Page 36 - DreamScapes Magazine | Spring/Summer 2024

GERMAN
ISLAND
GETAWAY
The southern island town of Lindau is an ideal place to start a Lake Constance adventure.
BY LINDA BARNARD
INSTEAD OF PALM TREES and rum punch, imagine an island getaway with forests, vineyards and views of snow-capped Alps in a fairy-tale setting with year- round mild climate.
The storybook medieval town of Lindau tucked in Bavaria is on a small island just off the shore of Lake Constance (Bodensee in German), the third-largest lake in Europe.
You’ll be well travelled when you make charming Lindau a base for a Lake Constance break. Three countries—Germany, Austria and Switzerland, plus the tiny Principality of Liechtenstein—touch the shores of Lake Constance, a lake so large that it could pass for an inland sea.
Most of the town of Lindau is on the shore. Old Town Lindau is accessed by a short bridge from the mainland. Or board a train in Munich, Stuttgart or at Zurich airport and the under-three-hour trip ends as the train crosses a causeway and pulls into the station in the historic town centre.
Pedestrian-Friendly Lindau
While you can walk around the entire island in about an hour, you’ll wish to extend your stay for the many diversions. Follow the lakeside promenade, considered the best walkway on Lake Constance, to the dramatic entrance at the island town’s harbour. It’s fitting for such a magical place that the waterway gateway to Lindau is framed by a 33-metre-high lighthouse and a sandstone sculpture of a Bavarian lion.
Car-free main street Maximilianstrasse is lined with shopping arcades, Gothic and Renaissance houses, chic shops and cafés. To get to the heart of the town, the Marktplatz market square, follow narrow cobblestone streets dating back to the Middle Ages.
Buildings covered with colourful frescoes front the square, including the circa-1436 Old Town Hall. Haus zum
HIT THE ROAD
For your Bavarian adventure spend a few days in Lindau and Lake Constance, then rent a car for a self-drive through one of the world’s most spectacular scenic drives along the German Alpine Road. Spend time soaking in the vistas making stops along the way on Germany’s oldest tourist route. The 484-kilometre road from Lindau to Schönau on Königssee travels past alpine meadows, steep mountain peaks, castles, monasteries, farms and quaint towns, including Ettal and the famed Neuschwanstein Castle.
36 DREAMSCAPES SPRING/SUMMER 2024