Birnau Pilgrimage Basilica

Birnau Pilgrimage Basilica sits above the northern shore of Lake Constance like a stage set: a pink façade, a slender tower and vineyards sloping down to the water of the Überlinger See. Inside is one of the most complete Rococo interiors in southern Germany, built and decorated in under four years. And in the middle of it all is a little cherub licking honey off his finger, a figure now far better known than the miraculous statue the church was built for.

History: a church built to make a point

Today's church is really "New Birnau". The old pilgrimage chapel stood a few kilometres away near Nussdorf, on a plot owned by the Cistercian abbey of Salem but surrounded by land belonging to the Free Imperial City of Überlingen. The feud between abbey and town grew so bitter that in 1742 Überlingen citizens tore down a half-built abbey building. Abbot Stephan Enroth responded by quietly obtaining papal permission to move the pilgrimage onto the abbey's own land.

The Vorarlberg architect Peter Thumb designed the new church. The foundation stone was laid on 11 June 1747 and the church was consecrated in September 1750. It was deliberately turned so that its main façade runs parallel to the shore and can be seen from far across the lake, even though this meant the altar does not face east. After secularisation the church was closed in 1808, and its organ and bells were sold to Switzerland. Only in 1919 did the Cistercian abbey of Wettingen-Mehrerau buy it back and reopen it. In 1971 Pope Paul VI made it a minor basilica.

What to see

• The Honey Licker: On the right-hand side altar, dedicated to St Bernard, sits a cherub by Joseph Anton Feuchtmayer holding a beehive. It refers to Bernard of Clairvaux, nicknamed the "honey-sweet teacher" for his sermons.
• The frescoes: Gottfried Bernhard Göz painted the ceilings. In the nave you can spot a bird's-eye view of Salem Abbey facing a vision of heavenly Jerusalem, a deliberate play on the two names. Above the organ, angels play a concert.
• The high altar: Beneath a canopy stands the miraculous image, a late Gothic Madonna about 80 cm tall from around 1420, already venerated in the old church. The small dome above is lined with mirrors.
• The clocks: There are ten clocks on and in the church, including three sundials. Seven are driven by a clockwork of around three tonnes dating from about 1750.
• The organ: The current instrument from 1991 has 39 stops and 2,644 pipes.

A darker chapter nearby

Close to the church is a cemetery for 97 concentration camp prisoners. They were among some 800 inmates from Dachau forced in 1944/45 to dig tunnels for the arms industry into the rock near Überlingen. It is a quiet place and worth a short, reflective detour.

Visiting (as of October 2026)

• Opening hours: daily 7:30–18:00 in summer, 7:30–17:00 in winter. Admission is free.
• Best time: sightseeing is intended from 9:15 on weekdays and from 12:30 on Sundays, as services are held earlier.
• Guided tours: in the 2026 season a public tour ran on Thursdays at 15:00 from late May to early October for €4, no booking needed. Groups can book through the monastery, also in English and French.

Allow about an hour for the church, the view and a short walk through the vineyards. Birnau is a popular wedding venue, so weekends can be busy.

Getting there

The church is right on the B 31 between Überlingen and Meersburg, with a large paid car park. By bus you get off nearby and walk about 300 m. A step-free door is on the east side, and disabled parking is close to the entrance.

Tripto tip

The best photo is not taken in front of the church but from the path through the vineyards below, or from the lake. If you have time, combine Birnau with the Unteruhldingen Pile Dwellings Museum just over two kilometres to the south-east, from where you look across the water to the pink façade.