Germany

Trip Summary:

Dates:    July 7th to July 9th

Year: 2014

Main Language of Country:   German

Capital City of Germany: Berlin

Transportation Used:   Train, Bus

Currency: Euro

Accommodation: Hostel

Number of Photos Taken: 60

Favorite Place: Füssen

Average Cost of a Full Meal: 12 – 20 Euro

Average Cost of a Night per Person: 20 Euro

Introduction:

Our time in Germany was only a brief stop while we were passing from Switzerland in the west, and carrying on to Czech Republic to the east. Because of this we didn’t have very much time in Germany.

Our original plan was to stay in Munich for a few nights, but for some reason all of the accommodation in the city was booked up except for a few places that were out of our budget. So we changed our plans on the fly and decided to instead stay in the nearby town of Füssen. We caught a train from the city of Lucerne in Switzerland where we had been staying which took us to Munich. And from there it was another quick train ride down to Füssen.

Füssen: (July 7 – 9)

Füssen is a very small German town in the Bavarian region of Germany that is right against the Austrian border. It’s an incredibly beautiful town and is surrounded by mountains and lakes. With the cobbled streets, the bavarian buildings and the surrounding landscapes, you almost expect to meet Robin Hood or King Arthur walking down the same streets as you. We ended up being very thankful that we weren’t able to stay in Munich as we much preferred the simplicity and quiet, small town feel that Füssen provided.

Füssen is, however, a popular tourist spot and even though I haven’t travelled much of Germany, I don’t think it truly reflects a typical German town. Instead, it is centred around tourism and is filled with restaurants, cafes, hostels and B&B’s. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing and we had a lot of fun during our short stay in Füssen, but it is something to keep in mind.

During the time that we were travelling through Germany, the 2014 World Cup was being hosted in Brazil. We happened to be in Fussen when Germany defeated Brazil by 7-1 in the semi-final match. We watched the match at a small pub in Füssen called Laura´s Schiffwirtschaft which was a lot of fun. Afterwards, the town went crazy (along with the rest of Germany from what we heard later) and people flooded onto the streets waving flags and celebrating. At one point we walked past a small roundabout which was backed up because cars kept doing circles around and around honking their horns and waving flags. It was quite an experience and really cool to see a country so unified by a sporting event.

The only downside of our time in Germany is that it rained for almost the entire time that we were there. With only a limited amount of time in the area, however, we tried not to let it hamper our plans and did a lot of our exploring the the rain.

TIP: We stayed at the Old King’s Fuessen Design Hostel and it cost us €20 each per night. Fussen is so small that location doesn’t really matter, but regardless the location of the Old King’s hostel was great and was right in the middle of town and very near to the train station as well. We really enjoyed are stay there and during the rainy weather that we had during our time there it was a great place to dry off, have a cup of tea, and do some reading.

Just southeast of Füssen is a castle called Neuschwanstein that is very popular and you have more than likely come across a picture of it at some point. We only had one full day in the area around Füssen so this was our main objective.

• Neuschwanstein Castle:

Even though it was raining quite heavily on the day that we went to Neuschwanstein, we still had a great day. In fact, besides getting soaking wet and cold, the fog and cloud actually made the castle even more dramatic and it looked like it had been cut straight out of a fairytale. I also think that there may have been less people around the castle because of the rain as well.

TIP: Getting to the castle is really simple and there are busses that leave from near the train station in Fussen and I believe they come roughly once an hour. It’s then a quick ride over to the castle.

We didn’t actually go on a tour through the castle, but you can walk into the main courtyard of the castle and get a bit of a view of the interior walls from there.

You can also walk around to the southern side of the castle where there is a bridge called Marienbruecke and you can get a great view from the bridge of the side of the castle.

Most people turn around at the bridge and head back, but we decided to keep walking further up along the path and there are a few points along the way that you can get other great views down onto the castle.

We ended up getting really cold, and the trail was muddy and slippery so we turned around about halfway along the trail, but if you keep continuing the trail takes you all of the way to the top of Mount Tegelberg. There is also a cable car at the top of Tegelberg that you can take up or down.

TIP: There is also another castle below Neuschwanstein called Hohenschwangau that you can also check out if you have time and are interested. You can get a good view of it from above when you are walking south of Neuschwanstein towards the Marienbruecke bridge.

Conclusion:

With more time, and less rain, there is a lot to explore around Neuschwanstein and Füssen, and we would have loved to have more time in the area. The mountains, lakes, and castles in the area are really special and create a feeling and atmosphere that is very unique to the Bavarian area of Germany.
Even with the rain and the limited amount of time, however, Hilary and I loved our time in Füssen and won’t soon forget the Germany vs. Brazil football match, or our day exploring the area around Neuschwanstein Castle. And just like so many other places that we travel, the small amount of time that we spend in a place serves to make us even more eager to return again one day to explore further.

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