Stein am Rhein is a small town located along the Rhine River in the Schaffhausen Canton of Switzerland. It's situated close to the border of Germany in the northeastern part of the region just a short distance from Lake Konstanz. It's about a 45 minute drive from the city of Zurich and roughly 25 minutes from the Rhine Falls, which was were we were coming from that day.
We arrived there fairly early on our first day of vacation, sometime before noon.
The city itself has a small town feel about it that is quaint and charming and surprisingly, not overly touristy. Its city center is well preserved and is only accessible by foot meaning that cars aren't allowed to drive there.
This is a particularly nice feature for the town since it allows the restaurants and cafes located within square to set up a terrace in the warmer weather months.
Among the squares many charms is an intact historic city gate that connects the old town to a slightly more modern city.
There is an ornate town hall located in the center of the square and it is surrounded by buildings that are decorated with elaborately painted murals. Each buildings exterior is an ornate facade that appears to tell a story.
There are also numerous half-timbered homes in the area, as well as St George's Abbey, a building that dates as far back as year 1000 when Emperor Henry II moved the Abbey from another town and granted the Abbots extensive rights over Stein am Rhein and its trade.
Another interesting historical tidbit is that Stein am Rhein hosted it's very own witch trail back in 1512-1667. During that time at least 17 people were convicted of witchcraft and later excecuted. Strangly (or perhaps not?) the majority of those individuals were from the same family. The "Witch Tower," (not shown in any of the photographs) was used as a prison in the city until the 1800s and still stands at the edge of town to this day.
You wouldn't know from looking at it but a large portion of the town was actually destroyed on 22 February 1945, during WWII. Despite Switzerland being a neutral country at the time of war, Stein am Rhein was bombed by United States Air Force along with Zurich, Basel, Geneva and a few others.
Overlooking the city is the Burg Hohenklingen building, an old Roman castle built in year 1225 that has now been converted into a restaurant. From the city center it's about a 30 minute walk to get there on a path that is entirely uphill.
It takes you through a small vineyard about half way up the mountain. The view of the city from there is well worth the climb.
The path continues up through a small forest. You could also drive to the top of the hill as well. We did see a large parking lot located a short distance away from the walled city and castle.
If you continue on from the castle you eventually come to a large field and camp ground that offers a good spot to have a picnic. If you've come this far already then there is also another view of the town and the river.
Don't spend too much time up there though, there's still so much more to do in town.
Along the river bank are several bars and restaurants, any of which is a great location to stop for lunch or for an afternoon drink. You can look out over the water while you sip your wine or beer.
You can also take a stroll along the promenade which is a nice activity when the weather is right.
Stein am Rhein is spilt in two by the Rhine River. If you cross the main bridge leading into town you can check out the other side which is worth doing to get a look at the city from a different perspective.
If you continue in that direction you eventually come to the Werd, a small cluster of islands located in the middle of the water. It's connected to land by a long wooden bridge.
The island is basically a small parc where people come to feed the ducks and swans. Smack dab in the middle is also a small chapel thats attached to a pretty cool looking house. It's the first thing that you see when entering the property.
Aside from the views, one really cool feature that you can find the on the Werd is a large labyrinth that has been built into the grass using white gravel. You may not even notice it if you don't know what you're looking at.
Something to note here is that a labyrinth is not the same thing as a maze, despite the two words often being used interchangeably. A maze is essentially a puzzle that has multiple routes and dead ends that are meant to deceive the user. A labyrinth on the other hand has only one route to follow which always leads to its center. Labyrinths are often used for meditation purposes which is why you tend to find them on church properties. You can sometimes see them hidden in the floor of a church or cathedral if you know what to look for. They are often built in the center out of tiles and they are often covered by chairs used for mass.
Labyrinths are meant to be walked in silence along the path to the center and then along the same path to the exit.
My wife and I walked the labyrinth on the island and I was really surprised at how large this one was. It took at least five full minutes to reach the center and it would have take five more minutes to exit if we had done it properly. We didn't exit the way we came in though because a family of four had followed us in and I felt too awkward trying to move passed them on the same path in the opposite direction. We also had the dog with us on a leash and as you might expect, he didn't understand the concept of following a set path when there were no hedges to act as a barrier. He basically just cut across wherever he chose to and looked at us like we had lost our minds after we had changed direction for the millionth time. He stopped at least four times along the way and looked at us like "are you serious!?!"
My Takeaway
Overall I really enjoyed the town of Stein am Rhein and would highly recommend it to anyone traveling in the country. It had a old world charm that was unlike any other Swiss town that we have been too and I am certainly glad that we made it one of our destinations during our trip in the country.
There is one thing that I would like to add though from one tourist to another. It's not a criticism of the town by any means just something to keep in mind if you only have a limited vacation time and do decide to make a special stop there. Keep in mind that this comes from the perspective of a tourist who knowingly has a romantic idea of what Switzerland is and what places feel distinctly Swiss. For me and my romanticized view of the country, Switzerland is mountains and red-wooden huts and chalets. It's rolling hills of green pasture and the music of a hundreds cowbells chiming from the necks of a hundred grey fluffy eared Alpine cheese cows. Unfortunately, you get none of that in Stein am Rhein and for me, when I was there I did not feel like I was in Switzerland. It could be because of its close proximity to the border but for me, I actually felt like I was in Germany. Stein am Rhein had mural facades which I also associate as being Swiss, but overall I felt like I was in a small town of Bavaria or maybe in one of the small towns of the Mosel Valley. In fact Stein am Rhein really reminded me of the town of Rudesheim which is also located along the Rhine River, only much more north in the country of Germany. Again, it's not a criticism, the town is lovely, but if you want to feel like you're in Germany than it may be better, and cheaper for that matter, to just go to Germany. On the other hand if you want to visit a place that feels distinctly Swiss then there are definitly much better places to check out. It really depends on what you're looking for I suppose, a very lovely town in and of itself or a romanticized view of the country.
Anyway, that's all I have to say. Feel free to comment and share your perspective. I'd definitely be interested in hearing what the locals think about what I said above.