swans and castles of bavaria

We’re up to the seventh in our series of itineraries inspired by the 12 days of Christmas! Very exciting!

On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…

…seven swans a swimming.

When we think of swans, we can’t help but think of the Bavarian castles of Ludwig the II, known affectionately (?) as “Mad King Ludwig.” Ludwig built some extravagant castles in Bavaria, including the iconic Neuschwanstein Castle. Meaning “New Swan Stone," the legendary castle was named for the Swan Knight, a character from Lohengrin — the opera by Richard Wagner, who was a close personal friend of Ludwig II. Wagner’s influence on the castle is tangible; the interior has more than a few paintings inspired by his works.

After your visit, you’ll definitely want to go up to the bridge to take a selfie with the castle in the background.

Then, after visitingNeuschwanstein, If you still haven’t had your fill of Mad King Ludwig’s castles, you could also visit nearby Schloss Linderhof. It’s the smallest of the three castles, and the only one that he actually finished building.

where the King had a man-made grotto constructed — known as the Venus Grotto — modelled on the Hörselberg from the first act of the Wagner opera "Tannhäuser". The Venus Grotto features a stage "royal seat", a Lorelei rock, and a gilt “swan boat.” How nuts was Ludwig? Well, he liked to float around the little lake in the shell boat feeding bread to the swans and listening to his favorite opera singers staging private performances on his little grotto stage. Apparently, he wanted to stage an entire opera for a private performance (just for him) in the grotto, but the Bavarian Parliament wouldn’t let him spend the money.

Editorial credit: Mikhail Markovskiy / Shutterstock.com

Europe will be open, soon, and we think that if you haven’t yet visited the castles of Mad King Ludwig, you should move it up on your list! Let us know when you’re ready to make a plan!