The Romantic Road, from Würzburg to Neuschwanstein

From the Main to the Alps

The Romantic Road links Würzburg, on the Main, with Füssen, at the foot of the Alps. It keeps off the motorway and goes from one walled town to the next, often entering through a gate in the ramparts. Brown signs mark it from end to end, sometimes with a Japanese translation.

The landscape changes little by little. First the vineyards of the Main, then the green valley of the Tauber and its castles. Then wheat fields and the Ries, a round, flat plain ringed by hills: it is a meteorite crater about 25 kilometres across. After Augsburg, the road follows the Lech to the meadows and onion-domed church towers of the Pfaffenwinkel. Soon after Schongau, the Alps appear on the horizon.

In Rothenburg, you walk the covered wall walk, and in the evening you follow the night watchman on his rounds. At the end of the road, you take the cable car to the top of the Tegelberg to see the Forggensee.

Rothenburg and Dinkelsbühl re-enact their legend every year. In Rothenburg, tradition has it that the former mayor Georg Nusch emptied a tankard of more than three litres of wine in one go, in 1631, so that General Tilly would spare the town. This is the Meistertrunk, performed every year at Whitsun. In Dinkelsbühl, the Kinderzeche in July tells how children are said to have softened the hearts of the Swedes, in 1632.

Nördlingen is built in the Ries crater, formed nearly 15 million years ago. Its church, St. Georg, is built partly of suevite, a rock created by the impact. In 1970, the Apollo 14 astronauts came to train in the crater before leaving for the Moon.

Ludwig II and his castles

Ludwig II of Bavaria grew up at Hohenschwangau, the yellow castle that his father, Maximilian II, had rebuilt above the Alpsee. Once king, he had Neuschwanstein built just opposite, from 1869: a dream of a medieval castle, decorated with scenes from Wagner’s operas. He lived there for only a few months. The king died in June 1886 in Lake Starnberg, in circumstances that have never been explained. The castle, still unfinished, opened to visitors a few weeks later.

The classic view of Neuschwanstein is from the Marienbrücke, a footbridge over the Pöllat gorge. Since 2025, the castle has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site, together with three of the king’s other creations: Linderhof, Herrenchiemsee and the King’s House on the Schachen.

What not to miss

1. 1The Würzburg ResidenceThe palace of the prince-bishops and its staircase, beneath Tiepolo’s fresco, one of the largest in the world.
2. 2The Creglingen altarpieceIn the Herrgottskirche, Tilman Riemenschneider’s Altar of the Virgin, carved in limewood and left unpainted.
3. 3The Daniel towerAbout 350 steps to the top of Nördlingen’s church tower, to see the round town and the crater.
4. 4The FuggereiIn Augsburg, the oldest social housing estate still lived in, founded in 1521.
5. 5The WieskircheA rococo pilgrimage church, white and gold, alone in the middle of the meadows.
6. 6Harburg CastleA very well-preserved fortress, on its rock above the Wörnitz.

The Romantic Road in pictures

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Würzburg, the Main and the old bridge with its statues.

The Romantic Road table

In Franconia, people drink Silvaner, a dry white wine, sold in the Bocksbeutel, a round, flat bottle. In Würzburg, you taste it in the cellars of the old hospitals, or glass in hand on the Old Main Bridge. In Rothenburg, the pastry shops sell Schneeballen, balls of fried pastry covered in sugar.

In Swabia, Spätzle, fresh egg noodles, often come with the main dishes. In the Allgäu, they are eaten as Kässpatzen, with melted mountain cheese and fried onions. In Upper Bavaria, tradition says that Weißwurst, white sausages, are eaten before noon.