Schwangau (dpa / lby) - One of the most popular vantage points at Neuschwanstein Castle is now accessible again. After renovation work, the Marienbrücke over the Pöllatschlucht in Schwangau (Ostallgäu district) is open to pedestrians again, as the Bavarian Ministry of Finance announced in Munich on Thursday. At around 500,000 euros, the renovation cost significantly less than the almost 600,000 euros originally planned.
Static problems were discovered on the bridge, which is particularly popular with tourists, in February 2021. Since then the bridge has been closed. The complex refurbishment, which ultimately took a good two and a half months, did not begin until mid-May. To do this, nine rock anchors had to be replaced or newly drilled into the rocks above the gorge. According to the ministry, the anchors, which are up to 15 meters long, were brought to the approximately 90-meter-high bridge in 81 helicopter flights.
The Marienbrücke was built by Bavaria's King Maximilian II in the 1850s as a wooden pontoon for his wife Marie. His son King Ludwig II replaced this with an iron construction. In 1978 the bridge had to be rebuilt.
