Hi,
I am planning to visit Uberlingen in October- I have never been there before and have been looking to find a good travel book on what to do there etc. Does anyone know a good book?
Any recommendations on what to do there? i am planning to stay for 1 week. Are there many restaurants and things to see? are there boat trips to Austria and Switzerland for day trips? Thank you
Überlingen is a spa town - I didn't find much to do there, but nearby are some good options.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g198393-d498416-Reviews-Isle_of_Mainau-Konstanz_Baden_Wurttemberg.html
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g198393-Activities-oa0-Konstanz_Baden_Wurttemberg.html
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g198537-Activities-oa0-Meersburg_Bodensee_Baden_Wurttemberg.html
Radolfzell has a pleasant old-town quarter.
Not a book, no - but some ideas and points in no particular order (grew up there, still some family left)
1. Üb is itself quite small, only 20k, though it has a long walkway at the shore, a nice city garden, a spa, medieval buildings etc. and a small city museum that might be nice.
2. Restaurants aplenty. Mostly local, Italian or Greek cuisines, some Chinese, Indian.
3. Nearby is picturesque Meersburg with a ferry to Konstanz, home of the 15th century council. Simply walk into Swiss Kreulingen, they have almost merged
4. Unteruhldingen close by has Pfahlbauten, a reconstructed Neolithic village on poles and museum
5. Ships run all over the lake - mostly for cruising a few hours, some with specific destinations like Mainau
6. Austria is far by boat (those are slow). Easier would be train, or car.
7. Besides Mainau park , the other island Reichenau has an 8th century monastery
8. Right after harvest season fruit, wine and cider should be readily available. Consider Zwiebelkuchen-onion cake, similar to quiche
We spent 5 nights in Überlingen last September. It’s a nice walkable town with a train station and we took day trips most days. There is much to see in the area and no car is necessary. If you enjoy gardens don’t miss the Island of Mainau. We took a boat there and returned to Überlingen by train.
thanks for all who responded
We are planning on going probably in early Oct- how is the weather? does it rain a lot?
and getting there- we are flying from the US- east coast- i heard easiest would be to Zurich then train. I read something about train from Zurich then a ferry over- any thoughts? Thanks again!
www.bodensee.eu is a great website
Zurich is definitely the easiest. Train will be about 2 hours, give or take. Stuttgart might work as well, but Zurich is much better connected internationally. I do not think a ferry makes much sense tbh.
Generally speaking, early October is comparably pleasant - proverbially golden. Of course, you can draw badly in the weather lottery nonetheless, so be prepared.
The problem with the fast ferry route is that it isn't really a ferry. It's a leisure tour which runs infrequently. If you arrive at Konstanz station (where the Zurich airport trains end) at the right moment you can find a bus to Dingelsdorf which will get you on to a short section of that tour and it will be the fastest option at that moment. But the likelyhood is you won't hit the moment.
Trains from Zurich airport end at Konstanz. You could continue with two more trains via Radofzell. Or there is a real ferry from the outskirts of Konstanz (bus ride from station) which goes to Meersburg but that is then a train ride to Überlingen so takes as long as going via Radolfzell. And I'm not sure how long into October that ferry operates.
The ferry from Konstanz to Meersburg goes all year round at very dense intervals, but Meersburg doesn't have a train station.
The recommended route is a simple one-stop train via Schaffhausen, which is why I am a bit confused about a ferry. A ferry to Meersburg is possible - but there are no trains from Meersburg to Überlingen, which makes it imho too complicated.
Since no one else has chimed in on the weather I'll add my $0.02. Early October is usually when the good weather ends, and the days get short. Expect rain. The last two years we had snow in October (which melted and then nothing into November.)
I like Uberlingen, but it's best with a car. Without one I'd probably stay in Lindau or Konstanz for the public transport and ferries. Do go over to Mainau, the leaves will probably be falling but the whole island is fantastic any time of year. If you take the ferry from Meersburg you can take a bus to Mainau.
the one stop via Schaffhausen option is indeed the fastest and easist -but only works every two hours.
I've found the "ferry" route. In between the Schaffhausen and Konstanz all train options the DB journey planner is throwing out a two hourly option via Romanshorn and Friedrichshafen. Don't blame me, I'm just explaining it........
If you want to and it makes sense time wise, Friedrichshafen is better than Meersburg, being connected by train. Still feels a bit like a hustle to me though.
As to the question of cars: Do you plan to book one when there? Numerous providers have offices.
Regardless, I am not sure if Konstanz or any other town works better. You can trip ÜB-KN by train, and most other places are then either connected to both or neither. Proximity matters, of course. Reichenau is closer to KN, Uhldingen closer to ÜB. ÜB is essentially walkable in total - train, spa, shops, lakeside, restaurants.
Regarding the weather, I have to disagree with KCG to some degree. It is cooler, but historically comparably dry - and not yet the time of fog and misery, which comes in November. As noted before, it is still a bit of a lottery: 50F and drizzle are in the cards, but so are 75F and sunshine (chilly when the sun is down though). Prepare for both and hope for the best.
I wanted to add that I’m all for driving if the itinerary makes sense, but after determining what we wanted to do while we were there I decided that basing in Überlingen it would not be necessary as we could go everywhere by train or bus. A car could make sense if you want to do more remote things.
