Hello Constance, you Mediterranean town on Lake Constance! If you weren’t so far away, we would definitely pay you a visit more often – that’s for sure. We already know quite a few places in Germany, but we’ve never been as south as in Konstanz.
It’s thanks to Kathi’s brother that we’re the biggest city at Lake Constance got to know. He settled in beautiful Constance for a few months and showed us around his (temporary) adopted home. In this blog article we will show you the most beautiful sights in Konstanz and of course we will tell you the tips we have tried ourselves.
1. Constance on Lake Constance: This is what awaits you Constance combines many things that make a city livable for us (and of course also worth visiting). First of all, there is the special situation. Konstanz is located on the shore of Lake Constance. The advantages are obvious: afternoon coffee with a view of the sparkling water, cooling off in the lake or a boat trip at sunset – yes, please!
Secondly: Constance has a beautiful historic old town, but it is anything but dusty. Konstanz is a university town. (The University of Konstanz is actually the largest employer in the city.) So there are a lot of students living in Konstanz who ensure a young attitude towards life.
And thirdly: Constance is pleasantly tranquil. You can cover most of the distances on foot. In the high season there are a lot of tourists in the old town, but all in all we experienced Constance very comfortably.
By the way – don’t be surprised: Locals call their city “Konschdanz”. That also sounds like
to our ears . Let’s hear strange. Not that it means we didn’t warn you.
2. Sights and activities in Constance Constanz is manageable, so that you can see all the important sights in the center comfortably on foot can be reached. You can easily explore the highlights of the city in one day. For more distant destinations (such as Meersburg) a trip by ship is a pleasant alternative.
Old town and Niederburg We start the city tour directly in the pretty old town of Konstanz. Some of the most important sights of the city are located there, including the towering Konstanz Cathedral, which we will tell you more about in a moment.
The old town of Constance is a friendly, photogenic mix of narrow streets, (more or less) spacious squares and historic houses. Lots and lots of historic homes. Constance is very fortunate that it was comparatively little damaged in past wars, which is why the old town is very well preserved.
The oldest part of the old town is called Niederburg and begins north of the Minster. In this medieval part of Konstanz there is a pretty good chance that you will get lost, because the streets here are even more winding and narrow than in the rest of Konstanz.
If you have now made your way through the Niederburg, you will reach the Rheinufer in the north, more precisely the so-called Seerhein. The Rheintorturm is also located here – one of a total of three preserved medieval defense towers.
Our tip: From the other side of the Rhine bridge , along the Seestraße, you have a pretty view of Constance, which you can take it easy on.
View from Konstanz Cathedral The Konstanz Cathedral easily towers over all other buildings in the old town. Even if you have nothing else to do with sacred buildings, you should definitely pay a visit to the cathedral. From the cathedral tower you can enjoy what is probably the best view of the old town of Konstanz.
The climb is less difficult than expected: close 200 There are steps to climb before you reach the Open-Air Observation Deck. Don’t miss: there is a platform on either side of the church tower. The view is fantastic from both. Luckily you can also take pictures with a single-lens reflex camera through the wire mesh.
If you want, you can also take more from here Steps up inside the church tower climb. Unfortunately, you can no longer get outside, which is why the additional effort is only partially worth it.
Once you get back down, we definitely recommend that you also take a look inside the cathedral. We were impressed by the cloister: Parts of it still come from the 12. and 15. Century.
Information on climbing the tower of the Minster Price: 2 Euro
Opening hours: 10 until 17 hours (on weekdays), 12: 30 until 17: 30 Clock (Sun – and holiday) Address: Munsterplatz 1, 78462 Constance
Port and Imperia In the port of Constance sits the landmark of the city: the Imperia. D he concrete statue rotates once on its own axis within four minutes – and does so continuously throughout the day. The Imperia is a satirical allusion to the Council of Constance: If you look closely, you will notice that the Imperia is holding a naked figure in each of her hands (as a symbol for Pope or Emperor).
Speaking of the council: Directly opposite the Imperia is the council building, which 14. century. North of the council building you will come to the city garden. From the park benches on the shore you have a great view of the house front on the opposite Seestraße.
Boat trip to Meersburg One of our personal highlights! Meersburg is a picturesque small town on the opposite bank of Lake Constance. Although tourists romp around here almost exclusively during the day, we believe that one should not leave Constance without having seen Meersburg.
By ship you can reach Meersburg from Constance in about half an hour. From the water, you can immediately see what is so special about Meersburg: the small town is on a slope surrounded by vineyards. Therefore, there are also some places in Meersburg from which you can enjoy a beautiful view of Lake Constance. One of them is the garden of the New Castle. From here you can see the Meersburg Castle and the lower town.
Our tip: We visited Meersburg in the late afternoon and took the last boat back to Constance in the evening. We were able to enjoy the sunset from the ship. We recommend! But pay attention to the sailing times of the ships, because they run quite irregularly in the afternoon. You can look for suitable connections here: Bodensee Schifffahrt.
An important note here: In addition to the scheduled services of Bodensee Schifffahrt, all 15 minutes one Car ferry to Meersburg. However, this leaves Constance in the north of the city (a few kilometers north of the old town in the Staad district). The ferry ride is a bit cheaper, but of course less comfortable.
Information about the boat trip to Meersburg Price: ,30 Euro round trip
Departure: Port of Constance (ticket counter address: Hafenstraße 6, 78642 Constance)
Duration: 21 Minutes
Excursion to Mainau Island The so-called flower island of Mainau is probably the most visited destination in the Konstanz area. Anyone who travels to Constance usually also visits Mainau. The island is known for its spacious gardens and parks . For example, you can visit the botanical garden or take a coffee break in the baroque palace.
We ourselves (not least because of the absurdly high entrance fee of 21,52 euros and the fact that it was high season) decided against a visit. The experiences are quite divided: The opinions range from “absolute highlight” to “overrated and overcrowded”.
Information on visiting the island of Mainau Entrance fee: 15 Euro (Summer), 10,22 Euro (Winter)
Getting there: e.g. by ship from the port of Constance or by bike
3. Restaurants and cafés in Constance: Our tips Das Voglhaus One of our favorite cafés in Constance. We liked it so much that we went there twice. The Voglhaus serves breakfast, lunch and lots of cakes and tarts. The espresso here was the best we could find in all of Konstanz.
What we also like: The concept in the Voglhaus is as possible sustainable. The culinary offer, for example, is predominantly vegan and the coffee comes from a small roastery. You sit very nicely (inside and outside in the pedestrian zone). Only the self-service thing spoils the comfort a little (but that’s nagging on a very high level.)
Address: Wessenbergstraße 8, 78462 Constance
Other recommended restaurants, cafés and bars in Constance Eugens: Very nice, young organic restaurant with many vegetarian and vegan options. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served. With a bit of luck you can sit outside on one of the tables in the pedestrian zone.
Stadtkind (to be seen on the photos): Friendly café that is a bit off the beaten track. Ideal for afternoon coffee and cake.
Weinstube Niederburg: Small, very familiar and popular wine tavern in the Nied erburg.
Hintertürle: Also a rustic wine bar in the Niederburg.
Beach bar Konstanz: Sun loungers and a sandy beach ensure a holiday feeling on the banks of the Seerheins. Perfect for a sundowner.
La Bodega: Small Spanish tapas bar that is in great demand and (almost) always full.
4. Our hotel tip for Konstanz We stayed at the centrally located Hotel Barbarossa, which we can highly recommend. This cozy city hotel is located in the center of a historic building. You can therefore reach all sights on foot, which is of course very convenient.
At first glance, the hotel seems to be getting old, but our room was more modern than expected. Our window faced the pedestrian zone. It was sometimes a bit noisy, but we had a really nice view. In any case, we felt very comfortable.
We didn’t try the breakfast, but it’s supposed to be very good. A piece of information for car drivers: If you make a request in good time, you can secure a discounted parking space near the hotel.
You can book the hotel here: Hotel Barbarossa
5. Map: All sights and tips for Konstanz at a glance So that you can get a better overview, we have listed the most important sights and our highlights in Konstanz are marked on this map.
Transparency: Affiliate Links This blog article contains our personal recommendations in the form of so-called affiliate links. If you book or buy something through the links, we will receive a small commission. For you, this does not change the price at all. A thousand thanks from both of us!
Do you have any other tips for Constance? Which sights and highlights can you recommend? We look forward to hearing about your experiences!
