The Oberstadt — the old upper town — sits on a small hill above the modern lakeside district, enclosed by medieval fortifications and still unmistakably separate from the rest of Bregenz. The gate towers, particularly the Martinsturm, define the skyline of this quarter.
The streets here are narrow, the buildings old, and the atmosphere quieter than the lakeside. The Church of St Martin contains 14th-century frescoes that are among the oldest in Vorarlberg. The Martinsturm itself, a squat medieval tower topped with a large baroque onion dome added in 1601, houses a small museum and gives views from its upper levels. The upper town takes twenty minutes to walk around but rewards slow exploration: there are details at every turn — carved lintels, courtyard gardens, old guild signs.