Feeding German monkeys

Have you already heard of Affenberg, the “mountain of monkeys”? You can find it in Salem, a few kilometers away from Lake Constance. Affenberg: that is an open-air enclosure where Barbary apes are living. At the entrance visitors can get special popcorn to feed the apes with!

Next to the outdoor enclosure there are some barns where you can buy souvenirs and drinks and snacks are also offered. Additionally, there is a bigger playground.

Most children love it to go there…

At Affenberg you can also watch some stork`s nests. Storks and apes: great place!

If you are a Lake Constance tourist attended by children you shouldn`t miss to go there with your children!

Reading about Lake Constance

Unfortunately, there are just a few tourist guides about Lake Constance that are written in English (like “Journey around Lake Constance”). Most of them are published in German only. (But just to say: often those German guide books aren`t that helpful, too.)
But there are several guides to Germany that introduce the whole country, including the Lake Constance area.

You speak German? Let me tell you that “DuMont`s Reiseführer Bodensee im Taschenbuch-Format” is one of the best and most informative guide books.
It doesn`t matter if you don`t live in Germany. All the books can be bought at bol.de where deliveries to some foreign countries (like Great Britain, the USA or Canada) are possible, too.

Reading at Lake Constance

Do you know public bookshelves? Around Lake Constance you can find some of them. Public bookshelves are like outdoor libraries without staff. Okay, that sounds strange. So how does it work?

Swimming at Lake Constance: simple thing

You want to know if you can swim in the lake? Of course you can! Lake Constance is just a lake, this isn`t a dangerous sea full of sharks. In contrary: there is not one shark! The only place at Lake Constance where you are able to face sharks is Sea Life Konstanz.

Around Lake Constance there are many bigger lidos where you have to pay an entrance fee. (If you are the proud owner of a “Bodensee Erlebniskarte” [Lake Constance Experience Card] you can visit some of them for free.]

Not to forget: sun protection!

I am loving the products of “SunDance”. That is one of the home brands of the German retail chain “dm”. dm - that is a chemist resp. a drugstore. (Attention: regular pharmaceuticals can only be bought in pharmacies in Germany, Austria and Switzerland although in Switzerland there you can find some drugstore-pharmacy-combinations, too!)

“Rossmann” (at Lake Constance only in Radolfszell in Germany) and “dm” (there is no “dm”-market in Switzerland and the Austrian “dm”-markets are a little bit in the hinterland so that there are “dm”s only at the German side of Lake Constance, too: for example in Konstanz, Überlingen, Friedrichshafen, Radolfzell) are the most popular chemists. Well, so “Sundance” is an own brand of “dm”. “Sundance” contains just products (~ 2-5€) referring to solar protection.

The products are very low in price but the quality is outstanding! I often buy products from “Sundance” when I`m in Germany and as a said: I love them. Last year I tried some sun blocker from “Aldi”, the discount store: the products from there were also cheap and good.

Weather as usual: which kind of clothes to take with?

From spring to autumn Lake Constance is a very popular tourist attraction. Many people even compare it to the Italian Riviera, due to the similar climate. During winter the weather is cold, cloudy and foggy but in the summer time it`s really lovely. Of course, sometimes there are also still rainy days but the sun is definitely on the march!

For some more precise information about the weather at Lake Constance, please click here: Lake Constance`s weather conditions.

I need which currency at Lake Constance?

photo source: Dieter Schütz / pixelio.de

The currency of Germany and Austria is €uro, the currency of Switzerland is Swiss franc. Lake Constance is surrounded by Switzerland, Germany and Austria: do you need two different currencies when you go there? No… of course it`s easier to pay in €uro when you are in Germany or Austria and to pay with Swiss francs when you are in Switzerland. But most attractions around there accept both so you only need some peanuts for such things like snacks and drinks because at smaller kiosks and stores only the currency of their respective countries is being accepted. But you don`t need two big wallets!

Bad-Weather-Days at Lake Constance: what to do?

There are many museums and also thermal baths at Lake Constance. You got a Bodensee Erlebniskarte (Lake Constance Experience Card)? Even better!

But be aware: if the weather isn`t fine, many people long to do indoor activities. Last year I went to some museums when it was really hot and sunny. In the museums were nearly no visitors so I was able to enjoy all expositions (and the air conditions while most of the other people were sweating outside). So if you are really interested in a museum: don`t go there on cloudy days!

Bodensee Erlebniskarte: Lake Constance Experience Card - for your adventures!

My advice if it`s your first visit at Lake Constance and if you want to experience a lot: buy a Bodensee Erlebniskarte (okay, let`s call it LCEC = Lake Constance Experience Card)!
There are three versions of it: LCEC for Landratten (landsmen), for Seebären (shellbacks) and for Sparfüchse (scrimpers). Let me tell you in just a few words about the differences between them:

Birnau - what a wonderful church!

When I was just a little girl I told my mother: "Mom, when I`m adult and want to marry: I will do it here in this church!" Fortunately, I really found someone who wanted to marry me when I was grown up. Unfortunately, for different reasons it was another church where our wedding took place... 
But I`m still of the opinion that the Birnau (that`s the name of this wonderful church) is one of the most beautiful places in the whole world where you can marry. Additionally: When you stand in front of the church and look towards the lake the view is absolutely amazing!
The Birnau sometimes is called the "Queen of the lake" because on the one hand it`s such a majestic building and on the other hand the church is located above the lake, surrounded by wineyards: The people (Lake Constance) is waving to the Queen (Birnau). You should take a picnic basket with you and have a yummy picnic in the wineyards below the Birnau where you can watch the lake or look up at this impressing church - romantic moments guaranteed! You want to ask your girlfriend if she is willing to marry you? If I were you, I would do it here, right in the front of Birnau.

On the way to Lake Constance... how to get there?

photo source: Lisa Schwarz / pixelio.de

You have to get to Germany... There`s no doubt: Naturally, the nearest airport to Lake Constance is the "Bodensee Airport" in Friedrichshafen. Friedrichshafen is one of the bigger towns located at Lake Constance. Of course, the airport is a little bit out-of-town but there are busses and trains from airport to city/port and these trips don`t last too long (5 minutes by train, 20 minutes by bus).

The airport is quite small and I think it`s quite impossible to get lost there. You can mainly fly to Friedrichshafen from some bigger German towns like Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne...

Okay, you don`t have to go to Germany... You can also take a plane that brings you to Zürich, Switzerland. The airport of Zürich is the largest airport in vicinity of Lake Constance.

photo source: Paul-Georg Meister / pixelio.de

Here you can rent a car and go to Lake Constance on your own. But there are also trains interconnecting Zurich Airport and Kreuzlingen respectively Romanshorn. Both, Kreuzlingen and Romanshorn, are situated at the Swiss side of Lake Constance: there is a (car) ferry between Romanshorn and Friedrichshafen in Germany. Kreuzlingen is a direct neighbour to Konstanz (that`s the German name of "Constance"): but Konstanz is a German town (plus, by the way, the largest town at Lake Constance) so there is a national border between Kreuzlingen and Konstanz (Constance).
But, just to say: if this border was taken away, you wouldn`t say that these are two cities because it looks as if a border is separating only one town.
The port of Konstanz is very centrally located: from here you can easily get to nearly every town at Lake Constance. Furthermore, there is a second (car) ferry interconnecting Konstanz and opposite Meersburg [this one is shown at the picture above].
Attention: you don`t need a car if you want to use one of the ferries: those can be used by everyone!

photo source: Anguane / pixelio.de

You want to take your vacation in Austria? In this case I would say that first you better get to Germany`s Bodensee Airport or Switzerland`s Zurich Airport where you can easily get on a train towards Austria!

Of course, there are several smaller rail stations in many of Lake Constance`s cities and villages. There are also main-line stations, for example in Lindau (a Bavarian town near Austria) or Konstanz...

And after you have arrived at Lake Constance: enjoy your vacation and appreciate all days of your stay! 

Lake Constance says "Hello"