the compulsory guided tour (or audioguide) for each castle.
Schloss Neuschwanstein Ticket Center in Hohenschwangau
It is possible to buy tickets for Schloss Neuschwanstein in person and onsite, but you need to be early in the morning (and probably lucky) to secure admission. Tickets are sold only at the Ticket Center in the small village, not at the castles.
The Schloss Neuschwanstein Ticket Center, on the main road in Hohenschwangau near the bus stop for buses from Füssen, sells a small number of tickets for use on the same day. On busy days, tickets often sell out within minutes. The doors usually open at 8:00 (8:30 in winter), but the queue starts forming much earlier. It is not possible to buy tickets at the center for admission on a different day, or to queue up hoping for cancellations. Day-trip tours may have tickets at short notice (and are also able to guarantee tickets months in advance).
If you travel by train and bus from Munich to Schwangau, you are highly unlikely to secure tickets for Schloss Neuschwanstein on arrival. (Of course, you may always enquire, but no need to if the “Sold Out” sign is displayed.) Tickets for Hohenschwangau Castle are often available, and the Museum of the Bavarian Kings may be seen at any time.
You may explore the countryside and area near the castles freely. At Schloss Neuschwanstein, you need a ticket to enter the courtyard, but much of the garden of Hohenschwangau is open and worth seeing even if not visiting the interior of this castle.
Tips When Buying Tickets for Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle
Buying tickets online in advance is the most sensible way to see the fantasy castles of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau. Since the royal residences of King Ludwig II became UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2025, demand for transportation and tickets has increased further. A day-trip excursion tour from Munich may still get visitors into the castle without a reservation (and simplify transportation).
The demand for tickets to see Schloss Neuschwanstein is generally higher in the afternoon than early morning. Staying local and arriving earlier than the mass of day-trippers, especially from Munich, is a good strategy for a more pleasurable visit.
The most popular months to visit Neuschwanstein Castle are July to September. Other school holidays and long weekends are also busy.
School groups are charged for Schloss Hohenschwangau but not for the far more popular Schloss Neuschwanstein. They tend to book out many time slots in summer.
Children under 18 are admitted free to Schloss Neuschwanstein when accompanied by a paying adult. They need time slots too, so remember to include the young ones (even babies) when making reservations!
A superb savings deal for Schloss Neuschwanstein (but not Hohenschwangau Castle) is the Bavarian Palaces and Gardens season ticket. It pays for itself very fast when sightseeing in Bavaria and Munich. An advance timeslot reservation (only possible online!) for Schloss Neuschwanstein is essential — still great value at €2.50. (Select the relevant Free Adult BSV / Annual / Multi-Day ticket holder. This time-slot reservation is possible before actually buying the season ticket.)
Tickets for the Schlosskonzerte (Castle Concerts) are not sold at the Hohenschwangau Ticket Center.
Transportation from Hohenschwangau Town to the Castles
The castle ticket center, parking, and bus stops are in the heart of Hohenschwangau village. It is not allowed to drive by private car to either of the castles. Also, tour buses do not go up the mountain.
You’ll need at least half an hour to reach the castle entrances from the transportation hubs in the village.
Allow considerably more than 30 minutes if arriving shortly before your timed entry, especially during summer when queues for buses or horse-drawn carriages may be long. These services operate according to demand rather than a fixed timetable.
Getting from Hohenschwangau to Neuschwanstein
From the town center, several walking routes lead up the hill to the Disney-like Schloss Neuschwanstein. The shortest and most direct route takes around 30 minutes, but more interesting longer routes are available. Explore the routes, especially to the viewing points, before or after the castle visit.
Most visitors walk up the hill from Schwangau town, but alternatives are available to Schloss Neuschwanstein as long as the roads remain free of ice:
- A bus service runs from Schlosshotel Lisl near the Ticket Center in Schwangau to near the panorama viewing points “Jugend” and “Marienbrücke”. From here, it is still 600 m (2,000 ft) or a 10-minute walk to the castle entrance.
- Horse-drawn wagons go from Hotel Müller in Schwangau to near the Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle – from here, it is still 300 m (1,000 ft) or a 5-minute walk to the castle entrance.
In both cases, pay the drivers directly in cash. The price of the down ride is generally half the price of the up ride, while returns are significantly cheaper than two singles.
Note: the beautiful Pöllat Gorge was still closed in summer 2026 due to rock slides without an indication of when it may reopen, but the Marienbrücke (best views) is again accessible (but not in all weather). The wagons and buses do not always operate. The official website confirms daily which transportation options operate and which viewing platforms are accessible.
Getting from the Ticket Center to Schloss Hohenschwangau
The most direct route from the Ticket Center to Schloss Hohenschwangau is a ten-minute hike with some stairs over a slight hill. A level route is also available, taking around 20 minutes.
A horse-drawn wagon goes from just below the Ticket Center to Schloss Hohenschwangau in around 20 minutes.
Opening Hours for Schloss Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau Castles
Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangau are open daily, including Mondays and most public holidays. Opening hours from mid-March to mid-October are from 9 am to 6 pm, and from mid-October to mid-March from 10 am to 4 pm. The Ticket-Center in Schwangau opens (and closes) an hour earlier than the castles.
Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle is closed on December 24, 25, and 31, January 1, and Faschingsdienstag (Mardi Gras). Schloss Hohenschwangau is usually only closed on December 24 and January 1.
Both Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangau may only be seen on guided tours, with the final tours starting a few minutes before the published closing time. Tours take 30 minutes in Neuschwanstein and 45 minutes in Hohenschwangau.
These guided tours of Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangau are available in English or German, while audio guides are available in Japanese, Chinese (Mandarin), Italian, Spanish, French, Russian, Polish, Slovenian, and Czech.
Visiting Schloss Neuschwanstein is physically somewhat demanding. It is a steep walk up the hill to Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle, where a further 173 stairs are ascended, and 207 descended on the tour. Visiting Schloss Hohenschwangau is more relaxing as only around 90 stairs are involved.
The fairy-tale Schloss Neuschwanstein is for many a highlight of a visit to Bavaria and indeed Germany. Hohenschwangau Castle is less popular but played a major role in inspiring Mad King Ludwig to build Schloss Neuschwanstein. Transportation to Schloss Neuschwanstein is easy on public transportation from Munich, while drivers and some tours make it possible to see Schloss Linderhof on the same day. Similarly, day-trip tours offer excursions that include both Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Linderhof or other sights on the same day, such as stops en route at the magnificent UNESCO World Heritage-listed Rococo Wieskirche, Ettal, and Oberammergau.
Visit King Ludwig’s Castles and Palaces near Munich
King Ludwig II’s three famous palaces are among Bavaria’s top attractions and popular day trips from Munich. Each offers a very different experience — from the fairy-tale towers of Neuschwanstein to the intimate luxury of Linderhof and the Versailles-inspired grandeur of Herrenchiemsee. Since their inscription as UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2025, they have become even more popular day-trip destinations from Munich.
Use the guides below to choose which palace to visit, check tickets and transportation, or book a guided tour from Munich.
→ ⭐ Not sure which castle to visit? Compare King Ludwig’s three palaces here.
Plan Your Visit
- Which of King Ludwig’s Fantasy Castles Should You Visit Near Munich?
- Best Sightseeing Saving Passes in Munich and Bavaria
- Save with the Bayern Ticket on Public Transportation — Buy the Bayern Ticket Online.
- Book Day-Trip Tours from Munich
Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss Hohenschwangau
Fairy-tale castles near Füssen with timed-entry tickets that often sell out.
- Tickets for Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau
- Transportation to Schloss Neuschwanstein
- Why Visit Schloss Neuschwanstein?
- Why Visit Schloss Hohenschwangau?
- What to See in Nearby Füssen and Schwangau
- Neuschwanstein Day-Trip Tours
Linderhof Palace and Park
King Ludwig’s only completed palace, famous for its lavish interiors and landscaped gardens.
- Why Visit Schloss Linderhof?
- Linderhof Visitor Guide: Opening Hours, Tickets, and Transportation
- Day-Trip Tours to Linderhof
Schloss Herrenchiemsee
A Versailles-inspired palace on a peaceful island in Lake Chiemsee.
- Herrenchiemsee Visitor Guide: Sights, Opening Hours & Tickets
- Why Visit Schloss Herrenchiemsee?
- Transportation to Schloss Herrenchiemsee
- Book Day-Trips from Munich to Herrenchiemsee