Ludwig II. - the "Fairytale King"
Ludwig II was not quite 19 years of age when, in 1864, he became King of Bavaria. The grandson of Ludwig I was an exceptionally sensitive an d romantic idealist, a monarch who didn't really fit into his era.
He had barely taken up office when he bestowed many favorrs on Richard Wagner who was being hunted by his creditors. The composer thanked him this by composing magnificent operas.
The emotianal and excentric correspondence between the King and the composer fills volumes.
And then he started building like mad. Ludwig II was the last King who, in this way, wa able to realise his idea of life as a total work of art - he failed because of the change of the times and the misunderstanding of his environment. Today, the world praises his unipue castles, millions of visitors admire the magnificent buildings of Neuschwanstei Castle, Linderhof Castle and Herrenchiemsee Castle. These buildings and the enormous sums of money spent - the three castles cost 31 millions guldens - led to the King's indiction. An expense, which, granted, today seems significantly more sensible than near 90 million guldens which were literally pulverised in the wars in Bavaria of his time.

Program:
1. day

Arrival in Diessen a. Ammersee or in Raisting (how you like)
Welcome and afterwards you´ll get your travelpapers and informations to the hike

2. day
Transfer to "Berg" a small village on the Starnberger Sea. You walk from the "Votiv-Chapel" - memories to the dead of King-Ludwig - to Starnberg, Maising and Andechs, overnight

3. day
From Andechs through the Kiental upto Herrsching and then with the ship upto Diessen.
In Diessen through the Herrnstreet to the church of Maria.

After watching the church you´re going on with your hike and over the treasuremountain upto Wessobrunn the home of famous buildingmasters and prasterers.
For the groups it´s possible to spend the night in the convent Wessobrunn inthe guesthouse. A special event is the breakfast in the convent Wessobrunn.

4. day
From Wessobrunn you´ll walk to Hohenpeissenberg a wonderful lookout in 988 km height. you can see about 80 peaks if you have good weather.
Afterwards you´ll
walk through the first part of the Ammercanyon in Peiting.

5. day
After a big breadfast you´ll walk down to the Ammercanyon to Rottenbuch with a wonderful
monesterychurch from the 12. century. In Rottenbuch you are going on on the lookoutway with sight to the mountains upto Wildsteig.

6. day
On the next morning you are walking to the Wieschurch the wonderful building of the broders Zimmermann and the UNENSCO-cultural heritage.


From here on the way made from trees through the highmoor to the Welfchurch upto Steingaden.
One of the "Welfen" was "Henry the lion", who lived some years in England (1182 - 1185)

Here is waiting a "open book of the cultural history".

7. day
We are catching you at 9 am in Wildsteig and bringing you upto Steingaden. There you´ll go on with your hike to Urspring and through the highmoor upto Berghof and Buching.

8. day
From Buching you´ll walk between the Forggen- and Bannwaldlake to the Pöllathscanyon and up to the bridge of Maria.

Here you´ll enjoy the wonderful lookout over the way you´ve gone.
From the castle Neuschwanstein you´ll walk down to the castle Hohenschwangau and on the Alproseway between alplake and Schwanlake to the fall of the river Lech.
Then you will see the bordercity Fuessen. 24 km

9. day
When you have breakfast you can leave Füssen.
There's also a railway station with trains, always with one or two changes to Munich.

So you have completed it - not the longest, nor the grandest of European long distance paths, but surely among the most fascinating, both for the astonishing cultural riches to be seen at so many places along the route, and the extraordinary personality of the man - Ludwig II of Bavaria - who inspired it.