Experience the best of Überlingen

Überlingen lies on the northern arm of Lake Constance, the Überlinger See, in Baden-Württemberg, its old town set on a terrace above the water. The Gothic Minster of St Nicholas, begun in the fourteenth century, has a richly carved high altar from the early 1600s, and the town hall has a carved wooden council chamber from the late fifteenth century. Stretches of the medieval walls and a gate, the Franziskanertor, survive.

A shaded promenade runs along the lakeshore, where boats leave for the other ports of the lake. Mainau, the flower island, lies a few kilometres to the south, and the former Cistercian abbey of Salem, now a palace and school, stands to the north-east. The pile-dwelling museum at Unteruhldingen and the baroque Birnau church are south-east along the shore.

Lake perch and whitefish are on many menus. In autumn, onion tart is served with new wine, and the surrounding slopes produce Müller-Thurgau and pinot wines. The town is a Kneipp spa, a place for gentle walks, and its sheltered lakeside gardens stay green and colourful for much of the year.