Our last stop on our trip was Germany, where we stayed in Munich as our base. The train from Zurich to Munich was just over 3 hours which wasn't bad and offered lots of country side to watch.
After checking in to our hotel - (Andaz by Hyatt), we headed out to the city center for a walking tour where we saw churches, city buildings, and got a historical lesson about Munich and the city.
VIDEO: It was busy
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| We decided to try a traditional German dinner...but no, nobody got the Grilled Knuckle of suckling pig. We tried different sausages, meatballs, and a few other things......we decided we wouldn't need to try a traditional German meal again |
The next morning we enjoyed the expansive breakfast at the hotel (free of course for us, for everyone else $40 per person)
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| Not quiet sure what these are |
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VIDEO: One of the many trains we rode - they get up to speed pretty fast
We then headed to the train station to go to Salzburg, Austria. All of the old city of Salzburg is a UNESCO Heritage site and a popular tourist destination. The city and surrounding areas are famous for The Sound of Music movie which was filmed here. Mozart also was born and lived here.
We did a self guided walking tour and saw lots.
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| This is where Mozart was born and lived for a time |
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| They even had "doorbells" back then |
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| Lots of yummy things to eat |
Don waited and waited and waited for this to happen....and it only happened once!
The next day, we didn't go too far. A quick 20 minute tram ride to one of Munich's most visited sites - Nymphenburg Palace right in the middle of the city.
In 1664, the King/Queen of Bavaria had their first son born, and future heir to the throne. They had this palace built for him to one day, rule here. It was built with the finest materials from all over the world and it's HUGE! We only got to go in a very small part of it, but the grounds are also expansive. The grounds has canals patterned after those in Venice, with up to 70 gondolas, and many waterfalls and water features. In 1803 a nearby river was used to make pumphouses that provided pressured water for the fountains, that would ensure the fountains had a consistent pressure to operate all the time. The same pump houses are still used today and you can go inside them.
There are many out buildings in the heavily wooded areas (that were used for hunting by the royal family and friends) that you can go inside as well.
Here is an ariel photo - this place is huge:
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| This was the hunting lodge for the men to go to and relax during their hunt |
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| This out building was built just to rest after playing croquet |
We took a canal ride in an original gondola from Venice. It was quiet and peaceful.
Also part of the palace complex, is a museum of royal carriages and sleighs - the largest display in the world and considered the most important display of carriages/sleighs spanning over 300 years.
Ok...time for a quick history lesson that I learned during our time in Germany and about King Ludwig II. He was born at Nymphenburg Palace in 1845. He didn't have a close relationship with his parents or brother and was often reminded by them that he will be king one day and he should act like it.
Most of his childhood was spent in another castle - Hohenschwangau castle - a several days ride in a horse drawn carriage. It was a "fantasy" castle his father had built for getting away from the city and King Ludwig loved it there.
More about this castle in a minute.
When King Ludwig II was 18, his father suddenly died after a 3 day illness and King Ludwig II was suddenly the King. He didn't want to be king, didn't like crowds, didn't want to rule. Instead, he kept to himself and had a vivid imagination and built several extremely ornate, expensive and huge castles as his hobby. He loved to travel and furnished his castles (3 main castles during his reign), with the best furnishings and artwork he could find. He was involved with every aspect of the building - he made every decision, no matter how small. He did not use the public's money, but used his family fortune to fund his castle building, to the point that his family was in debt from money he borrowed from them. He would often go out riding to the cities and talk with the "common people" and was very friendly to them, and the public loved having him as their king.
Ludwig's family however, was not so happy he spent all their money. In 1886, a coup had several "doctors" say the King was mentally unstable and was not fit to rule. These doctors never even met the King. At 4am one morning, an uprising group, with family relatives and other military people, broke in to the castle and arrested the King and relieved him of power and took him away. He was working with other doctors who would say he was fit to rule and it was all a mistake.
The next day, he was found dead in a lake. The report was that he committed suicide, but an autopsy report showed no water in his lungs, he was a good swimmer, and the water was only waist deep. To this day, it is not known how he really died, but the theory is he was murdered. He only ruled for 22 years.
Ok, back to our trip.
The next day, we headed out to one of the most famous castles in the world, in fact, you've seen a replica (kind of), of this castle many times. This is the Neuschwanstein Castle in the city of Schwangau - in southern Germany near the border of Austria. Right next to Neuschwanstein castle, is yep - Hohenschwangau castle - where King Ludwig spent most of his childhood. See, this is all connected!
This place isn't easy to get to - we almost didn't add it to our trip, because of the distance and logistics of getting there. So glad Shelley kept saying she wanted to go there and we did. This was one of the highlights of the trip.
Walt Disney visited Neuschwanstein Castle in 1955 and was the main inspiration and idea for the Disneyland castle. Can you see the resemblance?
The real one is even more magical than the Disney one.
King Ludwig wanted to build a new castle (neuschwanstein castle) to escape Munich and the daily routine of being a king. He knew just the place. Right above the Hohenschwangau castle where he grew up that his dad built.
It's one of the most extensive palace complexes in the world, and it was intended to be his private castle where he lived. It was started in 1869 just 4 years after he became king. It was the areas largest employer for 17 years - up to 300 people onsite every day, and was never finished because the king died.
The king moved into the unfinished castle, with just a few rooms completed, in 1884 and he died just 2 years later with only 14 of the planned 200. 200 rooms!!!
He never intended the public to visit the castle, but just 6 months after his death, the group that orchestrated the kings removal from the throne, opened the castle to paying visitors. This helped pay off all the debts the king incurred against his family and became the single most lucrative income source for the Bavarian Royal Family. Today, it's still owned by the Bavarian Ministry. More than 1.3 million people visit each year, with up to 6000 a day in the summer. It was busy, but very organized.
No photos are allowed inside but wow, it's a good thing because they wouldn't do justice to how ornate and intricate and detailed it is. During the walking tour, you do visit most of the finished rooms, but you can't see any of the unfinished areas.
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| After a train and bus ride, the castle finally came into view |
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| This is how wooded the area is around the castle |
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| The yellow castle is Hohenschwangau Castle |
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| The castle is massive |
VIDEO:
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| This is the only place they let you take a photo - at the end of the tour through a window overlooking the lake |
VIDEO of the view, bridge and Hohenschwangau castle:
We then went down the mountain to visit the Hohenschwangau Castle, where King Ludwig II grew up. It's not quiet as impressive, but still pretty impressive. No pics allowed inside this one either.
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| The view from Hohenschwangau to Neuschwanstein |
We then head back to Munich. Wow, what a day! Knowing the history of the castles and the people of the time made a huge difference in visiting what we did.
We had a great trip and loved every day!
So you're probably thinking, how much did this cost? You do need to know travelling in Switzerland is pricey. Extremely efficient and easy, but pricey. And there are so many different train and transportation passes, you do need to do your research on that one to find out the best one to get you where you want to go. This was an expensive trip - using points or cash, as it was done in peak travel and tourist dates- in the summer.
For ease, I'll give you the main travel expenses:
Flights:
Salt Lake - Amsterdam (non-stop, economy-KLM), $1313 per person
Amsterdam to Zurich (non-stop, economy-KLM), $181 per person
Munich to Salt Lake (1 stop, Comfort+, Delta), $1235 per person
Total Flights for 2 people: $4,145
You already know no way that was my cost.
My cost: $582 taxes and 186,000 points
Hotels: Again, it was 10 nights so it was expensive, and these were bougie hotels.
Amsterdam (3 nights) - $1484
Zurich - (3 nights) $2474
Munich - (4 nights) $1634
Total Hotels: $5,592
My Cost: $0 and 197,000 points.
Grand total: $9,737 $582
Of course there was also train tickets for each day/city and food and excursions, but still.......for $582 I'll gladly pay for the train tickets and food!
This trip also took A LOT of planning since we had lots of places we wanted to go to that weren't necessarily close to where we were staying. It worked out fantastically and we loved every day!
