Germany, Austria & Switzerland: Bavarian Alps to Lake Constance

Depart from home for Germany. The particulars of your arrival overseas are detailed with your flight itinerary and airline tickets.

Arrive at Munich airport, where a VBT representative will meet you and help you transfer (approximately 40 minutes) to your centrally located hotel.

If you arrive early, your hotel room may not be available until 2:00 p.m. You may store your luggage with the reception desk.

Please note: VBT transfer times and departure points are finalized in advance and cannot be modified for individual guests. If you fly in earlier than the scheduled program dates, transportation from the airport will be at your own expense.

The rest of the day is free for you to explore and dine on your own, using VBT City Information as your guide.

Hotel: Hotel Stadt Rosenheim

VBT Air Package guests & Pre-Trip Extension guests: Meet your VBT representative and the rest of the group in the lobby of your Munich hotel by 9:00 a.m. for a prompt departure. Your VBT representative will be holding a VBT sign and will be easy to recognize. From Munich, transfer to the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen (1 hour 45 minutes). Please bring your cycling clothes (including your pedals or saddle if you use your own) in your day pack, to change into before beginning the warm-up ride.

Meet your VBT Trip Leaders at approximately 10:45 a.m. in the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen. From here, hop on the local bus (2 km) up to Neuschwanstein for your included 30-minute guided tour of the castle. Afterwards, return to the village by local bus and shuttle to your hotel in Füssen. Enjoy an included light lunch before your bike fitting and warm-up ride. Please note that check-in time is 4:00 p.m., and your room will not be ready. You will be able to leave your bags with the reception desk.

Afterwards, join your Trip Leaders for an introduction and safety talk. Then set off on a pleasant warm-up ride. Your first ride in this magical realm takes you to lovely countryside and a pristine lake, taking in breathtaking alpine vistas and coasting along charming narrow farm roads.

Later, gather with the group for a welcome cocktail reception and dinner at the hotel.

Hotel: Hotel Hirsch Füssen
Alternate: Hotel Das Rübezahl
Meals: B, L, D
Daily Options: 13 miles (21km)

After breakfast, discover Füssen by foot with a local guide (45 minutes-1 hour). Then enjoy an invigorating reel through the scenic district of the region known as Eastern Allgäu. Marvel at views of the magnificent Neuschwanstein Castle, cycle around the shores of pristine Lake Forggensee, the largest in the Allgäu, and savor postcard-perfect views of the Bavarian Alps. For lunch, stop at Jürgen’s Panorama Hut for a buffet of locally cured cold meats and cheeses, served by our generous Bavarian host.

Our longer option follows the 2,000-year-old Via Claudia, or “Emperor’s Road” from the days of trade between Venetian and alpine emissaries. You will find it’s a pure pleasure to cycle between the many mountain villages of Bavaria, each more charming than the last, punctuated by onion-domed steeples rising against a backdrop of emerald-green mountain slopes. This is truly a working farm region that carries on traditions from generations past. In September, a procession of 30,000 cattle return to the valley’s farm stables from the high mountain pastures of the Allgäu Alps, where they have been feeding all summer on high-nutrition grass and herbs that grow at higher altitudes. Still, you will no doubt coast past dairy cows with their tell-tale bells around their necks. After so many miles of enchantment, you may wish to swim in the lake before returning to the hotel. Dinner is on your own tonight.

Hotel: Hotel Hirsch Füssen
Alternate: Hotel Das Rübezahl
Meals: B, L
Daily Options: 11, 9 or 24 miles (18, 15 or 39 km)

After another delicious breakfast, you will transfer to Röthenbach, Germany (1 hour). Upon arrival, enjoy a spin along the Bodensee-Königssee Bike Route, a mostly downhill reel to Lindau brimming with lush green pastures surrounded by mountain streams and breathtaking views of the Alps. You pause in Heimenkirch for a home-hosted lunch.

Later, you follow the shores of Lake Constance, Europe’s third largest freshwater lake. Its waters reflect heat, creating a Mediterranean-style climate conducive to growing Pinot Noir and white Müller-Thurgau grapes. Its shores are also renowned for the gardens that grace residential areas, lakeside parks, and the botanical island of Mainau. Upon arrival at this remarkable lake, you cycle onto Lindau Island where your 5-star Hotel Bayerischer Hof and its sister property, the 4-star Reutemann Seegarten (or alternate hotel on select dates), sit right on the waterfront in the heart of Lindau Island, a charming medieval town with a picturesque harbor and Bavaria’s only lighthouse. These hotels have been operated by the Stolze-Spaeth family for more than 150 years and offer a heated swimming pool, spa, and wellness center.

Hotel: Hotel Bayerischer Hof
Alternate: Hotel Helvetia
Meals: B, L, D
Daily Options: 24 miles (39 km)

After a hearty breakfast, shuttle 50 minutes to the start of the bike path in the alpine village of Schoppernau, located on the upper reaches of the Bregenzerach River. It’s a different world here at 2,500 feet (762 meters) in the Austrian Alps. You will see firsthand the sophisticated country lifestyle that is prevalent in the mountains high above Lake Constance. During a day of mostly downhill spinning on a well-marked paved path, admire high mountain scenery, passing small family farms, meadows of wildflowers, forests, villages, waterfalls, wooden troll bridges, and the region’s famous architecture—a unique blend of customary chalet styles and über-modern design. This region is known for its traditional crafts, including fine lace, woolen textiles, and especially wood crafts, such as toys, shoes, carvings, and carpentry. Cows, sheep, and goats are also important to the local economy—which explains why our inspirational route is called the “Cheese Road.”

After lunch, our longer option leaves Bregenzerwald and continues to Lindau, crossing into Bavarian Germany. Tonight’s dinner is on your own in Lindau.

Across the lake in Bregenz, you may consider taking in a show at the world-renowned floating stage, a breathtaking summer opera venue. The town itself is also worth a visit, home to wood-inspired architecture, museums, and art galleries. During summer, the Bregenzer Festspiele floating stage features various performances. Tickets can be purchased at http://bregenzerfestspiele.com/en months in advance. A ferry to the show can be booked from Lindau to Bregenz at www.bsb.de/schiffstransfer.html or through our Lindau Hotel. Please note that you will return to Lindau after midnight.

Hotel: Hotel Bayerischer Hof
Alternate: Hotel Helvetia
Meals: B
Daily Options: 16 and 17 miles (26 and 28 km)

Begin today’s reel along the lakeshore, passing the many impressive villas of Wasserburg and Nonnenhorn. Your route on this small peninsula affords lovely views of picturesque houses and a small castle before you continue on to Kressbronn and Langenargen.

Coast into Friedrichshafen, a city whose history is tightly linked to World War II. Its aviation industry and strategic location made it an important center for Nazi Germany. The city was heavily bombed and largely destroyed in April 1944 by 1,086 tons of bombs. Today’s “modern” city, therefore, exudes a 1950s air in its architecture. A lighter and loftier side of Friedrichshafen’s history can be found in its modern Zeppelin Museum, housing the world’s largest aviation collection. The zeppelin airship was born here on July 2, 1900, the creation of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin. Zeppelins took to the air once again in 1993. On a clear and quiet day, you’re sure to see them drifting quietly through the sky. Perhaps you will pause here for a refreshment in one of its many cafés.

(If you’d like, you can book a Zeppelin flight by visiting www.zeppelinflug.de months in advance. Should you choose to organize a Zeppelin flight, you will be responsible for getting yourself from our Lindau hotel to the airport and then to our Constance hotel at the end of the day. This is best done by taxi, which can be organized through our Lindau hotel. You will miss today’s bike ride.)

Cycle to Meersburg, a Baroque fortress town on the lake and home to the longest inhabited castle in Germany. The fortress ruins are perched high on the cliffs above, a reminder of ancient ties with the Carolingian Empire. After lunch on your own in this charming town where flowers spill from window boxes, you ferry across the lake from Meersburg, and continue cycling to your final destination in Constance. The hotel is on our biking route along the Rhine River just outside the city center, ideally located for a perfect stroll into town later this evening. Explore the city and enjoy dinner on your own at one of the great local restaurants nearby.

Hotel: 47 Grad
Meals: B
Daily Options: 15.6 and 4 miles or 24 miles (25 and 38.5 km)

This morning, take a short train ride to St. Gallen, Switzerland, located near the point where Switzerland, Austria, and Liechtenstein meet. The city has been a major religious center since the seventh century. A guided tour of the Abbey of St.Gallen reveals the treasures of the baroque cathedral with its fantastic ceiling frescoes. For centuries, this was an Imperial Benedictine Abbey and a center of Western science, art, and high culture. The rococo Abbey Library, equally ornate, is the oldest in the country and one of the world’s most significant monastic libraries. Later, stroll the traffic-free Old Town replete with brightly painted oriel windows, pretty boutiques and world-famous embroideries.

Back on your bicycle, enjoy a scenic spin to the charming Swiss village of Steinebrunn, where you stop for a traditional Swiss lunch at a local organic apple farm. Afterwards, continue your ride back to Constance, where you have more time to explore this beautiful city on your own. You might find this to be the prettiest, most cozy corner of Lake Constance, the perfect place to end your journey.

Tonight, we raise a glass and say “prost!” to a magnificent week during a festive farewell dinner.

Hotel: 47 Grad
Meals: B, L, D
Daily Options: 25 miles (41 km)

VBT Air Package and Post-Trip Extension guests: Remain another day in Constance to explore on own. We highly recommend a visit to Mainau Island, nicknamed locally “Blumeninsel,” or the flower island. This 111-acre, pedestrian-only private island is a lavish display of plants and manicured gardens, blossoming in tune with the seasons. A Baroque castle with a church featuring notable artworks marks one end of the island, and inviting trails crisscross its length. Tulips, orchids, and rhododendron burst in a riot of color in May, followed by 350,000 other blooms, plus potted plants and fuchsias. Dahlias and roses arrive in September. It’s a feast for the eyes that will enchant even the most seasoned gardener.

You may also visit the falls of the Rhine River in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, accessible by boat or train from Constance. Embark a ferry from the harbor in Constance to Schaffhausen, then return later in the day by train. These are the largest falls in terms of water volume, in Europe. Thermal bath lovers might want to take the waters at the Bodensee Thermalbad in Constance. The infinity pool overlooks the lake and the hi-tech water features and jets do wonder for biking muscles. The perfect place to relax for an afternoon.

The alleys and squares of Constance’s old town are lively and bustling. For a bird’s-eye view, ascend to the top of the Münster church. For a few euros, you can walk up the stairs and look through the telescope across the lake to many of the destinations where you cycled this week. You’re also sure to find myriad keepsakes in charming shops. If you’d like to take in some local culture and history, Constance boasts museums, galleries, and historic buildings.

If you have not had enough cycling, you may rent cruiser bikes from a small bike shop across the street from our hotel. The shop owner can suggest routes to suit your desire.

Hotel: 47 Grad
Alternate Hotel: Hotel Opera
Meals: B

After breakfast* this morning, transfer to the Zurich airport (approximately 50 or 60 minutes, depending on traffic) for your departing flight **. Please ensure you are ready in the hotel reception area at the designated time.

*Please note: For guests with early-morning departures, breakfast at the hotel may not be available. Please check with the front desk to verify the times that breakfast is served.

**Please note: VBT recommends that you check your transfer time in your “Transfer Reminder.” VBT transfer times and departure points are finalized in advance and cannot be modified for individual guests. If you extend your stay beyond the scheduled departure time, return transportation to the airport will be at your own expense.

Meals: B

VBT Bicycle Vacation Only guests: Meet your VBT representative and the rest of the group in the lobby of the VBT Munich hotel (Hotel Stadt Rosenheim, Orleansplatz 6a, 81667 Munich, Germany. Tel.+49 89448 2424) before 9:00 a.m. for a prompt departure by motorcoach. Your VBT representative will be holding a VBT sign and will be easy to recognize. From Munich, transfer to the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen (1 hour 45 minutes). Please bring your cycling clothes (including your pedals or saddle if you use your own) in your day pack, to change into before beginning the warm-up ride.

Meet your VBT Trip Leaders at approximately 10:45 a.m. in the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen. From here, hop on the local bus (2 km) up to Neuschwanstein for your included 30-minute guided tour of the castle. Afterwards, return to the village by local bus and shuttle to your hotel in Füssen. Enjoy an included light lunch before your bike fitting and warm-up ride.

Should you miss the transfer from Munich, please arrange to meet your Trip Leaders and the rest of the group in the lobby of our hotel in Füssen at 12:30 p.m. (Hotel Hirsch Füssen, Kaiser-Maximilian-Platz 7, 87629 Füssen, Germany. Tel: +49 (0) 8362 9398 0; or Hotel Das Rübezahl, Am Ehberg 31, 87645 Schwangau, Germany. Tel: +49 (0) 83 62 8888. Please refer to your Final Travel documents for your Füssen hotel.). A direct train from Munich to Füssen takes a little over 2 hours and costs about $33-$75 USD per person. If your arrival at the hotel is scheduled later than 12:30 p.m. or if you are delayed, please contact the Hotel Hirsch or Hotel Das Rübezahl to advise of any travel delays or changes, and the staff will pass your message on to your VBT Trip Leaders. Please note that you will miss the included guided tour of Neuschwanstein. Please note that check-in time is 4:00 p.m., and your room will not be ready. You will be able to leave your bags with the reception desk.
The enchanting Old-World town of Füssen, located in the foothills of the Alps and at the southern end of the Romantic Road, is nestled in one of the most breathtaking natural settings in the world. At 2,651 feet in elevation, Füssen is the highest town in Bavaria. Looking south, you will glimpse the peaks of Austria.

Meet your VBT Trip Leaders at approximately 10:45 a.m. in the village of Hohenschwangau near Füssen. From here, hop on the local bus (2 km) up to Neuschwanstein for your included 30-minute guided tour of the castle. Afterwards, return to the village by local bus and shuttle to your hotel in Füssen. Enjoy an included light lunch before your bike fitting and warm-up ride. Please note that check-in time is 4:00 p.m., and your room will not be ready. You will be able to leave your bags with the reception desk.

Afterwards, join your Trip Leaders for an introduction and safety talk. Then set off on a pleasant warm-up ride. Your first ride in this magical realm takes you to lovely countryside and a pristine lake, taking in breathtaking alpine vistas and coasting along charming narrow farm roads.

Later, gather with the group for a welcome cocktail reception and dinner at the hotel.

Hotel: Hotel Hirsch Füssen
Alternate: Hotel Das Rübezahl
Meals: B, L, D
Daily Options: 13 miles (21km)

After breakfast, discover Füssen by foot with a local guide (45 minutes-1 hour). Then enjoy an invigorating reel through the scenic district of the region known as Eastern Allgäu. Marvel at views of the magnificent Neuschwanstein Castle, cycle around the shores of pristine Lake Forggensee, the largest in the Allgäu, and savor postcard-perfect views of the Bavarian Alps. For lunch, stop at Jürgen’s Panorama Hut for a buffet of locally cured cold meats and cheeses, served by our generous Bavarian host.

Our longer option follows the 2,000-year-old Via Claudia, or “Emperor’s Road” from the days of trade between Venetian and alpine emissaries. You will find it’s a pure pleasure to cycle between the many mountain villages of Bavaria, each more charming than the last, punctuated by onion-domed steeples rising against a backdrop of emerald-green mountain slopes. This is truly a working farm region that carries on traditions from generations past. In September, a procession of 30,000 cattle return to the valley’s farm stables from the high mountain pastures of the Allgäu Alps, where they have been feeding all summer on high-nutrition grass and herbs that grow at higher altitudes. Still, you will no doubt coast past dairy cows with their tell-tale bells around their necks. After so many miles of enchantment, you may wish to swim in the lake before returning to the hotel. Dinner is on your own tonight.

Hotel: Hotel Hirsch Füssen
Alternate: Hotel Das Rübezahl
Meals: B, L
Daily Options: 11, 9 or 24 miles (18, 15 or 39 km)

After another delicious breakfast, you will transfer to Röthenbach, Germany (1 hour). Upon arrival, enjoy a spin along the Bodensee-Königssee Bike Route, a mostly downhill reel to Lindau brimming with lush green pastures surrounded by mountain streams and breathtaking views of the Alps. You pause in Heimenkirch for a home-hosted lunch.

Later, you follow the shores of Lake Constance, Europe’s third largest freshwater lake. Its waters reflect heat, creating a Mediterranean-style climate conducive to growing Pinot Noir and white Müller-Thurgau grapes. Its shores are also renowned for the gardens that grace residential areas, lakeside parks, and the botanical island of Mainau. Upon arrival at this remarkable lake, you cycle onto Lindau Island where your 5-star Hotel Bayerischer Hof and its sister property, the 4-star Reutemann Seegarten (or alternate hotel on select dates), sit right on the waterfront in the heart of Lindau Island, a charming medieval town with a picturesque harbor and Bavaria’s only lighthouse. These hotels have been operated by the Stolze-Spaeth family for more than 150 years and offer a heated swimming pool, spa, and wellness center.

Hotel: Hotel Bayerischer Hof
Alternate: Hotel Helvetia
Meals: B, L, D
Daily Options: 24 miles (39 km)

After a hearty breakfast, shuttle 50 minutes to the start of the bike path in the alpine village of Schoppernau, located on the upper reaches of the Bregenzerach River. It’s a different world here at 2,500 feet (762 meters) in the Austrian Alps. You will see firsthand the sophisticated country lifestyle that is prevalent in the mountains high above Lake Constance. During a day of mostly downhill spinning on a well-marked paved path, admire high mountain scenery, passing small family farms, meadows of wildflowers, forests, villages, waterfalls, wooden troll bridges, and the region’s famous architecture—a unique blend of customary chalet styles and über-modern design. This region is known for its traditional crafts, including fine lace, woolen textiles, and especially wood crafts, such as toys, shoes, carvings, and carpentry. Cows, sheep, and goats are also important to the local economy—which explains why our inspirational route is called the “Cheese Road.”

After lunch, our longer option leaves Bregenzerwald and continues to Lindau, crossing into Bavarian Germany. Tonight’s dinner is on your own in Lindau.

Across the lake in Bregenz, you may consider taking in a show at the world-renowned floating stage, a breathtaking summer opera venue. The town itself is also worth a visit, home to wood-inspired architecture, museums, and art galleries. During summer, the Bregenzer Festspiele floating stage features various performances. Tickets can be purchased at http://bregenzerfestspiele.com/en months in advance. A ferry to the show can be booked from Lindau to Bregenz at www.bsb.de/schiffstransfer.html or through our Lindau Hotel. Please note that you will return to Lindau after midnight.

Hotel: Hotel Bayerischer Hof
Alternate: Hotel Helvetia
Meals: B
Daily Options: 16 and 17 miles (26 and 28 km)

Begin today’s reel along the lakeshore, passing the many impressive villas of Wasserburg and Nonnenhorn. Your route on this small peninsula affords lovely views of picturesque houses and a small castle before you continue on to Kressbronn and Langenargen.

Coast into Friedrichshafen, a city whose history is tightly linked to World War II. Its aviation industry and strategic location made it an important center for Nazi Germany. The city was heavily bombed and largely destroyed in April 1944 by 1,086 tons of bombs. Today’s “modern” city, therefore, exudes a 1950s air in its architecture. A lighter and loftier side of Friedrichshafen’s history can be found in its modern Zeppelin Museum, housing the world’s largest aviation collection. The zeppelin airship was born here on July 2, 1900, the creation of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin. Zeppelins took to the air once again in 1993. On a clear and quiet day, you’re sure to see them drifting quietly through the sky. Perhaps you will pause here for a refreshment in one of its many cafés.

(If you’d like, you can book a Zeppelin flight by visiting www.zeppelinflug.de months in advance. Should you choose to organize a Zeppelin flight, you will be responsible for getting yourself from our Lindau hotel to the airport and then to our Constance hotel at the end of the day. This is best done by taxi, which can be organized through our Lindau hotel. You will miss today’s bike ride.)

Cycle to Meersburg, a Baroque fortress town on the lake and home to the longest inhabited castle in Germany. The fortress ruins are perched high on the cliffs above, a reminder of ancient ties with the Carolingian Empire. After lunch on your own in this charming town where flowers spill from window boxes, you ferry across the lake from Meersburg, and continue cycling to your final destination in Constance. The hotel is on our biking route along the Rhine River just outside the city center, ideally located for a perfect stroll into town later this evening. Explore the city and enjoy dinner on your own at one of the great local restaurants nearby.

Hotel: 47 Grad
Meals: B
Daily Options: 15.6 and 4 miles or 24 miles (25 and 38.5 km)

This morning, take a short train ride to St. Gallen, Switzerland, located near the point where Switzerland, Austria, and Liechtenstein meet. The city has been a major religious center since the seventh century. A guided tour of the Abbey of St.Gallen reveals the treasures of the baroque cathedral with its fantastic ceiling frescoes. For centuries, this was an Imperial Benedictine Abbey and a center of Western science, art, and high culture. The rococo Abbey Library, equally ornate, is the oldest in the country and one of the world’s most significant monastic libraries. Later, stroll the traffic-free Old Town replete with brightly painted oriel windows, pretty boutiques and world-famous embroideries.

Back on your bicycle, enjoy a scenic spin to the charming Swiss village of Steinebrunn, where you stop for a traditional Swiss lunch at a local organic apple farm. Afterwards, continue your ride back to Constance, where you have more time to explore this beautiful city on your own. You might find this to be the prettiest, most cozy corner of Lake Constance, the perfect place to end your journey.

Tonight, we raise a glass and say “prost!” to a magnificent week during a festive farewell dinner.

Hotel: 47 Grad
Meals: B, L, D
Daily Options: 25 miles (41 km)

VBT Bicycle Vacation Only guests: After breakfast, meet your local guide at 9:00 a.m. for a one-hour walking tour of Constance. Afterwards, you are free to continue on your own.

From Constance, there are many train connections to other cities in Germany and Switzerland. Or you might embark the catamaran that whisks you across the lake to Friedrichshafen from where you may continue by plane or train to your final destination.

Meals: B