Liechtenstein – The European Country Everyone Has Heard of But Nobody Visits 

After Mark and I made plans to go on a ten-day vacation with my cousin, Griet, and her husband, Wim, we needed to pick a place. The four of us briefly considered Eastern Poland plus part of the Czech Republic (too much driving) and Denmark (too expensive), destinations within the 900km radius we set as a maximum distance. Together we’d already been to northern France and the Netherlands during long weekends, so we settled on the Black Forest in Germany for one week and Liechtenstein for two days. Adding all the driving, we’d be gone for eleven days and ten nights.

Why Liechtenstein? It sounded mysterious, I’d never been there, neither had anyone I know, it can be visited in a short time, and it wasn’t too far away from the Black Forest.

Because Liechtenstein is very expensive (as is Switzerland), we opted to stay nearby in Austria for three nights and use a roomy, well-equipped, but hot apartment in Koblach as a base. Not that we were home a lot! Most visitors peruse this tiny country in one day, but we managed to keep ourselves entertained for two full days; enough if you don’t plan any hikes in the Alps. 

(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Liechtenstein is a German-speaking, 25km-long principality (ruled by a prince) between Austria and Switzerland, officially called Principality of Liechtenstein ((Fürstentum Liechtenstein). Hence the letters FL on license plates. 

The country is double-landlocked, which means that its neighboring countries are also landlocked. There are only two of those in the world: Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan. It has around 40,000 inhabitants and consists of just over 160 square kilometers (62 square miles). It is Europe’s fourth-smallest country and one of the few nations in the world without debt.

While Liechtenstein is not a part of the European Union, it has a close (financial) relationship with Switzerland, which explains the local currency being the Swiss franc. Credit cards are widely accepted. To save money, we brought sandwich lunches on those two days in the country. 

On day one, we skimmed along Switzerland’s eastern edge, crossed the border, and focused on the bottom half of Liechtenstein. We started at its southern tip, in Balzers, where we climbed a hill and visited the deserted Gutenberg Castle. The inside was not accessible but we still enjoyed the looks of this typical castle and its views over the mellow city. 

We made a quick stop in Triesen, ten minutes to the north, and its neighbor, Triesenberg, to stretch our legs. There was nothing of importance to note in these two villages. 

From that area, we headed east into the mountains, not knowing what to expect. We reached Malbun, where we lunched in the grass by a stream and took in the mountain views. Who knew Liechtenstein was located in the Alps and had a ski resort? 

Griet, Wim, and I splurged on a cable car ride to the top of one of the hills (at $12 per person), while Mark and Maya remained at the bottom in the village. The three of us enjoyed the scenery on our downhill walk along a well-established trail. Many hikes can be done around Malbun. While hot, we felt we lucked out with the weather!

This area was popular with visitors, based on the cars in the parking lots. I guess some Europeans do come here! 🙂

On our second day in Liechtenstein, we started in its capital, Vaduz. The first stop was near an old, covered bridge over the Rhine river. Talk about a picturesque discovery! And we crossed the border into Switzerland again.

We used the entire morning to explore downtown Vaduz. We discovered a statue by Botero, the famous Colombian artist, and checked out the Red House.

Then, we climbed up to the private Vaduz Castle, where the prince and his family live. This is another picture-perfect castle!

We roamed the streets of downtown, passing by notable buildings, before returning to the car and heading further north. 

In Schaan, we stopped by a church and old ruins to eat our sandwich and checked out an art gallery housed in one of the few old and typical historic homes with thick walls that remain.

It was getting late fast. We swung by a cute church on the edge of town and decided to skip Eschen. Town hopping for the few historic monuments that were scattered about started to feel frivolous. 

Our last stop in the Principality of Liechtenstein was Schellenberg, known for two sets of castle ruins. Not much was left of the lower part and in the higher section, people were setting up for an event, so it was another brief stop.

Our Airbnb in Austria was technically only twenty minutes from the border with Liechtenstein, but because we didn’t invest the extra $50 to use the highways in Switzerland, our commute was closer to an hour, so we always got home quite late. Especially when needing to stop at a grocery store to buy dinner ingredients. We’d hoped to take Maya swimming at a nearby river, because the days – and our rooms -were quite hot, but this never happened. 

On our last night, we went out for a last dinner in the Austrian town of Rankweil. Our preferred restaurant had no space since we failed to make reservations (it was Saturday), but we found a decent alternative and enjoyed the surprising view of the Basilica, which looks like another castle on a hill!

All of us enjoyed this short visit to Liechtenstein. Yes, it can be done in one lang day if you just explore Vaduz with a quick detour to Balzers or Malbun, but to do this intriguing country justice, I feel you need at least two days. To me, Liechtenstein is a miniature summation of its neighbors: pretty castles with a scattering of historic buildings and a sprinkle of nature in the Alps. 

Next up: Back in Argentina for a few weeks.

Curious about a previous ten-year chapter in our nomadic lives, which includes eight years aboard a 35-foot sailboat in the tropics with dogs, check out my compelling, inspiring, and refreshingly honest travel memoir: