Travel report: Two sprats on Lake Constance
From our guests Hanna & Finn
"Living where others go on vacation" is not quite like going on vacation yourself. That's why we Kiel sprats from the north of Germany were drawn to the south of the country.
The idea of cycling around Lake Constance came to us during our summer vacation with the VW bus in Baden-Württemberg. In the fall, thanks to the wide range of offers from Radweg Reisen, we put this idea into practice in a simple and uncomplicated way.
We decided on the period and the route spontaneously and at short notice. Everything else we needed to prepare and organize was provided by Radweg-Reisen, which saved us a lot of planning time and nerves. Reserved hotels including breakfast, luggage transport and rental bikes seemed like a great luxury to us, which we really enjoyed throughout the week.
"Stroll and enjoy" - the motto of the 5-day tour with an average of 40 km per day matched our idea of a leisurely, active autumn cycling vacation.
Because of the 10-hour journey by train from Kiel to Constance, we booked an extra overnight stay in the city of the Council at the beginning and end of the tour. This gave us time to arrive in peace and quiet and explore the surrounding area.
We were delighted with the rental bikes. They were already adjusted to our respective sizes and equipped with a speedometer as well as super practical bike and handlebar bags for the small day luggage.
It was fun to cycle through the countryside on the red bikes and count the kilometers.
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Day 1 Constance - Friedrichshafen
On the stage from Constance to Friedrichshafen on the first day of the trip, we made a stop on the famous flower island of Mainau in sunshine and mild temperatures. Fascinated by the play of colors and arrangements of the variety of plants, we explored the unique and lovingly designed grounds. We took photos of "Blumi" and the oversized planted peacock, marveled at the exotic butterflies, discovered lizards and almost forgot the time and stayed longer than expected. We only realized that we still had 32 km to go after our visit to the island when, after the short ferry ride from Wallhausen to Überlingen, the sun slowly began to set and it got cooler. We therefore pedaled a little harder to reach our hotel in the light. In the medieval town of Meersburg, we treated ourselves to a short break with a scoop of ice cream and had the opportunity to watch the winegrowers of the Meersburg Winegrowers' Association deliver their grapes. Fortunately, we reached our hotel in Friedrichshafen just before nightfall.
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Day 2 Friedrichshafen - Lindau
The weather was much cooler and overcast on the second day of the stage from Friedrichshafen to Lindau. A strong wind blew around our ears on the viewing platform of the Moleturm and the long promenade was only visited by a few tourists.
The end of the season was also evident on the well-signposted cycle paths, where there was hardly any traffic and everyone had enough space to cycle at their own pace. A structurally interesting highlight for us on this stage was crossing the oldest cable suspension bridge in Germany between Kressbronn and Langenargen.
Day 3 Lindau - Arbon
For us, the most beautiful stretch, or the day when everything was just right, was on day 3 between Lindau and Arbon, when we cycled from Germany through Austria into Switzerland. The weather was great, the landscape was once again different and lush green, the bikes rolled relaxed and it just felt like a vacation with a picnic along the way. Due to the corona-related risk zones that had been declared at the time, we were allowed to ride through Vorarlberg in Austria, but we weren't allowed to make any major stops. Fortunately, we were able to take a look at the impressive lake stage in Bregenz from the cycle path and are sure that a visit to a festival there must be an experience.
On the Swiss side, we were clearly recognized as "tourists" at a fork in the road with our bikes and two friendly Swiss women gave us tips for the way, which we northern Germans unfortunately only partially understood, which we all laughed about together.
Day 4 Arbon - Constance
The fourth stage from Arbon to Constance was actually far too short. We had just got used to the cycle route and had really settled into cycling and vacationing when it was almost over. We were all the more pleased about the extra night we had booked before the return journey. On the last day, we cycled to the island of Reichenau, drank the regional Suser and visited the after-work market in the city center of Constance.
Our cycle tour around Lake Constance was a wonderful success overall.
The hotels we booked were completely different in terms of style and facilities, but each was suitable and inviting in its own way. We felt very welcome and well looked after everywhere.I have fond memories of the sour scent of the harvested apples and grapes along the cycle path, the Swiss cheese for breakfast in Arbon and of my great friend and personal navigator, who enriched my cycle path trip with his company.
Thank you very much! We'll be back :)
