Lake Constance Bike Tour Reviews
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★★★★★ Timothy Ricks 2 days agoExquisite Visual Treats
· Lake Constance to Lake Maggiore
A few easy days, then some more challenging climbs. Finally a long descent and a ride to Locarno on Lake Maggiore. Some rain and wind added to the adventure.
Pros: Beautiful scenery. A few nice hotels. Reliable rental bikes. Memorable rides. Excellent luggage transfers.
Cons: Too much gravel and trail riding. While some hotels were very nice, many were sub-par, in our opinion. Bikes were heavy, slow and unresponsive—making the cycling harder and slower. Tour provider never met nor communicated with us directly—they just delivered written instructions and rental bikes to the first hotel. It seemed that they really were not so interested in our business.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 15+
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Countries included in this tour?
- Switzerland
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★★★★★ Julane Anderson 3 days agoOne of our favorite bike tours!
· Lake Constance Classic (11-nights)
We've been on many bike tours in Europe and this tour has it all: excellent, centrally located hotels; beautiful scenic routes; variety of activities and experiences included in the price (gondola cable car ride, three museums, cog railway trip, boat trip, bus tickets provided by the hotels); and reliable bikes--we used "acoustic" rather than electric bikes and only had to walk two short hills. The tour company has gone above and beyond to make this tour a memorable and interesting one.
A cyclist doing a self guided tour for the first time should be confident about riding with (rare) city traffic and navigation; we were glad that we had downloaded the GPX tracks before we left the States.- What was the date of your tour?
- mid-September, 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 12+
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Lisa Schmitz 5 days agoWonderful trip!
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This is not a terribly challenging ride, especially on e-bikes. The scenery is beautiful and all of the hotels were great. The breakfasts were enormous and plentiful, and luggage transfer was seamless. We did request to stay in Stein am Rhein instead of Gailingen, and we’re glad we did. The hotel in Arbon (Hotel Römerhof) was very nice, but if it’s possible to stay closer to the water, I’d recommend that. The e-bikes were excellent. One important note: bike pick up is open until 7pm, even though the shop is listed as closed after 5:00. They don’t answer the phone or return a message, but you can expect them to be ready for you up until 7pm. Enjoy his ride!
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Rusty Page 1 week ago
Wonderful Bike Trip
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This was our 4th trip with Bike Tours, and arguably the best. The e-bikes were great! The lake and the small towns surrounding it were gorgeous. 3 countries. One day we ate breakfast in Germany, lunch in Austria, and dinner in Switzerland. We’ll worth the money. Hotels were all beautiful and quaint in their own right. Do it! You’ll love it.
- What was the date of your tour?
- Sept 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 7
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Timothy Ricks 1 week ago
Spectacular Scenery Along Lakes and Over the Alps
· Lake Constance to Lake Maggiore
Easy riding through gorgeous countryside for the first few days, then some serious climbing in the mountains for a couple of days, a long descent and then beautiful Locarno on Lake Maggiore. More gravel road and trails than expected. Sturdy but slow and heavy bikes provided were up to the task—just made for more work. Hotels varied in quality. The hotel in Horn (Hotel Bad Horn) was very nice. Others—mostly just okay.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 16
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Switzerland
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★★★★★ Blain M Archer 2 weeks ago
Wonderful adventure around Lake Constance
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
we were three on this tour with one being a novice who had difficulty riding an ebike due to inexperience. He got better after the first 2 days.
we got lost a bit nearly every day but never felt real lost as we knew where the lake had to be most of the time and we were always going in the right direction. The reason for this was the signage was not always understandable.
we always found help from many nice people who were eager to assist.- What was the date of your tour?
- sept 10 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 11
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Jan Sjökvist 3 weeks ago
Perfect tour
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
Everything, indeed, worked perfectly. No problems whatsoever with bike, tour information was excellent, very good hotels always close to city centers. My luggage always waiting for me at the hotel of the day. I am impressed of how well everything worked out.
Generally the bike roads were good, with some exceptions, but a few kilometers with quite bumpy gravel is acceptable.- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Erik Coats 2 months agoGreat place to cycle
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path (Upscale Lodging)
Lake Constance is beautiful and the cycling is great. 80% of the trip is on paved hike/bike paths, with about 10% on unpaved paths and 10% on regular roads (shared with cars). You should pay for the GPS aps on your phone to navigate as the maps and written directions are often insufficient. Most of the hotels were in lovely cities, but the spacing out was inconsistent, leading to some very short days of cycling and some very long days. Most days were short enough to give you time to explore the cities you're passing through and staying in. We had a couple issue and were able to reach the tour company for support, which is appreciated.
- What was the date of your tour?
- August 2023
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Jodie Lawlor 2 months ago
Fantastic Adventure!!
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This was our first bike tour-and we chose the self guided tour so we could take our time. It was fantastic-bikes were great, book with our route and all the details was a huge help, hotels were great and we had great weather. The towns and scenery were amazing. Highly recommend and would do again!
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ (Nancy) Bart Hemmerich 2 months ago
Quaint Swiss Villages Among Majestic Alps
· Lake Constance to Lake Maggiore
After having just completed the Romantic Roads Tour, this tour was a perfect contrast - more focus on geography including huge glacial lakes, wide river basins, steep hillside farms and villages, and jagged Alp peaks with snow fields. This was a more challenging tour with added factors like very high temperatures a few days and very strong headwinds. Some of the gravel sections, particularly between Chur and Disentis were very tough for touring bikes so we have already suggested a road option. Hotels, restaurants and overall route were outstanding.
- What was the date of your tour?
- July 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 6 organized tours, many self-supported
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Switzerland
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★★★★★ Mark Krueger 2 months ago
Our First E-Bike Trip
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
Lake Constance is a beautiful lake with many quaint towns, varied terrain and an active boat scene.
Our E-bikes performed flawlessly with more than enough battery life. Each hotel provided secure overnight bike storage and battery charging.
We are seasoned long-haul cross country hikers but experienced daily logistical issues in that using maps and GPS we were unable to follow the bike paths; we often stopped to ask for directions.
Not sure why this route is advertised as family friendly. During our journey around the lake we did not see any young children riding with parents; certainly this route is not appropriate for pulling a child-trailer behind a bike.
I’d recommend renting the E-Bike and enjoy the journey as we did.- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Mark Krueger 2 months ago
Our First E-Bike Trip
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
Lake Constance is a beautiful lake with many quaint towns, varied terrain and an active boat scene.
Our E-bikes performed flawlessly with more than enough battery life. Each hotel provided secure overnight bike storage and battery charging.
We are seasoned long-haul cross country hikers but experienced daily logistical issues in that using maps and GPS we were unable to follow the bike paths; we often stopped to ask for directions.
Not sure why this route is advertised as family friendly. During our journey around the lake we did not see any young children riding with parents; certainly this route is not appropriate for pulling a child-trailer behind a bike.
I’d recommend renting the E-Bike and enjoy the journey as we did.- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Liana Amy 3 months ago
Loved it
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
We lucked out with spectacular weather for this trip. It really is beautiful. At certain points we lost track of the "actual" path we were supposed to be following but eventually we would always find our way back on. The hotels were good. One improvement would be to have all hotels with A/C, as during the summer, the temps can be pretty high and a couple of the hotels were downright hot during the night. Some hotels offered a fan, but only two had A/C. The food at all of the hotels was great for breakfast and the staff at each one were helpful and friendly.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Josh Shupack 3 months ago
Great bike paths and views
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
My wife and our boys ages 7 and 11 went on this tour. Most of it is on fabulous bike paths. Occasionally you have to bike through a town on roads or places with a lot of pedestrians. We had to skip a day and a half via trains and boats because it was a little much for our boys, but we still managed 150 km. I would recommend a day off in the middle.
The views are great, lots of places to stop for a swim, museum, or just a walk through a neat town. We found that it took a lot of the day just to bike and we didn't have as much time as we had liked for playing and exploring.
The distances for each day depend on what cities you're staying in.
Overall a really good experience for the whole family.
- What was the date of your tour?
- June 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 1
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens, Families with young kids
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Dave Carlstrom 4 months ago
On the road again... our third Biketours.com adventure
· Lake Constance Classic (11-nights)
Thankfully I’m not unduly worse for wear after almost three weeks and hundreds of kilometers of European cycling… though I did take four tumbles. The most serious (and ignominious) was in an Austrian grocery store parking lot when my pants cuff caught on the pedal and over I went – hard, attracting the immediate attention of several shoppers (“Carnage on lane one”) who with some difficulty got me back on my feet. At first I was pretty sure I’d broken something important, but all limbs are yet attached and seemingly intact… albeit a bit looser.
I pedaled the balance of the day’s distance but at my compatriots’ urging skipped the following day’s segment in favor of bus/train passage to St. Gallen, Switzerland. The next day was a scheduled no biking day so I had two days to recover, sorta. The next day – our last of actual cycling – with some anxiety I got back on my trusty velocipede and, sure enough, one click later fell again… though this time comparatively softly albeit in front of a bus. I made it the remaining 45K to destination without further incident.
Our merry band included Seattleites Curt and Brenda Burnett, Gerry Champagne, and friends until recently from Fairbanks Ron and Jeanine Woolf. Fine folks all, we really did have a good time together.
Our odyssey began with six days at a rental house in Eguisheim, France, followed by an eleven day clockwise circumnavigation of Lake Constance that touched Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.
Here are a few day-by-day snippets of my adventure:
Sunday, April 30th. Aloft en route to Paris Delta served the worst dinner I’ve ever ingested on an international flight: the “beef” entre was the consistency of spam, reminiscent of the mystery meat of junior high cafeteria days, and dished out in a biodegradable cardboard clamshell.
Monday, May 1st. Having hobbled off the plane I was semi-involuntarily consigned to a wheelchair for the lengthy transfer to the airport train station. Manly hombre that I am, I dared not disclose to the friendly pusher that I had come to Europe for three weeks of cycling. Arrived Colmar, in Alsace, just before midnight via a 180 MPH TGV with a transfer in Strasbourg and, coincidentally, six minutes prior to the Woolfs’ arrival. Settled into our very nice rental house.
Tuesday, May 2nd - Thursday, May 4th. Daily e-bike excursions to nearby picture-perfect towns with eat-in dinners crafted by chefs Burnett and Woolf. Imbibed copious amouints of wine, certainly did our part for the local viticulture industry.
I developed a serious case of ABC – Asymmetrical Butt Chafing – which was ameliorated by liberal bi-daily nether regions applications of Bag Balm – my personal favorite posterior palliative, see https://bagbalm.com/. SHOW MORE
Friday, May 5th. Hung out at the house, pas mal.
Saturday, May 6th. Day trip with Burnetts to the tourist mecca of Colmar where, alas and alack, Curt was pickpocketed! Charge and debit card cancellations ensued, not good.
Sunday, May 7th. Auto trip to a German mountain hiking lodge, an intermediate stop on our way to Konstantz, the starting and ending point of our main event circumnavigation of the eponymous lake.
Monday, May 8th. Had to beat feet to get Burnetts’ rental car back by a 10:30 am deadline… made it with a full five minutes to spare. Checked in at the stunning four star Hotel Halm where the breakfast buffet includes champagne and cheesecake. Woolfs arrived by train, Gerry direct from Seattle via Zurich. Got our e-bikes.
Tuesday, May 9th. Pedaled forty some K to Gailingen, a bit of a shakedown cruise. Great scenery and picture postcard-worthy medieval villages. Adequate lodging, but not a Hotel Halm.
Wednesday, May 10th. Roundtrip to Rhine Falls, Europe’s largest. Second night in Gailingen, first of nearly nightly self-catered hotel room team happy hours.
On previous European bike tours we’ve grumbled about route instructions encrypted by by non-native English speakers. This time the tour operator-provided guidebook was completely devoid of route guidance… we were on our own, taking turns as Google Maps-assisted trail breaking pathfinders with plenty of navigational errors. But we always (eventually) got to where we were going.
Thursday, May 11th. Return to Konstanz for a Hotel Halm reprise. Got soaked during the last couple clicks of the day’s ride.
Friday, May 12th. To Radolfzell via Mainau Island, the latter a facsimile of sorts of Butchart Gardens.
Saturday, May 13th. A mere sixteen K to Ludwigshafen.
Sunday, May 14th. Forty K to Friedrichshafen, home of the Zeppelin Museum to which I made a solo afternoon excursion via city buses. Turns out the Hindenberg was 245 meters from stem to stern, almost three football fields.
Monday, May 15th. Day of my aforementioned parking lot tumble. Overnight in Bregnz, Austria. I was very sore, somewhat bruised, had marginal repose.
Tuesday, May 16th. Having shipped my bike with the luggage I patronized buses and trains to our next destination, St. Gallen, Switzerland. As it happened today was Jeanine’s turn to tumble, hard, while passing a path-blocking truck.
Wednesday, May 17th. Today was a scheduled non-cycling day so while others toured about (monastery, waterfalls chocolate factory, shopping) I rested my bruised corpus in the hope that I might be sufficiently healed for the morrow’s last lap back to Konstanz.
Thursday, May 18th. 14K of almost continuous downhill on the 46 K journey back to our starting point. Celebratory dinner, a bit melancholy to be soon parting ways.
Friday, May 19th. Train to Zurich for a twelve hour Swissair flight to San Francisco and a connection home to Seattle.
Great trip, a good time had by all (despite bumps and bruises).
D. Carlstrom. May, 2023
SHOW LESS- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Jeanine JeffersWoolf 4 months ago
Great
· Lake Constance Classic (11-nights)
Love the route planned and the suggested sites to see. Beautiful area. Responsive organization. Some of the directions were tricky
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 4
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Joseph Tevaarwerk 5 months ago
Very nice trip and well organized. We have planned another one as well
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
We had a great time on this bike trip. The routes were clearly planned and the hotels were great with very good beds and excellent breakfast. The bike rental place was very well organized with very pleasant technicians to help getting the correct adjustments. Our bikes were both nearly new (2022 and 2023). We had no snafus at all.
One suggestion: allow for at least two extra days after the ride to visit some of the sites that take more time. For example we did have one day left to visit the Pfahlenbauten Museum. We went by ferry across Lake Constance and spend nearly 4 hours at the museum, a very pleasant day. I would have liked a similar day to visit the Zeppelin Museum in Friedrichshafen and then visit Insel Mainau, but we were out of time. A lesson for next time.
We visited some beautiful places but the one that capped it all was from the top of a castle in Ueberlingen. It was just gorgeous.- What was the date of your tour?
- April 23-29
- How many tours have you completed?
- 2
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
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★★★★★ Bridget Harron 5 months ago
My first bike trip -definitely not my last!
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
What a blast!! Great way to spend time with family. Such a friendly vacation spot. We had a little trouble losing the bike trail through the towns along the way -but clearly our lack of map-reading skills.
- What was the date of your tour?
- may 4, 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 0
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Stephanie St Cyr 5 months ago
Spectacular! We would do it all over again tomorrow
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
The perfect way to experience the plethora of quaint villages and perfect towns surrounding the lake. We would have done it all over again if we could have. The accommodations were perfect, luggage transport was seamless, breakfasts were delicious and bike paths were plentiful along the way. We will be doing another trek next year and another the year after.
- What was the date of your tour?
- May 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- None
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
-
★★★★★ Bruce 5 months ago
Early Season Trip
· Lake Constance Bicycle Path
This bike route is in a gorgeous area of Europe and VERY POPULAR, even during Season B. During high season, the paths around Lake Constance must be like L.A. during rush hour traffic! The pathways are a mixture and dedicated for bicyclists, shared with pedestrians, shared with slow moving traffic and through busy towns and quiet villages. It's mostly paved and the scenery is generally good to great. You pass through some limited commercial/industrial areas. Be alert for packs of fast paced road bikers and keep to the right, thus allowing them to retain high speeds as they are training for imaginary slots in the Tour de France. Some e-bikers are in fast mode as well.
If traveling by train in Germany to/from Konstanz, the DB Navigator smartphone application is good. The initial/last accommodation, Hotel Halm, is located perfectly across the street from the bahnhof in Konstanz. You are given a local transit pass (that you've paid for indirectly), which allows you to hop on bus #6 at the bahnhof and puts you within about two blocks of the bike shop, where you will gather your rigs. Staff are great at the bike shop. Riding from the shop back to the hotel is easy and mostly on a bike path. Taking a taxi to the bike shop is spendy despite the short distance.
The bikes are heavy, entirely suitable and well maintained. They have a much higher center of gravity than typical bikes and are like a supertanker as to maneuvering in tight quarters. Adjust your riding style, mounting/dismounting techniques accordingly.
The mapping is inadequate. Refresh your vocabulary in advance. We loaded an inexpensive Airalo e-sim good for the region, is inexpensive (3 GB data, $13) and valuable. There were some cell phone dead zones, however. Almost all locals were more than helpful in redirecting us to the proper pathways. Adopt the concept of when first lost, immediately ask for help. Of note: departing Konstanz and staying on the bike route was a PITA. The same for transiting Radolzell.
The hotels were fine and served good to excellent breakfasts. Also provided is secure storage for bikes each night. How all bikes are stored during high season must require significant imagination by hotel staff. Two hotels were less than ideal as to locations, including Parkhotel St. Leonhard, which is on the edge of town and high on a bluff. The other is Hotel Restaurant Seegarten in Arbon, and located well away from the town and restaurants.
Staff at Bike Tours are superior...thanks for helping book this trip! Tip: membership in Adventure Cycling gains you a discount.
- What was the date of your tour?
- April 2023.
- How many tours have you completed?
- 7
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Switzerland
