Ludwig II had Herrenchiemsee Palace modeled on Versailles. At a length of 77 meters, his hall of mirrors is even four meters longer than the original outside Paris. Further west, in the Allgäu region, stands Bavaria’s most famous castle: Neuschwanstein. It’s modeled on a medieval fortified castle, and its idyllic location makes it unique. Ludwig II, who died in 1886, never lived to see it completed. Nowadays about 1.3 million visitors a year come to admire it. Linderhof Palace lies slightly further to the east. The fairy-tale king actually lived here, and listened to the music of Richard Wagner in his very own artificial cave: the Venus Grotto.