Mainau Travel Guide
A detailed destination guide for your next Germany vacation
Mainau Overview
Mainau is an island in Lake Constance (on the south shore of the Überlinger See near the city of Konstanz (Konstanz vacation rentals | Konstanz travel guide), Baden-Württemberg, Germany). It is maintained as a garden island and a model of excellent environmental practices. Administratively, the island has been a part of Konstanz since December 1, 1971, when the municipality of Litzelstetten, of which Mainau was part, was incorporated into Konstanz. Mainau is still part of Litzelstetten, now one of 15 wards (administrative subdivisions) of Konstanz.
The island belongs to the Lennart Bernadotte-Stiftung, an entity created by the late Lennart, Count Bernadotte af Wisborg, formerly a Prince of Sweden and Duke of Småland. It is one of the main tourist attractions of Lake Constance. Beside flowers there is a park landscape with views on the lake. There is also a greenhouse with tropical climate and thousands of butterflies. Mainau Bay is the location of the university sailing club; their many small sailboats add to the summer scenery.
Where to stay in Mainau?
Check out our selection of hand-selected and quality Mainau vacation rentals and holiday apartments.
Things to See in Mainau
Mainau is a flowering island
notable for its parks and gardens. Frederick I, Grand Duke of Baden, created the island's arboretum, which now contains 500 species of deciduous and coniferous trees, many exotic and valuable, including fine specimens of Sequoiadendron giganteum (1864) and Metasequoia glyptostroboides (1952). The island also contains about 200 rhododendron and azalea varieties.
The Italian Rose Garden laid out geometrically with pergolas, sculptures, and fountains, and includes some 500 rose varieties. The Mediterranean terraces contain exotic pot plants, including palm trees, agaves, cacti, and Bougainvillea. The island as a whole contains about 30,000 rose bushes representing 1,200 varieties, and about 20,000 dahlias of 250 varieties.
[ source: wikipedia ]
Maps and Driving Directions to Mainau
Travel Insider Tips for Mainau
lake constance is awesome! island mainau is soooo beautiful...just go there,walking,eating,enjoying the sun..u will love it!
Shared by Natalie Bebion, Nov 2009
There is only one word to describe that area ....beautiful..... The Insel Mainau and its flowers a must see.
Shared by Anne Dunbar, Jul 2010
Die insel mainau MIT ihren traumhaft schoenen tropischen blumen und pflanzen liegt traumhaft in konstanz am Bodensee . Die insel hat mich ALS kind sehr beeindruckt und schoene erinerungen hinterlassen . Ein kleines stueck paradies mitten in Deutschland :)
Shared by Christine Halidy, Jul 2010
Insel Mainau
[ source: Flickr]
Related Sites
We collected some useful links related to Mainau. If you know a few more sites not listed here, or also know some insider tips or point of interests for this destination? Please share and submit your Germany travel tip. If approved it will be shown on this page!
- Homepage of Mainau: Mainau (official home page)
- Wikipedia: Mainau
More about the History of Mainau
Until the Napoleonic mediatisations and secularisations of small German fiefs this island belonged to the Order of Teutonic Knights. It was later sold into private ownership. In 1853 Grand Duke Frederick I of Baden purchased the island as his personal property and built a summer palace there. At the end of World War I Baden became a republic with the abdication of Grand Duke Frederick II, son of Frederick I. The former Grand Duke retained his private property including Mainau. When he died childless in 1928 the island passed to his sister Victoria of Baden, wife of King Gustaf V of Sweden. Upon her death two years later she bequeathed the island to her second son Prince Wilhelm, Duke of Södermanland and his descendants. In 1932 Prince Wilhem gave Mainau to his only child Count Lennart Bernadotte who owned it until 1974 when he transferred the island to a foundation. Count Bernadotte formed Enterprise Mainau GmbH in 1991 as a private enterprise to manage the island for the benefit of the Lennart Bernadotte-Stiftung. The Count remained active in managing Mainau until his death in 2004 but appointed his second wife Sonja co-manager in 2001. Today Lennart's widow Sonja Countess Bernadotte af Wisborg and his children run both the foundation and the management company
[ source: wikipedia ]
What makes this Live Like a German Mainau Travel Guide special...
This Mainau travel guide provides you with an overview of Mainau, Mainau pictures, and a local travel guide that suggests many special trips, unique activities, and vacation ideas, that you can't find in a typical Germany travel guide.
Some of this information is compiled from popular and well-known sources (e.g., such as Wikipedia, Wikitravel, and great pictures from Flickr). However, what makes this Germany travel guide special is that most of the travel suggestions and insider tips are provided by local residents, property owners, and our readers, who share and submit their travel tips with us. All submissions are then editorially reviewed to ensure high quality. All this information is logically organized within this destination guide to make it easy for you to find things quickly.
In addition, the Mainau destination guide features restaurant recommendations, restaurant reviews, where to go for grocery shopping, sports activities, getting around, cultural events and highlights, entertainment, and health related information - so you are informed for your travel to Germany, and you can learn about all the cool things you can do during your Germany vacation!
