Neuschwanstein Castle
 

Our group of 21 adults is planning to go to both Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau this coming Sat., Sept 6th. I have not made reservations yet, but have been advised to do so. Our private bus is picking us up at our hotel at 8:00am and we will drive straight there. My questions are: What time should I make the castle tour times for? How long should I allow to stay there? I know there are shuttle busses, but how difficult are the walks inside the Castles? Time permitting, we will make a stop in Oberammengau, and then on to Kloster Andechs for a well-deserved beer or two!! Do they serve food and do I need to make a reservation at the monestary? As always, thanks in advance for all answers and advice, Reid777

TTT

My questions are:

What time should I make the castle tour times for?
Depends on from where your bus will start. You should mention the location of your hotel.

How long should I allow to stay there?
The actual tour does not take long. Max 30min. Plus 30min walk uphill and downhill, respectively (or wait for bus/drive uphill, downhill). Plus some time at the beginning to walk from the parking lot to the information center to pick up your reserved tickets. Altogether, I'd say minimum 2hrs, not counting any extra time for strolling around the castle, or to the Marienbrücke viewpoint, or having a coffee somewhere.

I know there are shuttle busses, but how difficult are the walks inside the Castles?
I did not find it difficult but that will mean nothing for you if you have people with special needs in your group. According to the Castle's website, during the tour you will climb 169 steps up and 204 steps down.

Time permitting, we will make a stop in Oberammengau, and then on to Kloster Andechs for a well-deserved beer or two!! Do they serve food and do I need to make a reservation at the monestary?
Yes, and yes. Especially on weekends, the monastery is a very popular destination also for locals. You can get food and drinks at the monastery's brewery pub or the restaurant.
http://www.andechs.de/englisch/essen/index.html

Thanks Cowboy1968..... we are leaving from Munich - our hotel is very close to the Hauptbanhof - that would certainly make it easier to estimate the travel time!!

One more question - what is the approx. travel time between Andechs and Munich? We have to be back to the hotel by 8:pm (20:00)

Take into consideration that tickets for Neuschwanstein tours must be picket up at the ticket center in Hohenschwangau no later than one hour before the tour starts.

September 6th is a Sunday. And yes, lots of steps. It sounds like a full day. It usually takes me almost a full day just for the castles.

Taking into account that a bus will not go as fast as a car, I'd say 2hrs minimum (!) from Munich to Neuschwanstein.
And around 45min from Andechs back to Munich.
Plus add what quokka said about picking up the tickets.
If you leave at 8am, I'd say you take a tour not earlier than 11.30am.

P.S. Sorry, I did not notice that you want to see both Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau. What I wrote about the duration of the tour and number of steps was for Neuschwanstein only!

Whoops - you're right, scatcat - we are going on Sat., Sept 5th. Given all the info, we probably will have to skip either one of the castles or Oberammengau - any suggestions?

If I had to skip something, I'd skip Oberammergau. We spent a couple hours there and it was just ok. There are some interesting murals on the walls around town, but otherwise it is just a town.