I am contemplating taking a small group cycling tour that is a mix of the cycling path around the lake and riding away from the lake in its rural regions. The tour starts in Uberlingen and cycles through Meersburg, the Salem monastery, Markdorf, Wasserburg, Lindau, Bregenz, Rohrspitz nature preserve, Rheineck, St. Gallen, Gottlieben, Reicheneu, Stein am Rhine, Constance, and Wallhausen. I would be doing this in the first half of September, and I am old and would be using an ebike.

Does the area have a lot to offer other than being a family summer watersports playground? I am not particularly interested in areas that have devolved into not much more than touristy places with lots of shops and ice cream stores. I enjoy beautiful scenery, interesting architecture, gardens, historic sights, quaint but not kitschy locales. I want to know I am in a unique part of the world that is different from my everyday life in the US, and I don't want to spend my time cycling through farm fields that look just like home. What are your thoughts? I guess I should add in for context that I have done quite a bit of cycle touring in the past and definitely know what types of areas appeal to me the most.

Thanks for your help.

very flat
A few good museums
A couple of older towns
An aquarium
An island with nice gardens
A reconstruction of lake dwelling in ancient times
Lots of ferries

I prefer the Mosel bike route which has less to do but more interesting wines, plus Trier and the odd castle. I also preferred the Prague to Berlin path. Watch out for giant hog-weed wherever you go

As above. You may check
Unteruhldingen (as abvove)
Salem Monastery
Meersburg castle,
Friedrichshafen Zeppein Musseum, Dornier Museum, Baroque churches
LIndau Island with medieval citry
Bregenz with small historic city cebnter and cableway to viewpoint Pfaender
cog wheel railways from Rheineck to viewpoint Walzenhausen and from Rorschach to viewpoint Heiden
St. Gallen medieval city center with it's famous monastery (Unesco site) and many museums
Konstanz and Mainau Island with it's subtropical botanical gardens
Scenic Lake villages of Gottlieben and Ermatingen
Reichenau Abbey (Unesco site)
Arenenberg castle with Napoleon Museum
medieval Stein am Rhein with Hohenklingen castle
Schaffhausen with medieval city center, castle and Rhine Falls
etc. etc.

Hi julies,

Actually Überlingen is my favorite town on the lake -- it's very low-key and relaxed, a residential place rather than a tourist magnet. I loved its vibe and pace, just families strolling the lakeside pushing prams, the town filled with small shops. Very nice!

Meersburg is also lovely, but it's full of crowds. It has a lower town at the lake, with shops, cafés, and restaurants lining its lakeshore. The upper town has a tangle of myriad streets to get lost in, with many restaurants and shops. There's a big winery on a cliff that dominates the view of the town, looking up from the lake. The town also has an interesting castle.

Unteruhldingen is the town with the open-air museum of stone-age pile dwellings. Though I've been to the lake several times and always intend to visit it, I haven't yet been.

I've stayed at Lindau maybe three times, and it's just lovely. It's a small island filled with medieval buildings, a lovely little harbor, and beautiful scenery in every direction. The first time I was there, I thought it looked too fake, like a Disney attraction or a movie set, but the last time I was there, I saw garbage trucks & delivery trucks maneuvering and jostling in the tiny spaces, and it seemed more like an authentic place.

I hope you'll have the time or make the time to see some things while you're there!

Have fun as you plan!

s

This tour spends nights in Überlingen, Lindau, St. Gallen, Gottlieben. So, those places I would definitely have time to explore in-depth. The other places we cycle through, and I am not sure how much time we would have in each. I am still debating about this tour, and you have given me a lot to think about.

bilboburgler Since I know you are a cyclist, I value your thoughts. I will have to take a look at the other options that you prefer. We visited the Mosel by car perhaps 30 years ago, and I primarily remember the steep hills as people cycled along the river. I have been to Prague and parts of northern Czechia (again by car), but I have never been to Berlin, and I have always wanted to see Dresden. Puglia is still in contention for this cycling trip too.

Thanks all.

Many years since I did Puglia on bike, the roads were ok then. I understand there is now a coastal cycle path around Italy which will include Puglia. Italian's take cyclists seriously so safety is less of an issue than say the UK or Poland.