Lindau

Lindau is a city in southern Bavaria on the shore of Lake Constance or the Bodensee. It lies on the border of the Austrian federal-state of Vorarlberg with its capital city Bregenz which is about 10 km along the lake. The historic town is on an island and full of medieval and half-timbered buildings. One can also take boat tours leaving the small harbor and just sit and enjoy a Weißbier admiring the view of Austria and Switzerland and the Alps across the lake.

Understand
On a sunny day in summer Lindau is a great place to be. The town is old and very beautiful and has a good market.

Every year the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings take place. These meetings are a conference with Nobel Laureates and young scientists in fields such as chemistry, medicine and physics.



By train


Lindau has direct rail EuroCity connections from Munich and Zurich, as well as regional rail services from Austria, other parts of Bavaria and Baden-Wuerttemberg.

Frequent trains run from Bregenz to Lindau and back during the day, single journey €2.40 adult on the ÖBB machine (if you book via the DB machines its more expensive: €4.80 one-way).

Euregio train tickets are available for unlimited travel in the region (including discounts on certain ferries).

The Baden-Württemberg-Ticket is valid on regional trains between Lindau - Kressbronn, and Lindau - Wangen im Allgäu even though parts of the journey are within Bavaria.

By plane

 * Bodensee-Airport Friedrichshafen is the closest airport and easily accessible by rail.
 * The next major airports with transcontinental flights are Munich airport as well as the airport of Stuttgart.

By boat
Lots of tourists come to Lindau from neighbouring harbour towns of Austria and Switzerland in the summer months for a short trip. BSB runs seasonal ferries between April and October.

There the main lines are:


 * Konstanz / (Mainau) / Meersburg / Friedrichshafen / Lindau / Bregenz (with many stops along the German shore between Meersburg and Lindau) &mdash; the trip between Lindau and Bregenz is direct and has no other stops, takes 22 min and costs €5.70 (adults)
 * Rorschach (Switzerland) / (Bad Schachen) / (Wasserburg) / Lindau &mdash; complete journey costs €12.70, 17 CHF (it's a good idea to have your passport with you); three times a day in each direction; complete journey takes about 1 hour

By foot
Lindau is a very small town and exploring it on foot is the best idea. Many parts of the island are for pedestrians only so it is enjoyable to walk around.

By bus
There are city bus routes operating on the island and mainland (routes 1 and 2) and only on the mainland (routes 3 and 4). There is one central bus stop (Anheggerstraße) where all four lines intersect. See the route map and timetables for more details. 2020 prices: single ticket €2.30, 24-hour ticket €4.60, other options are available. BayernTickets are accepted on Lindau's city buses.

City bus routes and timetables changed in December 2020, with a new route 5 linking Inselbahnhof and Reutin-Bahnhof stops directly; see the city bus website for information.

Additionally, RBA Regionalbus Augsburg operates in Lindau (island and mainland) and connects to the surrounding area. See the route map and timetables (search for Landkreis Lindau). Line 21 goes to Nonnenhorn (westbound along the lake) and Line 14/14a goes to Bregenz (Austria, eastbound along the lake).

See
First step after reaching Lindau should be to contact the tourist info centre just outside the train station, where one can get a list of beautiful buildings in the town and a free map too. On a sunny day, the views that this town offers are awesome.

Island

 * Take cruise trips to neighbouring harbour towns like Bregenz, Konstanz or Friedrichshafen. You can plan a day trip from Lindau to Bregenz, and climb the Pfänder mountain at Bregenz that offers great views of the lake.
 * Rent a paddleboat or a rowing boat. This is also the only way to get to the tiny island which is just big enough for one tree. One place to rent these boats is at the entrance of the island, to the right-hand side when entering via the main car bridge (Bootsvermietung Lindau).
 * Sit in one of the restaurants by the lakeside and enjoy variety of cuisines.
 * On the West side of the island there are very few places giving access to the water where swimming is possible, but do not expect a beach. Also on the West side there are small grassy patches where you can enjoy the sun and have a picnic.
 * Take a tour on the Lindau Science Trail and learn more about Nobel Laureates and their scientific breakthroughs. The Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings organise free guided tours for groups. In addition, people can explore the web-based Virtual Science Trail online.
 * Go to theatre or music events.

Buy
The market place of Lindau is a beautiful street that offers lots of souvenirs at cheap prices. Branded cloth and accessories shops are quite a few in number. Number of shops sell hats, sunglasses and other accessories etc. One should consider buying Swiss Knives as they are at fair prices.


 * If you are looking for a cheap supermarket on the island, there is a Netto on Marktplatz 5 - it's in the basement of that building. It's open M-Sa 07:00-20:00.
 * If you are looking for a cheap supermarket on the island, there is a Netto on Marktplatz 5 - it's in the basement of that building. It's open M-Sa 07:00-20:00.

Eat
There are many restaurants in the market and near the shore that offer variety of cuisine.

There are also a few good ice-cream places on the island.



Sleep
Plenty of hotels available in Lindau, one can get a listing of these hotels at the tourist info point.



Go next

 * Bregenz (Austria) &mdash; go there to climb the Pfänder and for the famous floating stage
 * Friedrichshafen &mdash; Zeppelin Museum and airport