Is it possible to see Vaduz and go hiking in Liechtenstein in one day? Absolutely!
Saturday 13th April I took an early train from Konstanz to St. Gallen in Switzerland first. There is no direct train or bus to Vaduz from Konstanz, and I couldn’t rent a car with return on Sunday – our intended day of departure from Konstanz. So I was going to change trains and buses, and to have a wonderful day.
In St. Gallen I had to wait for another train – to Buchs – and used the break to have a walk in the city. Banks, financial institutions, insurance companies, nice shops with high quality goods.
Please see the two gentlemens’ figures on a balcony on the photo below – they were made of metal, but looked quite authentic!
Next stop is Buchs SG, a small town in Switzerland on the border with Liechtenstein:
From there, I took a bus to Schaan, a small town in Liechtenstein. The distance between these two towns is 3 km, and it takes 7 min in a bus. From Schaan – another bus ride, and finally I was in the heart of Vaduz:
Vaduz is full of contemporary art on the streets:
Town Hall with the modern art in front of it:
After a walk around the city I took a bus to Malbun which is the main holiday resort of the Principality of Liechtenstein, where I wanted to go hiking from. It takes about half an hour to reach Malbun, the road goes up and up, and the views are magnificent:
I was the only passenger on that bus to Malbun! At some point we entered a tunnel – photo taken from the bus going into the tunnel:
When we got out of it, there was snow everywhere!
We arrived to Malbun which was the final destination. I noticed the temperature drop immediately: it was -4C. Everything was closed, not a single person on the streets. This is the entrance to a (closed) cafe:
I walked around for about 15 minutes, trying to find out where the hiking trails were. The signs on the streets didn’t correspond to the map I got in the tourist office in Vaduz. Luckily, the bus driver was still there – he had a break from driving. He didn’t recommend me to go hiking in the mountains alone, because the trails were not cleaned up of the snow, it was icy and dangerous. Instead, he recommended to go with the bus to another town, and to take a hiking trail to the Vaduz Castle. I agreed, and went back to Triesenberg.
Beautiful landscapes on our way:
The centre of Triesenberg – a city hall, and a church:
From there, I went to the Vaduz Castle. Interesting road sign (saying: slowly):
Breathtaking views:
Charming old house in one of the villages, I passed by:
A memorial stone to the Johann II who was the Prince of Liechtenstein between 1858 and 1929. His reign of 70 years and 91 days is the second-longest of any major monarch in European history after that of Louis XIV of France.
I soon was close to the Vaduz Castle. The whole hike took only 1 hour:
And the Castle was spectacular:
The castle was built in the 12th century, it is the palace and official residence of the Prince of Liechtenstein, and it is never open to public. I’ve red, it has 130 rooms.
The view of Vaduz, going down from the castle to the city:
In the souvenir shop (photo below) one can get a passport stamp of the Principality of Liechtenstein – I got mine in the tourist office. It is just for fun, and costs around 3 EUR (just a remark: on Easter Island you get one for free at the post office). I bought a bottle of white wine from the Prince’s winery, to share with Vagn for dinner, and some Swiss chocolate and cookies of excellent quality – from their own shop.
Another lovely sculpture, bu Fernando Botero (1932):
It was late afternoon; I spent enough of time wandering in Vaduz, visited Malbun and Triesenberg, walked from Triesenberg to Vaduz Castle, and there was still time left for a tour to the Treasure Chamber that has a stunning collection of Fabergé Easter eggs!
The Rhine river – crossing the border back to Switzerland:
I texted Vagn on my way back home that I had a bottle of wine with me, and asked to arrange a light dinner. We loved the wine – it was excellent:
The day after we were going to fly to Czech Republic, but the whether didn’t look promising. We hoped to make at least half of our journey, and maybe land somewhere in Germany.
I was very tired after such a rich in experiences day, and felt asleep as soon as I hit my pillow.