On my holiday in Bavaria, I continued to tour King Ludwig II’s fantastical castles and palaces and today I was going to Linderhof.
I went to Linderhof Palace after my morning paragliding flight and I was still flying high from this amazing experience. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day, so I was expecting to enjoy Linderhof Palace and its grounds and I wasn’t disappointed.
Linderhof was my favourite of King Ludwig II’s castles and palaces. It was really worth going inside Linderhof. In my opinion, the interior was much better than at Neuschwanstein, I thought Neuschwanstein was dark and gloomy inside, but Linderhof was bright and colourful.
The bedroom was just spectacular. Mad King Ludwig II had the bedroom decked out like the Palace of Versailles. The king’s bedroom in Versailles was a showpiece because people would come and watch him get up in the morning and go to bed at night, but he didn’t actually sleep in the bed.
King Ludwig had it right, it was the exact opposite situation for him with his bedroom at Linderhof to the one of King Louis XIV at Versailles.
King Ludwig II was a recluse and he certainly had no one come into his bedroom and watch him get up in a morning and go to bed at night. He tended to sleep during the day and be up at night anyway. However, when he did go to sleep, he actually slept in his impressive, colossal, blue bed. I was pleased to know he had slept in the bed, it would have been such a waste otherwise.
He was also so much of a recluse, he had a “Wishing Table” in his dining room which was lowered through the floor into the kitchen, his food was put on it and then it was lifted back up into the dining room so he didn’t have to see his servants. He seriously did not like anyone to interrupt the fantasy world he was living in. I can’t fault him there!
The final room in the palace was the Hall of Mirrors, again it was a relatively small room, but the walls were completely covered with mirrors and King Ludwig would tend to use the room at night when it would be lit with hundreds of candles, their flames all reflected off the countless mirrors. It must have been a spectacular sight.
All the rooms were different colours, mainly pastel shades or bright colours, nothing dark and gloomy in there. On the tour of Linderhof, you get to see all the rooms too with it being such a small palace, it’s much smaller than Neuschwanstein. It was the only one of his castles that was completed because King Ludwig designed a manageably sized palace, rather than an enormous castle.
Another great thing about Linderhof was there weren’t many people on the tour so it was much easier to see everything and hear the guide. Linderhof isn’t as well known as Neuschwanstein, subsequently less people visit. One thing you certainly shouldn’t miss when you go to Linderhof are the grounds. I was lucky to be there on a fine day, so I could explore the grounds extensively.
In front of the palace was a manicured formal garden and steps leading up to terraces with some amazing statues and fountains. I was particularly drawn to the horse fountain where water was spurting out of the horses’ nostrils! From the terraces you could appreciate the layout of the formal garden and see the palace. However, I preferred the grounds at the back of the palace with a plant covered tunnel to walk through and the Music Pavilion, a gazebo at the top of the hill with a view to Linderhof Palace and the Alps beyond.
The only thing I didn’t like about walking through the grounds was the number of slow worms on the path, I saw three, they all looked like baby snakes and all made me jump. It was a hot day, so they were out enjoying the sunshine the same as me, but I don’t like snakes, not even little ones. If I have to hurl myself off the top of a mountain, I’m practically fearless, a slow worm is on the footpath in front of me and I’m scared. What a wimp!
There were a few buildings around the grounds at Linderhof, most impressive was the grotto.
The Venus Grotto is an artificial dripstone cave and I was surprised just how big it was. It features a lake and a stage and a shell shaped gilt boat on the lake. I had read that King Ludwig liked to ride in his boat on the lake in his man made cave which was designed to look like a stage set from the opera, Tannhäuser while he listened to music from Richard Wagner operas. When I visited the boat was on the lake and I could see the beautiful stage at the back of the cave. Sadly I wasn’t allowed to ride in the shell shaped boat to get a closer look at the stage myself.
I walked right round the grounds and saw all the other buildings too, including the replica of Hunding’s Hut, a hunting lodge that was built in 1876, but burned down less than 10 years later. It was rebuilt and burned down a second time. The present Hunding’s Hut was reconstructed in 1990. It has a tree in the middle of it and represents a set from Valkyrie, part of Wagner’s Ring Cycle. In fact, using sets from Wagner operas to decorate the castle rooms and grounds was a recurring theme, not only at Linderhof, but in all of King Ludwig’s palaces as King Ludwig II was a huge fan of Richard Wagner and the Germanic legends his operas portrayed.
There were a couple of other small buildings in the grounds, the Moorish kiosk with its spectacular peacock throne and the Moroccan house with its beautiful chandelier. You could only go into the doorway of the buildings so it wasn’t easy to get photographs. Both of these buildings were built elsewhere, bought by King Ludwig and transported to Linderhof.
There were plenty of places to walk around the grounds, especially in the woods around by the hunting lodge and at the back of the palace up in the Music Pavilion.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Linderhof, both the palace and grounds. The palace was small and beautifully decorated and the grounds and the numerous buildings in them were impressive. I particularly enjoyed the hunting lodge even though it was a replica and I thought the cave was fantastic.
The view of the palace and Bavarian Alps from the gazebo was amazing and I adored King Ludwig’s bedroom modelled on Louis XIV’s bedroom at Versailles. And I loved the fact that he used it, rather than it simply being a showpiece.
Having said that, all of Linderhof was a showpiece. It was definitely the pick of King Ludwig II’s palaces.
I travelled in Bavaria during the second week of May in 2015.
As no photographs are allowed inside the palace at Linderhof, if you want to take a look at the interior, check out the official website with a virtual tour of the palace complete with photographs of each room.
General information, including admission prices, can be found on the official palace website.
Please note, according to the Linderhof Palace official website, the Venus Grotto is presently undergoing extensive restoration work which is not due to be completed until the end of 2022. During these restoration works the Venus Grotto will remain closed.
I bought a 14 day pass which was valid for a large number of castles and palaces throughout Bavaria and cost 24 Euros. This leaflet details all attractions covered by the 14 day pass.
You can only visit Linderhof as part of a guided tour.
In 2018 tickets for a guided tour of Linderhof cost 8.50 Euros per person and includes admission to the park buildings.
In Winter it is possible to visit Linderhof Palace only for 7.50 Euros per person.
In Summer you can visit the grounds and park buildings only for 5 Euros per person.
Combination tickets for entry to Neuschwanstein, Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee cost 26 Euros per person.
Linderhof Palace is located 100km from Munich which is an approximate one and a half hour drive from the city.
I stayed at Hotel Kriemhild close to the Hirschgarten in Munich
I flew to Munich direct from Birmingham Airport with Lufthansa
Read further instalments about my tours of King Ludwig II’s fantasy castles and palaces.
Neuschwanstein Castle
Palace of Herrenchiemsee
I also visited the Bavarian palaces in Munich.
Schloss Nymphenburg and the Munich Residenz
Read about my other adventures on my trip to Bavaria and Austria.
Paragliding in the Bavarian Alps
Surreal Night at the Rattlesnake Saloon
Längenfeld Aqua Dome Spa
I love visiting castles and palaces. Read about other castles I’ve visited around the world.
Kronborg – A Visit to Hamlet’s Castle