Entry to Neuschwanstein Castle is by guided tour only, and tickets sell out weeks in advance. But tour operators have reserved special skip-the-line tickets.
- To skip the explanation and book a Neuschwanstein Castle tour with skip-the-line tickets, head this way.
Getting into Neuschwanstein Castle
Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria is the one that the Disney Castle is allegedly based on. It’s also by far the most popular German castle with visitors, to the point where actually getting inside can be a nightmare.
Entry is by guided tour only, and those tours are renowned for selling out.
Do tickets for Neuschwanstein Castle sell out?
To test how rare tickets for Neuschwanstein Castle are, I tried making a dummy booking via the official Hohenschwangau site.
To my surprise, I could book a ticket for this afternoon – but only for the audio guide tour, and only in one time slot. It was 4.40pm or nothing.
There was also one audio guide tour slot available for tomorrow at 5.20pm.
However, the shocking discovery was that these were the only two timed slots for visiting Neuschwanstein Castle for the rest of August.
So, yes, tickets to Neuschwanstein Castle do sell out, and horribly far in advance.
How to visit Neuschwanstein Castle when there are no tickets left
If tickets for Neuschwanstein Castle have sold out, then you can still get in. You just have to approach it a different way.
That means getting tickets off the people who have already reserved their slot – the tour operators.
Because the tour operators have already bought their tickets, or made arrangements to reserve spaces on the castle interior tours, they usually have availability when the castle doesn’t.
You’ll just have to accept paying more to sit on a tour bus from Munich and going with a group rather than driving yourself.
Given that it’s usually a two hour drive from Munich to Neuschwanstein Castle, that’s not a terrible thing. You’ll also get commentary and learn a bit about Bavaria along the way.
How much do Neuschwanstein Castle tours cost?
There are several tour operators that head to Neuschwanstein Castle every day. The primary differences are in where they depart from (some go from Hohenschwangau or Garmische-Partenkirchen rather than Munich) and what they include.
While all include skip-the-line access to Neuschwanstein Castle, not all of them include the ticket price. With the cheaper tours, you’ll have to pay €23.50 once you get to the castle to get inside.
Tours billing themselves as VIP don’t charge extra to go inside the castle, but they cost more up front.
Looking for Neuschwanstein Castle tours from Munich with next day availability, I found options available for from €79. This didn’t include the castle entrance fee.
The VIP option, which also includes entry to Linderhof on the same day, does include the cost of Neuschwanstein tickets in the €166 tour price.
Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. Book through them, and I earn a small commission. All prices are correct at the time of writing, but subject to change in future.
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