P24 - Germany - Neuschwanstein Castle

Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany

Neuschwanstein Castle (German: Schloss Neuschwanstein) is a 19th-century Bavarian palace on a rugged hill near Hohenschwangau and Füssen in southwest Bavaria, Germany. The palace was commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and as an homage to Richard Wagner, the King's inspiring muse. Although public photography of the interior is not permitted,it is the most photographed building in Germany and is one of the country's most popular tourist destinations.

Ludwig did not allow visitors to his castles, but after his death in 1886 the castle was opened to the public (in part due to the need to pay off the debts Ludwig incurred financing its construction). Since that time over 50 million people have visited the Neuschwanstein Castle. About 1.3 million people visit annually, with up to 6,000 per day in the summer.The palace has appeared in several movies, and was the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty Castle at both Disneyland Park and Hong Kong Disneyland.

The palace is owned by the state of Bavaria, unlike nearby Hohenschwangau Castle, which is owned by the head of the house of Wittelsbach, currently Franz, Duke of Bavaria. The Free State of Bavaria has spent more than €14.5 million on Neuschwanstein's maintenance, renovation and visitor services since 1990.

新天鹅堡（德语：Schloss Neuschwanstein）全名新天鵝石城堡，是19世紀晚期的建築，位在今天的德國巴伐利亞西南方，鄰近年代較早的高天鹅堡（Schloss Hohenschwangau，又稱舊天鵝堡），距離菲森（Füssen）鎮約4公里，离德國與奧地利邊界不遠。

這座城堡是巴伐利亚国王路德维希二世的行宮之一。共有360個房間，其中只有14個房間依照設計完工，其他的346個房間則因為國王在1886年逝世而未完成。是德國境內受拍照最多的建築物。也是最受歡迎的旅遊景點之一。

新天鵝堡的外型也激發了許多現代童話城堡的靈感，包括美國加州迪士尼乐园和香港迪士尼乐园的睡美人城堡。东京迪士尼乐园和美國佛羅里達州華特迪士尼世界中神奇王國的灰姑娘城堡的灵感是来自德国的一些城堡，尤其是Château d'Ussé。

References sources : wikipedia