Experience the best of Bregenz

Bregenz is Austria's western gateway on Lake Constance, known in German as the Bodensee, where the Alps meet the lake and the borders of Germany and Switzerland lie close by. The Pfänder, a mountain of about 1,060 metres, rises directly behind the town, and a cable car carries visitors to the summit for views over the lake and the Alps. The old upper town is dominated by the Martinsturm, a tower with a broad onion dome.

Each summer the Bregenz Festival stages opera on a huge floating stage in the lake, with the audience seated on the shore. The Kunsthaus Bregenz, a gallery of concrete and etched glass by Peter Zumthor, stands at the waterfront. The Bregenzerwald, a green valley region to the east, is known for its farmhouses and cheese, and lake steamers sail to Lindau and Konstanz.

Käsknöpfle, cheese noodles topped with fried onions, and Riebel, a dish of cornmeal, are Vorarlberg specialities, and whitefish from the lake is served grilled or fried. The lake keeps the climate mild, winter mist often hangs over the shore, and in summer the promenade fills.