Scenic hike in the Ostallgäu at the foot of the royal castles
By bike, it's approximately 22 km from the Explorer Hotel Neuschwanstein to the starting point at the Schwansee parking lot in the small village of Alterschrofen, which belongs to Füssen.
By public transport, head to Füssen and continue by bus towards Hohenschwangau to the Alterschrofen-Rohrachweg stop (5 minutes from the train station), then walk the short distance to the parking lot.
From the Schwansee parking lot, first head towards the lakeshore. Once you reach the shore, turn left and follow the path until you reach the edge of the forest.
At the third junction, keep left to climb the Fischersteig trail in switchbacks. On the other side of the trail, the path leads you downhill again; keep left here to reach the Alpsee Circular Trail.
The path now leads you along the shore around the eastern tip of Lake Alpsee, past the Alpenrose restaurant. Shortly after the former Grand Hotel, the path narrows on the southern shore of Lake Alpsee, and you leave the tourist groups behind.
Follow the path around the lake until you reach the junction on the other side of the shore where you started the circuit around Lake Alpsee. Here, turn left onto the hiking trail and keep left again at the next junction to reach Schwansee via the Alpine Rose Trail (do not take the Fischersteig trail from the outward journey). The trail now leads you above Schwansee, gently up and down, past the Ziegelwies climbing garden to Kalvarienberg.
From the viewing platform, you have a magnificent view of Füssen, Schwansee, the royal castles of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau, and the mountain panorama with Tegelberg, Hoher Straußberg, and Säuling.
From there, the descent to Schwansee follows. Once you reach the lakeshore, keep left and take the dirt road back to your starting point (parking lot).