Liechtenstein is worth visiting, as long as you go up the mountain

The question usually comes with a sceptical tone, as if Liechtenstein were a box-ticking stop for country collectors. My answer is that it’s worth it, but most people do it badly, which is why so many come back saying there was nothing there.

Is Liechtenstein worth visiting? The short answer

Yes, as long as you don’t stay in the valley. Vaduz has a pleasant pedestrian street, a museum mile in the centre and a very photogenic castle, but that castle is the prince’s home and you can’t go in. If your plan ends there, you’ll miss the better half of the country.

The other half is half an hour away by bus. Malbun, Gaflei and the Three Sisters ridge are what none of its neighbours can offer, a whole Alpine valley with its huts and its Walser villages. If you want the ranked list of what to see, it’s in things to do in Liechtenstein. Here I’m giving you the verdict.

Who it’s worth it for

Anyone travelling around Switzerland or the Vorarlberg who fancies a different sort of day, because from Zurich it’s about two hours by train and bus. Walkers, because the mountain routes are first-rate and fit into a day. Modern art lovers, because one ticket gets you into both the Kunstmuseum and the Hilti collection, and neither is a village museum. And anyone curious about how a 160 km² principality with more jobs than residents actually works.

I’d also suggest it for a relaxed winter ski in Malbun with children or as a beginner. It isn’t a big resort, but it’s a calm one.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Vaduz before prices climb.

Who it isn’t worth it for

Anyone after a lively city, because Vaduz is a small capital that goes quiet in the evening. Anyone coming purely to shop, because prices are in Swiss francs and there’s nothing that justifies the trip on cost. And anyone who won’t go up into the mountains, because then the day feels short.

I wouldn’t squeeze it into a Swiss itinerary at the expense of Lucerne or the Bernese Oberland either. For me Liechtenstein is a side trip, not the headline of a first Alpine holiday.

How much time do you need in Liechtenstein?

A well-planned day covers Vaduz and its museums, the passport stamp and the tasting at the prince’s winery. I’ve timed it stop by stop in my one-day Liechtenstein itinerary. With two days, the second belongs to the mountains, which is how I’d do it, and I go through it in the two-day itinerary.

The figures show almost everyone does the same. According to the Office of Statistics, anyone who slept in a hotel here in 2025 stayed 1.75 nights on average. I’d only stretch beyond two days to hike, walk the whole Liechtenstein Trail or ski.

So you do not pay over the odds, look at trains, coaches and flights to Vaduz on Omio and pick the one that suits you.

What counts against Liechtenstein

Three things. First, the most famous sight can’t be seen from inside. The princely house says plainly that Vaduz Castle is its home and only opens on exceptional occasions. Second, the cost of a bed. In 2025 an average of 28 hotels were open across the whole country, according to the Office of Statistics, and everything is in francs, so a night adds up. I put numbers on it in prices and budget in Liechtenstein. Third, getting there means a change, because there’s no airport and the long-distance trains don’t stop.

None of the three is a reason to skip it, only a reason to plan it properly.

My way of visiting

Pick a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between June and September. Museums on the Städtle in the morning, bearing in mind the Kunstmuseum is free on Wednesdays. The number 21 bus to Malbun after lunch and the Sareis chairlift up to 2,000 metres, or the Fürstensteig from Gaflei if you’re fit and sure-footed. And if there’s an afternoon left, the prince’s winery or Gutenberg Castle, which you can actually set foot in.

On phones, check before you go. Since Brexit, UK networks set their own roaming terms, and in the Rhine valley your phone may pick up a Swiss mast, so I explain what to look for in phone and roaming in Liechtenstein. And if you can choose the month, I’d go in September, after the August peak, when the mountains are still open and it’s quieter.

If you would rather have a local show you round, book a guided tour in Vaduz and choose by the reviews.

A car frees you from timetables: search car hire in Zurich on DiscoverCars and compare companies.

Once your dates are set, check which hotels are still free in Vaduz before prices climb.