Lake Constance Getting there & around

Getting there & around

Ryanair flies from London Stansted and Dublin to Friedrichshafen (www.fly-away.de).

By far the most enjoyable way to get around, or to cross the lake for a quick peak at Switzerland, is by ferry. Konstanz is the main hub; Meersburg and Friedrichshafen also have a good variety of ferry options.

The public transport system is well-organised and is a good alternative to driving. Although most of the towns on Lake Constance have a train station (Meersburg is an exception), in some cases buses provide the only land connections. Euregio Bodensee (www.euregiokarte.com, in German), which groups all Lake Constance–area public transport providers, publishes a free Fahrplan book with schedules for all train, bus and ferry services in tiny type.

The Euregio Bodensee Tageskarte (1 land zone plus lake €24, all 7 zones plus lake €27, half-price for children 6-15yr) gets you all-day access to all land and sea transport on and around Lake Constance, including areas deep in Austria, Switzerland and even Liechtenstein. It is sold at tourist offices, train stations and ferry docks.

Car & motorcycle

Car ferries

The roll-on roll-off Konstanz–Meersburg car ferry (07531-8030; www.sw.konstanz.de; car up to 4m incl driver/bicycle/pedestrian €7.20/1.50/2) runs 24 hours a day (except when the lake’s water level is especially high, in which case it can’t dock properly). The frequency is every 15 minutes from 5.30am or 6am to 9pm, every 30 minutes from 9pm to midnight and every hour from midnight to 5.30am or 6am. The new Mini-Maxi Ticket (one-way/return €3.60/7.20) gets pedestrians a ferry ride plus bus transport on either end (to and from the centres of Meersburg and Konstanz). The crossing, which affords superb views (especially from the top deck), takes 15 minutes.

The dock in Konstanz, served by local bus 1, is about 4km northeast of the city centre along Mainaustrasse. In Meersburg, car ferries leave from a dock 400m northwest of the old town.

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