Ludwig II of Bavaria designed the Neuschwanstein Castle in 1868 as an idealized version of a Middle Ages knight's castle.
The construction works of the fairytale castle, as it is often called, started already in 1869. King Ludwig II moved into the castle in 1884 and lived there only 172 days. Although he never wanted to make it available to the public, shortly after his death in 1886 it was opened for visitors. The reason do this was to pay off a portion of Ludwig II loans.
„In our house several doors lead from long stairs directly into the open. The simulation has shown that we must change the direction of the guided groups for a fast evacuation. The groups can not cross each other on the stairways.“
Ralf Gehrke, Bauamt Kempten
The fairytale castle is now one of the most visited castles in Europe. About 1.4 million people visit the "Palace of the fairytale king" annualy. At least since the Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland was modeled after the Neuschwanstein Castle, it is well known beyond the borders of Germany.
The current operator of the castle is the Bavarian Administration of State-Owned Palaces, Gardens and Lakes. Of course it faces the challenge that such a celebrity bears with associated number of visitors.
In the summer around 6,000 visitors a day stream through rooms that were intended for a single inhabitant. accu:rate supported the State Building Authority Kempten in analyzing and optimizing the evacuation routes - so in case of emergency, all visitors can be routed out of the castle safely and in time.
Titel Image: By Adam Derewecki via Pixabay (CC0 1.0)