Tourism in the Hegau is on the rise, more and more guests are coming to the region, and that is thanks to the Hegau Tourismus tourist association. The association has now dissolved after 14 years because its tasks have been taken over by the Constance-Bodensee-Hegau Region Association. Jörg Unger, former managing director of the association and former head of the tourism department in Singen, who is now retired, can look back on a proud record.
Image: Kerstan
The number of overnight stays, by which success can be measured, almost doubled in ten years from 354,719 in 2008 to 651,007 in 2019 before the corona pandemic slumped. And the trend is upwards with 669,835 overnight stays in 2022, as he reports.
First working group promoted tourism
In 2009, the tourism association was founded by 16 municipalities, at that time still under the name Arbeitsgemeinschaft Hegau-Touristik. The aim was to strengthen and promote tourism, Unger recalls. But as early as the late 1990s, a working group for tourism in Hegau, led by the long-standing head of the cultural department, Walter Möll, had been involved. The aim was to assert oneself as a strong tourist region next to Lake Constance and to sharpen one’s own profile. In order to get funding for projects, an association had to be founded.
As a former managing director of the Hegau Tourismus association, Jörg Unger worked to make the region more attractive to tourists. | Image: White, Jacqueline
“We have to offer something different than Lake Constance”, was the motivation to found a tourism association, as Unger reports. That is and was the volcanic landscape and nature in the Hegau, which invites you to go hiking and cycling. The tourism industry had the topic of hiking on the radar early on and has been promoting it to this day. Many guests also appreciate the tranquility of the hinterland compared to the hustle and bustle of Lake Constance and the cheaper overnight rates, with the opportunity to take trips to the lake and the region.
Maps of adventure trails and castles in Hegau
Concrete actions and projects already took place in 2009. At that time there was the working group Hegau Touristik. At the beginning of the 2000s, the two map packages “Adventure Trails – Western Lake Constance, Hegau and neighboring Switzerland” and “Castle in Hegau” were designed and implemented. More than 40 cycling and hiking tours were signposted and can still be found almost throughout Hegau and Höri today.
The largest and most important project in recent years was the planning and implementation of ten premium hiking trails under the title “Hegauer Kegelspiel”. “Ten premium hiking trails in such a small area are something special and have put the Hegau in the spotlight as a hiking region,” explains Unger. The first premium hiking trail of the “Hohentwieler” was opened in 2014. The German Hiking Institute, which certifies the paths, especially praised the great views of the skittles hiking trails, which are unique.
The communities got involved in that they supported all projects ideally and, of course, financially through membership fees and additional services. “All the signposts were put up by the building yards of the individual communities and information was provided for the brochures and flyers,” reports the former managing director. The association was not only the point of contact for the communities, but also for the hosts.
Despite the founding of the larger marketing unit Regio Konstanz-Bodensee-Hegau in 2017, the Hegau Tourismus association remained in existence until this year. “When joining the Regio, one or the other community had concerns that the Hegau might no longer be visible in the new structure,” Unger explained the communities’ reluctance. The continued existence of the association should enable a possible return to Hegau Tourismus without the huge effort of deleting and founding a new association.
Larger marketing unit convinced
Ultimately, however, the regional association, as a larger marketing unit on western Lake Constance, convinced the communities. At the last general meeting, the 14 remaining member communities decided to dissolve the Hegau Tourist Association. Tourism in the region has continued to develop positively thanks to the regional association, as has tourism in general in recent years. “The Hegau as a tourist region did not go under, but has improved and rounded off the overall offer on western Lake Constance,” is Unger’s assessment. The active offer with cycling, mountain biking and hiking is now an important piece of the mosaic in the region.
The municipalities in the Hegau also appreciate the commitment of the tourism association. The Hegau tourism was an important institution to position the Hegau as a tourism region, explains Tengen’s mayor Marian Schreier. “This has been successful in recent years, above all with the development of premium hiking trails,” writes Schreier when asked.
There are two premium hiking trails in the city of Tengen and the number of overnight stays has developed extremely positively in recent years. His thanks go to the office of Hegau Tourismus, which has always competently accompanied the communities. With the establishment of the association Regio Konstanz-Hegau Bodensee, the entire western part of Lake Constance – including the Hegau – is now represented by a tourism organization. “That was an important step and we feel very well represented there as the city of Tengen,” says Schreier.
Gailingen feels well represented
Gailingen’s Mayor Thomas Auer agrees with his counterpart: “The Hegau Tourism Association has done a lot for our region, for the Hegau. In particular, he is responsible for the development of a great network of cycling and hiking trails.” He also emphasizes the importance of the premium hiking trails, the establishment of which the association initiated and implemented. “Here in Gailingen we have a very special premium hiking trail with the ‘Gailinger Grenzgänger’. It’s the only one that crosses borders,” says Auer.
In the association Regio Konstanz-Bodensee-Hegau his community feels in good hands and the Hegau is also present here. The projects of the Hegau Tourism Association would also be continued there. Tourism is of increasing economic importance for the entire region, which is particularly evident from the increasing numbers in all areas: “For us in Gailingen, it is an important economic factor alongside the health sector,” says Gailingen’s mayor.
