Bregenz & Lake Constance

Bregenz, the capital of Vorarlberg, lies on the eastern shore of Lake Constance at the tri-border point of Austria, Germany and Switzerland. World-famous is the lake stage of the Bregenz Festival, the largest lake stage in the world. The local mountain Pfänder offers a wide view over the lake and the Alpine chain by cable car.

Highlights

• Largest lake stage in the world (Bregenz Festival)
• Pfänder cable car with panoramic views over Lake Constance
• Location at the tri-border point
• Lakeside promenade and old town

Good to know

Practical info

Background & History

Bregenz, the capital of Vorarlberg, lies on the eastern shore of Lake Constance, where the Alps press immediately up to the great inland sea of Central Europe. The Celts already, and later the Romans, recognised the strategic importance of this place; the Roman settlement Brigantium gave the lake its Latin name Lacus Brigantinus. Above the town rises the local mountain Pfänder, from whose height the view reaches across three countries and the wide, glittering surface of the water to the Swiss mountains, and which has long been a popular excursion destination.

World-famous are the Bregenz Festival performances, which since the year 1946 have taken place on a tremendous lake stage, whose elaborate stage sets seem to grow directly out of the water and draw an audience from all over the world. The medieval upper town with the striking, onion-domed Martinsturm preserves the historic face of the town, while modern buildings such as the Kunsthaus Bregenz provide self-confident contemporary accents. Lake Constance itself, a legacy of the Ice Age glaciers that scoured out the deep basin, connects Austria, Germany and Switzerland and serves at the same time as an important drinking water reservoir. Thus Bregenz has always been a lively meeting place of cultures by the water, where the expanse of the lake and the nearness of the mountains meet in an impressive way.