Lake Constance - Lindau

Rick misses a lot of good places in Germany. If you are going to the 4 countries you mention, the Lindau (Bavaria) location would be wonderful for a few days as it's on the border of 3 of your 4 countries. There are alpine views, lake ferry trips, sea promenades, hiking, biking, baroque and medieval cities along the lake. There are plenty of tourists and infrastructure in this area. It's beautiful!

"Just curious why this location is not covered in any of Rick's books?"

"Top" depends on what you're looking for. Rick thinks his personal favorites and recommendations are/should be the top attractions. His picks do not attempt a comprehensive review of the whole country; his top places are not the negotiated consensus of a large panel of contributors as with other "establishment" guidebooks. This in part is what sets his guidebooks apart from others' - Rick himself is a major component of the final book product.

Some of our GAS tours have stopped for lunch in Lindau, because it's attractive and was well placed for that purpose on the itinerary, but it may or may not be a good home base for other sightseeing on your list. Your trip plan requires trade-offs and hard decisions of what to keep and what to cut, as does any guidebook. Also, a list of top 10 things in Germany is not the same as top 10 in Germany + Switzerland or top 10 for your whole route. If your time is limited and staying in Lindau would mean reduced time in the more spectacular Swiss Alps, for instance, then I'd skip Lindau. So the question, as it so often is, is not "is Lindau nice," but "is Lindau the best destination that fits into my priorities and timeframe."

As Rick says, "You have to find your own backdoors." Rick just shows you some examples; you do the rest.

Rick does not cover one of the most beautiful places in the Bavarian Alps, the Illertal of the Oberallgäu and the Austrian Kleinwalsertal, which are not that far from Lindau.

I don't think he mentions the Harz, either. It's a beautiful, peaceful island of mountains on the otherwise flat land of Northern Germany. The highest point in Northern Germany, the Brocken, inspiration for Wahlpurgisnacht in Faust, is in the Harz. You can take a narrow gauge steam train to the top.

Rick Steves tends to prefer to cover a few highlights in great detail rather than provide a general survey of the destination countries. And because it primarily comes down to one person (and his handful of trusted researchers) opinions, there's inevitably going to be huge omissions as well as some questionable inclusions (...Reutte. Really, that's the best you can do?). Just about the only guarantee is that if Rick Steves recommends something, it's going to be packed with his readers, and if not, they will be almost completely absent.

Personally, I (and just about anyone else who has ever visited) find Lindau stunning. On a clear day, that view of the Alps from across the water gets my vote for one of the best bits of scenery on the continent. Go for it, if the location is convenient for your trip.

In 2013, I took my new partner, who had never been to Europe, to Germany. After four nights in Baden-Württemburg, we went via Freidrichshafen to Immenstadt via Lindau. We could have made a change of about 5 minutes in Lindau, but I felt it deserved more time, so I scheduled a train leaving Lindau after an hour, giving us time to see the harbor area outside the Bahnhof. Now, every time I start planning a new trip she asks, "can we spend a night in Lindau." It's really a beautiful town, worthy of a stay.