Rick Steves’ Europe: Medieval Castles

Germany's Neushwanstein is a textbook-like example of 19th-century Romanticism. In 1869, King Ludwig began building his medieval fantasy on the hilltop not for defensive reasons, but because he liked the view.

The battlements of Carcassonne rise over an intact medieval town in France. The American travel writer Richard Halliburton described the night he arrived here in 1921. It was, he wrote, "a magical moonlit city of walls and towers.. defiant and impregnable."

England's Warwick Castle entertains young and old with everything from armor to old masters. Its gardens were laid out in the 1700s by the renowned designer Capability Brown.

Germany's Burg Eltz is remarkably well-preserved, and for 850 years has remained in the hands of one aristocratic family.

Visiting these historic castles today, travelers see a muddle of Middle Ages bunker mentality and 150-year-old Romantic renovation. While confusing, this weird mix makes for great sightseeing.