Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [398]
Waschsalon und Mehr (Hofhalde 3; 10am-7pm Mon-Fri, 10am-4pm Sat) A self- or full-service laundry.
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HIT THE HAY
If you want to pedal around Lake Constance but don’t fancy schlepping camping equipment, you can kip on clean, sweet hay at about a dozen Heuhotels (www.strohtour.de, in German) in summer. Bring your own sleeping bag. Surrounded by glorious countryside, these family-friendly barns offer an authentic down-on-the-farm experience, often with animals that kids can pet and home-grown goodies like fresh eggs and apple juice at breakfast. A great pick is organic farm Unterbühlhof ( 07735-1318; www.unterbuehlhof.de, in German; Öhningen; adult/child €14.50/9.50; Jun–mid-Sep) in the bucolic Höri area. For options across the border in Switzerland, visit the website www.abenteuer-stroh.ch.
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Sights
WATERFRONT
At the merest hint of a sunray, the tree-fringed, sculpture-dotted lakefront promenade lures inline skaters, cyclists, walkers and ice cream–licking crowds.
At the eastern end of Marktstätte, a passageway links the lakefront to the Altstadt; just past it lies the white dormered Konzilgebäude (Council Building), built in 1388, which served as a granary and warehouse before Pope Martin V was elected here in 1417. Today it’s a conference and concert hall.
At the end of the pier, giving ferry passengers a come-hither look from her rotating pedestal, stands Imperia. Peter Lenk’s 9m-high sculpture of a buxom prostitute, said to have plied her trade in the days of the Council of Constance, is immortalised in a novel by Honoré de Balzac. In her clutches are hilarious sculptures of a naked (and sagging) Pope Martin V and Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, symbolising religious and imperial power.
The nearby Zeppelin Monument shows the airship inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in an Icarus-like pose. He was born in 1838 on the Insel, an islet a short stroll north through the flowery Stadtgarten park, where there’s a children’s playground.
North of the Insel, the Rheinbrücke links the Altstadt with newer quarters across the Rhine. On the opposite bank, Seestrasse has a row of handsome art nouveau villas. Further east, at No 21, is the casino.
MÜNSTER & AROUND
Towering above Münsterplatz, the sandstone Münster ( 9am-6pm Mon-Sat, 10am-6pm Sun), an architectural potpourri of Romanesque, Gothic and baroque styles, was the church of the diocese of Konstanz until 1821. Standouts include the 15th-century Schnegg, an ornate spiral staircase in the northern transept, to the left of which a door leads to the 1000-year-old crypt. From the crypt’s polychrome chapel, you enter the sublime Gothic cloister.
Climb the tower (adult/6-14yr €2/1; 10am-5.30pm Mon-Sat, 12.30-5pm Sun Mar-Oct) for far-reaching views over the city and lake.
The glass pyramid in front of the Münster shelters the Römersiedlung ( 133 026; tour in German €6.50; 11am & 3pm Wed & Sat), the 3rd-century-AD remains of the Roman fort Constantia, which gave the city its name. You’ll only get a sneak peek from above, so join one of the guided tours that begin at the tourist office for a touch of magic as a staircase rises from the cobbles and leads down to the ruins.
Slightly south of the Münster on Kanzleistrasse, the flamboyantly frescoed Renaissance Rathaus (City Hall) hides a peaceful arcaded courtyard.
NIEDERBURG
Best explored on foot, Konstanz’ historic heart, Niederburg, stretches north from the Münster to the Rhine. The twisting cobbled lanes lined with half-timbered town houses are the place to snoop around galleries, antique shops and 13th-century Kloster Zoffingen (Brückengasse 15), Konstanz’ only remaining convent, still in the hands of Dominican nuns.
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