It is located at a bend of the Rhine River which forms the Swiss-German border in this area.

A bridge links Rheinau to Altenburg, part of the municipality of Jestetten, Baden-Württemberg state.

Of the rest of the land, 11.3% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (7.2%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).

Following the dissolution of the abbey, in 1867 a cantonal hospital and nursing home were set up in the buildings.

Later, a cantonal psychiatric clinic that developed here was closed in 2000, since then, the buildings have stood empty.

Notwithstanding protests from the German authorities,[5] the Swiss closed the station after 113 years of service, due to low passenger numbers.