5 Best Hotels in Meersburg, The Bodensee

This family-run, half-timber pension is in the middle of the Old Town, near the harbor. The rooms are small but have room for a child's bed, if needed. There's a place to store bikes as well.

Rooms at this local landmark—a centuries-old, ivy-clad tavern on Meersburg's market square—have their own corner sitting areas, some with genuine Biedermeier furniture. The welcoming restaurant (closed Thursday, November to March), with pine-paneling, serves regional and seasonal specialties, notably a tasty stew of local fish.

This tastefully modern hotel overlooking the lake features two restaurants, including the Michelin-starred Casala, and Residenz Restaurant, which specializes in regional fare. Most of the elegant rooms face the lake, but the quieter ones look out onto a vineyard. The hotel is about a 10-minute walk from the harbor and Old Town.

Nearly all rooms at this bright, airy and crisply renovated hotel just a few steps from the shore offer balconies with views across the lake or vineyards. Owner Elisabeth Off has added many personal touches to make guests feel completely at home, and has designed several rooms according to the guidelines of feng shui. The wellness area includes all sorts of alternative healing measures, including reiki and aromatherapy. And there's swimming in the lake.

Individually furnished rooms lend character to this historic hotel, whose ivy-covered facade, with its characteristic steeple, hasn't changed much over the centuries. Built in 1605 and incorporating 13th-century Gothic foundations, the building was an important staging point for Germany's first postal service. The restaurant is rustic in an uncluttered way; people travel from afar to enjoy the rack of lamb. Some rooms are furnished with Bodensee antiques and brightly painted rustic wardrobes. Try to book Room 23 or 13: both have semicircular alcoves with armchairs and windows overlooking the marketplace.