Lindau is a Bavarian major town and an island on the eastern side of Lake Constance, the
freshwater lake called Bodensee in German. It is the capital of the Landkreis or rural
district of Lindau, very closely situated near Austria and Switzerland. Lindau is part
of Bavarian Swabia. The Coat of Arms of Lindau town is a Lime tree. The historic town of
Lindau is located on an 0.68-square-kilometre island, which is connected with the mainland
by a road-traffic bridge and a railway dam leading to Lindau station.
History
The name Lindau was first mentioned by a monk from St. Gallen in a document of 882, stating
that Adalbert, count of Raetia, had founded a nunnery on the island. However remains of
an early Roman settlement dating back to the 1st century have been found in the district
of Aeschach. In 1180 the St. Stephan's church was founded.
In 1224 the Franciscans founded a monastery on the island. In 1274/75 Lindau became an
Imperial Free City under King Rudolph I. The terminology 'city' here means German Große
Kreisstadt, which is an exception due to Lindau's rather small population of c. 24454 only.
In 1430, about 15 of Lindau's Jews were burned at the stake after being accused of murdering
a Christian child. In 1528, Lindau accepted the Protestant Reformation. Lindau first followed
the Tetrapolitan Confession, and then the Augsburg Confession. After the Thirty Years'
War, in 1655 the first Lindauer Kinderfest was held in memory of the war time.
After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, Lindau lost its status as an Imperial Free
City in 1802. The city went to Karl August von Bretzenheim who gave Lindau and monastery
to the Kingdom of Austria in 1804. In 1805 Austria returned Lindau to Bavaria.
In 1853 a dam was built to connect the railway from Munich to the island. In 1856 a new harbour
was built, with its characteristic landmark, the lion sculpture, together with Bavaria's
only lighthouse. In 1922 the independent districts of Aeschach,
Hoyren and Reutin merged with the district. After World War II Lindau fell under French
administration and went firstly to Württemberg-Hohenzollern and then to the State of Baden-Württemberg.
In 1955, Lindau returned to Bavaria. Lindau is located near the meeting point of
the Austrian, German and Swiss borders. It nestles on the lake in front of Austria's
Pfänder mountain. Lindau is popular with sightseers and holidaymakers for its medieval
town centre and pleasant location on Lake Constance. Since 1951, the Nobel Laureate
Meetings at Lindau attracts many Nobel prize winners to Lindau every year. A congress of
medical physics is also held yearly. Tourist attractions
Lindau is a main-sightseeing spot in the very South of Germany. Visitors from all over the
world visit mostly in Summer. Lindau is famous for its rich, old town houses and variety
of different buildings. The gardens of Lindau are wonderful in spring or summer blossom.
Attractions range from old buildings to modern outdoor activities like Biking, Sailing, Hiking,
Bathing, Camping, etc. A very up to date and official site is Lindau
Tourismus, which takes care of visitors and acts as a starting platform.
Habour entrance with lighthouse and Bavarian Lion sculpture
Church of St. Stephan, c. 1180 with remodelling in 1782
Church of St. Peter, became war memorial church in 1928
Minster 'Unserer Lieben Frau' former church of the monastery 'Maria Himmelfahrt', with
St. Marien Maximilianstraße
Historic Town Hall Casino Spielbank Lindau
Gardens and Parks of Lindau, e.g. Lindenhofpark Museum 'Haus zum Cavazzen'
Theatre Lindau Boat trips by Bodenseeschifffahrt
Lindau's Old Book Archive with books from the 15th to 18th Century inside the historic
town hall Scenic spot with stunning views: Hoyerberg
near Hoyerberg Schlössle Etc.
Economy In former times an important trading route
from Nuremberg to Italy passed through Lindau; the lake fishery has also played a big role
in the economy of the city. In the 19th century Lindau was an important location for textile
industries. Nowadays Lindau has a well established industrial and touristic economy, including
Restaurants, Hotels and B&B's. For families it is also popular to stay at a Ferienwohnung,
which you find everywhere in the area. Lindau has a very low unemployment rate, likely due
to the economy mix and good trade near the Rhine-Valley. Today, there are a lot of small
amongst some industrial companies. Larger corporations
Lindauer DORNIER GmbH Liebherr Electronics
Cooper-Standard Automotive Cofely Refrigeration
Lindauer Fruchtgarten Continental AG, BU ADAS
Faurecia Automotive Crane Co. ChemPharm Energyy
Tanner AG; Tanner is also a major office complex which hosts several other companies
Duwe 3D Tecnotron Electronics in Weißensberg, very
close to Lindau Touristic economy
Hotels, ranging from smaller B&B's and Vacation rentals to established, state-of-the-art Hotels,
e.g. at the harbour front of Lindau Restaurants & Cafés, including many different
kinds of cuisines, Italian, Greek, German, modern Gastro cuisine, Thai, Chinese, etc.
and some take aways Swimming pools and baths. Some places are
public and free of charge, some places have entrance fee and contain a pool and all amenities
Bike stations, shops for bike rental Etc.
Other local economy Numerous farmers around town, producing apples,
pears, strawberries, etc. and higher grade products e.g. Schnapps or Vine or fruit juices.
Local hairdressers, Gyms, bakeries, butchers, ice cream and coffee shops
Variety of car dealers, petrol stations, etc. Care homes, care takers, Hospital, etc.
Districts Districts
Lindau is split into several districts. A search for 'Lindau Stadt' will reveal the
town's bordering to the neighbour parts of Lindau.
Central: Island, Aeschach East: Reutin, Zech
West: Bad Schachen, Unterreitnau North: Oberreitnau, Hochbuch, Hoyern, Schönau
Transportation Railway
Lindau has a main station the Lindauer Hbf, with trains usually from/to Friedrichshafen,
Munich, Ulm and Augsburg direction or Bregenz with OBB, Austria and further like Zurich
by SBB. Bus - - Stadtbus Lindau
Lindau's bus system is called Stadtbus Lindau, which departs conveniently from all station
every 30 Minutes and runs until 22.30 daily, with special exceptions at events. The bus
system is a very helpful way of getting around town for people of all ages, provided by the
Lindauer Stadtwerke, which is the main local utility provider.
Beside that the RBA and the Zweiländer-line of Austrias "Landbus Unterland" offer their
services. Recently long-distance coaches have started running lines to further away German
cities an being an alternative to the Railway by Deutsche Bahn.
Road Lindau is connected to the Autobahn A96. Main
roads include B31 and B12. The A96 will merge into the Austrian Autobahn A14 starting right
after the boarding with the c. 7 km long Pfändertunnel. The tunnel has been under
reconstruction and expansion into a 2-pipe system for a total of 4 lanes in the last
years to compensate for traffic going North and South.
Airports Lindau does not have its own airport, however
is in very close location to Airport Friedrichshafen and Airport Memmingen, which usually serve
holiday flyers and European destinations. For international flights, it is suitable
to refer to either Airport Munich, Airport Stuttgart or Airport Zurich, all in reasonable
distance. Utility
Lindau's local utility provider is called Stadtwerke Lindau. The business includes electricity,
water, telecommunications, public baths, and other products. The provider tries to improve
in all branches, particular also to integrate and deploy green-energy amongst homes, but
also by buying renewables only. Telecommunication
Lindau's telecommunication network is ever growing in the global race for faster internet
access. The local utility provider Stadtwerke TK-Lindau started deploying high-grade glass-fibre
internet to major businesses, including corporations or Hotels, but also to new housing development
areas. Other networks include cable television e.g. by Kabel Deutschland, which is available
to some streets and xDSL, e.g. by Telekom or any other provider due to the liberalised
market. Some systems have seen upgrades of the ADSL standard in the last years to cope
with the high demand of novel communication media. Special projects are also set up to
further improve the situation, e.g. plans to deploy a major WiFi hotspot network across
the Island of Lindau. Property, redevelopment and other major projects
across town It is worth to mention that Lindau is currently
planning several major redevelopment projects across. The vast amount of projects can be
followed through local news sources or e.g. spotting construction site signs. The following
is a list of objects that are in focus of redevelopment. Some of the items, e.g. the
new train station is in planning since decades. All dates, planning, etc. should be frequently
looked up in news source due to high amount of changes that projects face with costs,
construction issues an stakeholders. New train station - Lindau is planning a new
train station since decades. Currently the agreement between the major stakeholders is
to build a new station near the shopping mall Lindaupark and refurbish the station on the
island. Both station will be active Train electrification project for tracks to
Munich - This major project is sponsored by several big organs like State of Bavaria,
Switzerland and Deutsche Bahn Lindau Inselhalle - Lindau's main hall, particular
for conferences is due to massive rebuild very soon
Multi-storey car park - with the changes of Lindau Inselhalle comes a new car park, on
the island Property developments near the train station
on the island are planned, especially once land is accessible after rail tracks have
been removed New Fire station was completed in September
2014 near Auenstraße - Major headquarter for all former stations across town, including
the Technisches Hilfswerk unit of Lindau all united in one complex
Property developments connected to area which belongs to Deutsche Bahn near Reutin, once
the new train station is completed Property developments in district Aeschach
- Some major buildings, including luxury apartments and central located spaces for e.g. offices
Railway underpass near entrance of the island - Lindau is planning two railway underpasses
for cars to ease the situation with the many tourists visiting by car and blockage by frequent
crossing closures Several company extensions or relocations
are planned - As of September 2014 Continental AG is extending into a third office complex
Lindau Utility is deploying optical broadband across the city - Many pedestrian pathways
are opened and fitted with fibre to home Lindau Strandbad, the major public bath is
in discussion of being refurbished, updated, etc. but there is many open questions regarding
investments REWE Supermarket in Bodolz major redevelopment
- New interior, new shops; the building also includes a pharmacy, gym, etc. it will be
closed Dec 2014 until April 2015 Et cetera
Local news sources Lindau has a well established newspaper called
Lindauer Zeitung, which is part of the Schwäbische Zeitung. It is released daily. Another newspaper
is the Bürgerzeitung Lindau. It is released biweekly and contains e.g. announcements of
the town by the Mayor, but also very interesting small stories around local businesses, developments,
events, reviews and many more. The paper is free, but ad-sponsored and can usually be
found in shops or companies premises. Both newspapers are print and online available.
Schools and Kindergartens Lindau has two main high schools: Bodensee-Gymnasium
and Valentin-Heider-Gymnasium. With one middle school for girls and one middle school for
boys Among several primary schools across the town. Lindau recently completed construction
of a new Kindergarten home, which also included a Kita. There is high demand for childcare
and places and the town has obligations by the State of Bavaria to prepare for every
child. Hospitals, registration offices, etc.
Asklepios Krankenhaus Lindau Bürgerbüro Lindau, the local office for
all legal things, e.g. passports, registration, etc.
KFZ-Zulassungsstelle, registration office for cars
Finanzamt, location in Lindau Shopping
Lindau's main shopping is mostly remote, off the Island, when it comes to supermarkets
like Aldi, Lidl, REWE, etc. However, the Island holds many different shops with nice products,
including clothes, cosmetics, gifts, toys, antique items, local products like cheese,
vine, etc. Lindau's major shopping mall is called Lindaupark and hosts larger shops like
Müller Drogerie, which is a German Boots-like store or Footlocker and a supermarket.
Festivals and events With its special location near to the lake,
Lindau is also a famous spot for festivals and events. The main season for this definitely
in summer, between Mai and August. Some events run annually and for many years.
U&D, Umsonst & Draussen by Club Vaudeville Lindau. The festival hosts live music at a
public area. Nobel Laureate Meetings at Lindau, Lindau's
prestigious, world-class science event. Students from all over the world are able to meet up
with Nobel Laureates to chat about latest topics in science. Lindau is currently reviewing
and soon building a new state-of-the-art conference home for the world-renowned event.
Psychotherapiewochen, a famous event for psychologists Rund Um den Bodensee, which is a major sailing
competition Gartentage 2014
Lindauer Oktoberfest Lindauer Kinderfest
Famous citizens and children of Lindau, special groups
Lindau has a number of famous people and residents due to its international location near Austria
and Switzerland. Prof. Dr. Dr. W. Mang. Dr. Mang is a plastic
surgeon with world-status and he is regarded as expert in his field. Mr. Mang is from Lindau
and a famous citizen. The German site has compiled a comprehensive
list of citizens with honoured status Due to its close location to Austria and Switzerland,
Lindau also maintains a strong multinational attitude. Lindau has a well established English
Expats Group or Spanish Groups, etc. Genealogy
Lindau is believed to be the origin of the Lindauer surname of Germany, Switzerland,
Alsace-Lorraine, Austria and the Czech Republic. A Jewish family bearing this name is said
to have descended from Suskind of Lindau, who was among those killed during the pogrom
of 1430. Lindauer is also a famous wine brand from New Zealand, however there are no or
very few relations to Lindau from the product. Lindau has a very strong local beverages economy,
including all the local wine spots with fine wines from local wine yards and quality Schnapps
made by local farmers from their yearly harvest. Climate
Despite numerous modern metrological news, it can be said that Lindau is located in a
temperated-climatic zone with additional mountain surroundings and the freshwater lake. Winters
can be cold, wet and dry with Temperatures as low as -20 °C in some extraordinary years.
In some exceptional cases, Winters were so severely cold that major parts of the lake
froze, so people could cross the lake e.g. by cars. It is said that this event will occur
every 50–100 years once only. Summers will be warm, hot and moist due to the surrounding
lake area. Heavy storms and rain showers, scenic thunderstorms are common in Summer
with heavy wind seen, e.g. Beaufort scale 8 are possible. Usually the lake is calm,
however there is also a warning light system for sailing boats indicating if heavy storms
will arrive. Due to the surrounding mountains, snow is always in sight and a good indicator
of weather. Lake Constance is located at roughly 400m above sea level.
Twin towns
Lindau is twinned with: Serpukhov
Chelles Lindau is twinned and cooperating since 1964 with the City of Chelles in France,
which was initiated by the returned French soldiers after World War II.
Reitnau References
External links Official website
Free Pictures Lindau A Week with Nobel Laureates at Lindau, free
video from the Vega Science Trust] Interviews with Nobel Laureates at Lindau,
free videos from the Vega Science Trust] Lindau photo gallery
Lindau Tourism Information