Getting around Liechtenstein without wasting your time

Liechtenstein is 24.7 km long and 12.4 km wide, according to the Office of Statistics. At that size, getting around shouldn’t worry you much, and it doesn’t. What’s worth doing is picking the right mode for each leg, because the valley and the mountains work very differently.

The bus handles nearly everything

The LIEmobil network is the country’s backbone. It reaches all 11 municipalities, runs out to the Swiss and Austrian border stations and climbs into the mountains, with route 21 serving Malbun all year and route 22 heading up to Gaflei. In 2024 it carried 6,162,000 passengers, a huge figure for a country of 41,228 people, and you notice it in the frequency.

The practical side is simple. No cash on board, you pay by contactless card or with the SBB Mobile and Fairtiq apps, and the dearest day ticket, covering three or more zones, is CHF 9. Routes, zones and fares are in Liechtenstein’s buses.

To give you a feel for distances in bus time, Vaduz to Malbun takes half an hour on route 21, the 12E covers Vaduz to Sargans station in 23 minutes, and the slow way north, route 11 to Feldkirch, needs 45. Those are about the longest rides you’ll take. Most hops between neighbouring villages in the valley are over in ten or fifteen minutes, which is why I wouldn’t fret over a timetable before leaving a museum in the Städtle.

Do you need a car to see the country?

For a short visit, I’d say not. Liechtenstein is a car country, with around 780 cars per thousand residents according to the Office of Statistics, among the highest in Europe, but that describes the people who live there rather than someone coming to see Vaduz and ride up to Malbun.

A car does make sense in three cases. If you’re taking ski or climbing kit into the mountains, if you’re combining Liechtenstein with Switzerland and Austria on the same trip, or if there’s a group of you. Then think about two things, the vignette for Swiss or Austrian motorways and parking in Vaduz, where the first hour is free. I explain the vignette in driving in Liechtenstein and the vignette and the car parks in parking in Vaduz.

Cycling the Rhine valley

The valley is flat and has over 220 km of cycle routes, according to the tourist board, with the Rhine route forming part of the European EuroVelo network. For hopping between villages there’s LIEbike, LIEmobil’s shared e-bike scheme, with stands across the valley and the Unterland. It costs CHF 2 per half hour and CHF 20 for a full day.

LIEbike itself warns that its bikes aren’t suited to very steep routes, so for Triesenberg or Malbun I’d look elsewhere. How to register, and where to hire an e-bike for the hills, is in bike hire in Liechtenstein.

On foot, more than you’d think

Central Vaduz, the Städtle, is a pedestrian zone, with vehicles let in solely for loading, in the early morning from Monday to Saturday. The museums, Parliament and the cathedral are a few minutes’ walk from one another.

Beyond the capital, walking is the loveliest way to see the country. The Liechtenstein Trail crosses it in about 75 km over five stages, from Balzers to Schaanwald, and each one starts and ends in a village with a bus stop. That makes it easy to walk a stage and ride the bus back to your hotel.

Taxis, for late nights and not much else

The tourist board describes taxis as a complement to the bus, available 24 hours a day. I haven’t found official fares, so I won’t quote prices. I’d keep them for getting back from dinner once the route you need has stopped, or for a trip with plenty of luggage. On weekend nights, before calling a cab, I’d check the N1 and N2 night buses.

The pass that bundles in the bus

If you’ll use the bus a lot and visit museums, look at the Erlebnispass. The All Inclusive version costs CHF 25 for one adult day and CHF 17 for children aged 6 to 15, covering every LIEmobil bus, entry to the Städtle museums and the ride up to Sareis. The Welcome version is free and includes the bus as well, but only if your accommodation chooses to issue it. I compare the two in Liechtenstein’s adventure pass.