Schongau sits in excellent day-trip territory. Neuschwanstein Castle is about 25 kilometres south near Füssen — spectacular in the mountains but very crowded; book tickets in advance online. Wieskirche, the great Rococo pilgrimage church of South Bavaria (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), is about 20 kilometres southeast and best seen in the morning before the tour groups arrive. Landsberg am Lech, another well-preserved Altstadt town with good walls and the Lechtor gateway, is 30 kilometres north and worth an afternoon.
The Ammersee and Starnbergersee lakes are within an hour's drive to the northeast and offer good swimming and sailing in summer.