Sharing cases of tourism and resort development in world-famous lake areas (5) Lake Constance in many European countries

Foreword: my country is the country with the third richest variety and number of lakes in the world, second only to North America and Northern Europe. The total number of lakes is 110,000, including more than 24,000 natural lakes and 86,000 artificial lakes. Multiple. Domestic lake tourism development began in the 1990s. Compared with European, American and Southeast Asian countries, domestic lake tourism has a shorter development history. Lake-type scenic spots and lakeside tourist resorts are important domestic tourist destinations. As people's understanding of lakes continues to deepen, lakes are regarded as an important tourism resource and the main destination for leisure and vacation. The number of people receiving lake tourism is also growing. However, compared with coastal, hot spring, rural, mountain and other leisure and vacation tourism, However, the theoretical research and development and operation of lake leisure and vacation tourism in China are insufficient. Most of them use seaside vacation theory and practice to guide the development and practice of lake leisure and vacation tourism. In the form of a series of articles, the author will use the development of tourism and vacation industry in world-famous lake areas as cases to provide reference for the tourism and vacation development of inland lakes in my country. I kindly ask colleagues in the industry to correct any fallacies.

1. Overview of Lake Bodensee

Lake Constance is located at the junction of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. It covers an area of ??540 square kilometers and is jointly managed by the three countries. The local 4.5 million residents provide 18 million cubic meters of drinking water. It is the largest freshwater lake in Germany and is also known as the "Three Kingdoms Lake". Lake Constance is named "Lake", but its actual area is larger than some seas. Standing on the east and west shores, you can feel the vastness that can't be seen at a glance. The unique geographical location and beautiful scenery make Lake Constance the most popular summer resort in Germany.

Lake Constance is divided into Upper Lake, Lake Uebelinger and Lower Lake. The Rhine River flows through the Upper Lake and the Lower Lake. In Lake Uehlinger there is the Island of Mainau, which is known as the "Flower Island"; in the Lower Lake there is the Island of Reichenau. , Reichenau Island has both beautiful natural scenery and historical and cultural heritage. The reason why Reichenau Island can become a world cultural heritage is because there are three Roman churches on the island, which are extremely precious monuments. Lake Constance connects Switzerland, Austria and Germany by shipping. The coast is sunny and the climate is pleasant.

Since the 17th century, Lake Constance has been favored by tourists because of its surrounding orchards and vineyards, and has become a famous tourist resort. . The tourism products offered in the Lake Constance Resort are not subject to seasonal restrictions. In winter, tourists can go skiing on Mount Volar around Lake Constance, as well as in ski resorts such as Switzerland and Liechtenstein in the east to enjoy the fun of winter sports.

2. Construction and tourism development of towns around the lake

There are more than 30 towns scattered around Lake Constance, with 2.2 million people living and working around the lake area. Among them, Lindau in Germany Towns such as Lindau, Meersburg, Konstanz, Bregenz in Austria and Arbon in Switzerland have become famous tourist resorts on Lake Constance

1. Konstanz, Germany

Konstanz is located at the western end of Lake Constance, the southwest corner of Germany, adjacent to Switzerland. She is an ancient city with a history of 2,000 years and a young university town. A city on the southern border of Germany. It is at the source of the Rhine River on the southern shore of Lake Constance, just across the street from Kreuzlingen in Switzerland. Population 82,000. It was built as a fortress in the third century AD. Railway stations, river ports, and airports. Industry is dominated by textiles, machinery, chemicals, food and wood processing. There are universities, the Lake Constance Institute, museums and medieval monuments, etc. Health resort and tourist resort. Functional positioning: the most important tourist city and international conference center.

2. Bregenz, Austria

Bregenz consists of three districts, maintaining the style from the 13th to the 16th century, and the town wall still exists. The Blengenz Festival is a famous Austrian arts festival held in July and August every year. The Lake Stage is a large open-air opera house where operas or musical comedies are performed on the background stage on Lake Constance every year during the music festival. Bregenz is particularly famous for its annual summer music festival. What is breathtaking is the large stage with a scaffolding structure built in the middle of the lake and the colorful stage scenery, which changes every year. It presents a colorful and dreamy scenery on a summer night. On the shore of the lake is an auditorium with 7,000 seats. The programs performed on the lake are mainly operas or musicals, usually popular repertoire and traditional operas. Recent classics include Verdi's "Aida", Puccini's "Tosca", "Il Trovatore", Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story", Verdi's "Bohème" "People", and "Masquerade" etc. Blengenz is functionally positioned as a tourist city and art centre; a conference center and Europe's largest water stage.

3. Characteristic towns

For example, unteruhldingen in Germany, where the small fishing village of primitive people from the Stone Age is still intact. Friedlichshafen is the famous birthplace of airships in Germany. It is also the only airship in the world that can be used to carry people and cargo on long-distance flights. There people can take a flight around Lake Constance on what is known as the world's most advanced and most economical airship. Of course the price is also quite expensive. There is also an airship museum in the city. The development history of German airships is recorded there, and many physical objects related to airships as well as models and photos of airships in World War II are displayed.

In the small Swiss town of Stein am Rhein, the entire city seems like a medieval art gallery, especially the many beautiful buildings concentrated around the City Hall Square.

Kreuzlingen is a small Swiss border town next to Konstanz, with a population of about 37,000 and an area of ??115 square kilometers.

Lindau is a city in Bavaria, Germany. It is located on an island on the east coast of Lake Constance. It is the junction of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It has been an important commercial center around Lake Constance since ancient times. The island has a total area of ??33 square kilometers and 25,000 residents. Lindau is a tourist city and the starting point of the "Alpine Road" in southern Germany. Its tourism industry with the Alps as its background is the city's pillar industry. Meersburg is a small town on Lake Constance famous for its castle and wine, with a population of 5,500.

4. Development of tourism products The tourism products developed by various tourist towns are mainly divided into three parts: water, land and air:

Water products - mainly fishing, swimming, Rowing boats, canoes, sailing boats, scuba diving, jet skis, yachts, pleasure boats and more.

Land products:

Sightseeing experience products - visit the Old City Hall (built in the 15th century), St. Stephen's Church and Assumption Church, St. Peter's Church, the Historical Town Hall, the harbor and the old lighthouse, visit the Grapevine Planting and winemaking museum, airship museum, ceramics workshop, old and new castles, primitive fishing village of Unteruhldingen, visit to Vorarlberg Provincial Museum, Mehrerau Cisterian monastery, reptile, St. Martin's Tower, castle history museum, Saurer Transport Museum, etc., excursions Ancient towns, parks, nature reserves;

Sports products - hiking, mountain biking around Lake Constance, hiking, ice skating, golf, tennis, mountain biking, badminton, sports fields, sports clubs;

Leisure and vacation - ski resort, yacht vacation, boutique resort hotel shopping: a large number of specialty stores, aerial products, Zeppelin rigid airships.

5. Special activities and festivals

Numerous festivals are held in various towns in the Lake Constance Resort. Lindau is an international conference center, with Lindau Sailing Day on June 11th, Town Festival on July 12th, Christmas at the Harbor, etc. Meersburg hosts a wine festival that lasts for several months in the summer, as well as the Meersburg International Castle Concert; Bregenz hosts the annual Bregenz Music Festival, Bregenz Spring Festival, and Summer Festival.

6. Transportation organization

By train and ferry that can carry small cars, you can reach surrounding big cities within an hour’s drive: Munich, Zurich, Stuttgart, etc.; towns 38 kilometers away from the lake There is an airport. There are 55,000 boats on Lake Constance, most of which are yachts and cruise ships; there are 10 marinas and 35 cruise ships.

3. Conclusion:

In the early days of Lake Constance tourism development, Lake Constance attracted tourists with its beautiful scenery, cruise ships, etc. Water sports were the leading products of Lake Constance tourism. Most lakes have a common feature - "empty". People can see the beauty of the entire lake at a glance. This unobstructed tour method allows tourists to enjoy the lake in a short time and then leave, making it difficult to retain tourists.

When the Lake Constance tourism life cycle transitions from the development stage to the consolidation stage, tourism development is carried out in conjunction with surrounding towns during this period. The development focus gradually shifts from aquatic products to land and air products, so that land and air products Tourism products have become the leading products of Lake Constance, and the lake will gradually become a backdrop to the entire tourist area.

Lake Constance’s tourism product is not a single one, but a combination of multiple tourism products. The length of the product life cycle determines the length of the lake’s life cycle. The life cycle of any single tourism product is limited. Relying on cities and towns, a set of tourism product portfolios with rich content and wide coverage is formed from water, land and air products, so that the life cycle of Lake Constance tourism continues. On the contrary, during this period, if Lake Constance tourism still develops independently of cities and towns, the tourism products will be single, and the gap in tourist volume during off-peak and peak seasons will be obvious, and it will continue to stagnate or enter a stage of decline.

When relying on cities and towns to develop lake tourism, tourists and local residents are both users of urban public facilities and infrastructure. Although the number of users has expanded, part of the urban infrastructure can be fully used, which reduces the development cost of tourism infrastructure. The development of urban construction determines the spatial environment foundation of local tourism. Both residents and tourists can enjoy the soft and hard public facilities of villages and towns, such as convenient transportation, entertainment facilities and sports facilities.

Author (Jin Chao): Chairman of the China Waterfront Leisure Industry Alliance, Deputy Secretary-General of the China Marketing Society, Director of the Waterfront Leisure Industry Research Center of the China Marketing Society, and Executive Secretary-General of the World Yacht Festival.