Moritzburg or Neuschwanstein?

The short version: Neuschwanstein is the more famous castle and I am not going to pretend otherwise. What Moritzburg offers instead is a different kind of day: flat ground, a small building and water on every side, about an hour out of Dresden, and you buy the ticket at the counter on the day you arrive. They are also 500 kilometres apart, so for most itineraries this is not a choice at all.

Coming out from Dresden?The castle sells its own admission at its own counter, so what is worth booking ahead is the ride: a guided day that carries the ticket for you, or a car from Prague. Every one of them cancels free up to 24 hours before, and one of the six is Moritzburg and nothing else.

See the ways out there

What I will and will not claim

I write about one castle in Saxony. I have not checked Neuschwanstein’s current prices, hours or ticketing, so I am not going to quote them at you, and anything you read on a comparison page that does quote them is worth checking against the source. What I can tell you accurately is what Moritzburg is like.

What Moritzburg is

A baroque hunting seat on an artificial island, made by flooding four ponds into one.
Flat ground. There is no mountain approach and no climb to the gate.
Small enough for half a day, which leaves the park and the lake in the same afternoon. How long it wants.
Two rooms worth the journey on their own: the feather room and the dining room with 71 antler trophies.
A film castle, for a large part of Europe, since 1973. The Cinderella exhibition.

The catch, which Neuschwanstein does not have

The baroque exhibition runs 20 March to 1 November. The castle then shuts completely from 2 to 19 November. From 20 November to 28 February the building holds the Drei Haselnüsse für Aschenbrödel exhibition — Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella — at the same admission price, and while that is on, the baroque rooms are not part of the visit. So you cannot come to Moritzburg and see everything it is known for on one ticket. You see one half of it, and which half depends entirely on the date. Choosing the month.

If you are in Saxony anyway

Then the comparison stops mattering. Moritzburg is 15 km from Dresden by bus 477 or by narrow-gauge steam railway, and it is a half-day trip rather than an expedition. The day from Dresden.

The castle sells its own admission at its own counter and on schloss-moritzburg.de. There is no Moritzburg entry ticket on GetYourGuide, so nothing on this site is a substitute for that counter. What the platform sells is the journey, and two of the six listings that reach Moritzburg carry a castle ticket inside the day: the guided day from Dresden and the private Prague car that pairs Moritzburg with the Zwinger.

The Saxon version of the day

Eight hours from Dresden with a live guide in English, French, German or Italian, Meißen and the porcelain works in the morning, Schloss Moritzburg after, with the admission named in the inclusions and the day’s public transport covered. Per group of up to ten, around four hundred and twenty euros, rated 4.6 from 3 reviews.

Check availability & book

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure on most tours — book now, decide later.

Frequently asked questions

Is Moritzburg better than Neuschwanstein?

Neuschwanstein is far better known. Moritzburg is flat, small, stands on a lake and sits 15 km from Dresden, and it is a half day rather than an expedition. They are 500 km apart, so most trips only reach one.

Which is easier to visit, Moritzburg or Neuschwanstein?

I only write about Moritzburg, so I will speak for that one: level ground, bus 477 or the steam railway from Dresden, and admission bought at the castle’s own counter on the day. Getting there.

Was Cinderella filmed at Neuschwanstein or Moritzburg?

Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella, the 1973 Czech-German film, was shot at Moritzburg, and the castle runs a winter exhibition about it. The exhibition.