On Sunday we had to return the rental car so instead we headed out by bus. The roads were crowded but at lunch we finally reached Meersburg, a small town on lake Konstanz. Like any German small town with self respect, Meersburg had a castle, but that was not our main interest. Instead we got a delicious lunch from (hopefully) local fish, then took the ferry to the island Mainau.

  • At the restaurant
  • Waiting for the ship
  • On board
  • The ship’s bell
  • Approaching the island

Mainau is a small island just outside the town of Konstanz, and it’s basically just a park and castle. It is mainly famous for the park which is full of all kinds of flowers.

  • A map of the lake made from different flowers
  • Staircase waterfall with flowers on both sides
  • Close up of large flower

I think we came in slightly the wrong season because there were not so many kinds in bloom when we were there, it was mostly a lot of verdure. We took a good long walk around the island, admiring what flowers we could still see. There was even a castle (or perhaps mansion) which used to belong a Swedish prince.

  • The (somewhat blurry) castle
  • Flower pots with the lake in the background
  • Pink roses
  • Pond surrounded by flowers
  • I just kind of liked this arrangement for a wedding
  • I just had to climb out on this tree over the water

I can imagine that if you come in the right season, this place will be spectacular. At this time of year it was OK, you kind of get a feeling for what it should be like, but it’s not really that fantastic. I think that if you come here in the summer, it’s not really worth the fairly high ticket price. Indeed, the high point of the days was the boat trip across the lake, I just wish it ha been a bit longer.

Coming back into Meersburg