Winter in Schwangau
Hauptmenü
All Shades of White: The Winter Wonderland Around the King’s Castles
Sports-minded winter holiday makers who love the crisp, cold season are equally enchanted as people with a keen interest in history. The Bavarian village of Schwangau caters to many tastes. From the wide plain that slowly rises towards the alps, from along the winter hiking trails, the cross-country ski trails certified by the German Ski Association (DSV) as well as along the 4.2 kilometre downhill ski run you time and again get new, breathtaking views of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau, the famous castles of King Ludwig II.
The leisurely ambience around the rural little town of Schwangau, the glittering ice surfaces of the numerous frozen lakes and the DSV ‘s Nordic skiing centre provide ample opportunities for exercising body, mind and soul. And activities don’t stop at sundown. Downhill fans ski on the slopes of the floodlit winter sports arena at the foot of the castles while Nordic skiers and skaters circle the illuminated two-kilometre Neuschwanstein track where the view alone takes your breath and the snow’s always perfect, thanks to the automatic snowing system.
Recuperation is in the air in this resort town with its healthy climate, especially in winter. Long walks on well-blazed trails, sledding with the kids down three natural slopes and one specially prepared family run. Virgin snowshoe trails and relaxing winter hikes let the stress of daily routine just melt away. A stone’s throw farther on Schwangau pools its assets with its neighbours in Allgäu and Tyrol in the Skiverbund Vitales Land – the “Healthy Country Ski Union.”
From the Alpine Point of View
During the past years the Tegelberg winter sports arena has developed into a sure-snow area for beginners and advanced skiers. If you’re jetting down the 4.2 kilometre Tegelberg run or just mastering your first metres at the Adler, Falken or Reith Lift slopes: All the sure-snow runs are safely illuminated during the evening hours.
At Schwangau’s second skiing area at Buchenberg (“Beech Mountain”) the double chairlift takes you to the top where you can ski, snow-surf and toboggan while enjoying the panoramic view. Crossing frontiers on skis has a long tradition between the German Allgäu and Austrian Tyrol boarders, carvers and newcomers on skis can freely commute between all circuses of the Vitales Land.
From the Nordic Point of View
The people of Schwangau are becoming used to getting astonished looks: Things you would only expect at the Nordic Skiing World Championship village of Oberstdorf are meanwhile also available at the village of royal castles: The official Nordic Skiing Cross-Country Site with 32 kilometres of prepared trails of every category, from beginners’ to championship. The GPS-surveyed trail markings let you find your way in classic as well as free-style.
Winter Vantage Points
There are countless viewpoints along the Winter Hiking Network, so we’ll name just the most spectacular ones: The 1.800 metre peak of the Tegelberg, where hang glider and parachute pilots congregate, commands a view reaching from Germany’s highest mountain, the Zugspitze, to the lake district of Eastern Allgäu. A couple of kilometres away at the top of the Buchenberg
winter holiday-makers, snowshoe and alpine tour skiers enjoy the panoramic views of countless alpine peaks.
There are lots of ways to spend a romantic afternoon in Schwangau: Take a two-horsepower coach ride through King Ludwig’s dreamland, passing the baroque pilgrimage church of St. Coloman’s. Or get close up with nature and watch the feeding of the animals at the deer park or indulge in the warm, soothing wellness worlds of the Royal Crystal Thermal Baths (“Königliche Kristalltherme”). Between jewel grotto, seven motif saunas, steam baths and wellness applications your eye will always wander up to the royal abode of Neuschwanstein and the family castle of Hohenschwangau.