Walking the Liechtenstein Trail: A 75-Kilometre Hike Across One of the World’s Smallest Countries

If you’ve ever fancied exploring one of the world’s smallest countries, you can do so on foot by walking the Liechtenstein Trail, a 75-kilometre-long hiking route that takes you through all 11 municipalities in Liechtenstein.  Here’s my comprehensive guide to completing this trail both solo and independently.

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If you were to rank the world’s smallest countries, Liechtenstein would stand very proudly in sixth place, behind only the Vatican City; Monaco; Nauru; Tuvalu; and San Marino.  It covers an area of 160 square kilometres, has a resident population of 40,000, and if you were to draw a line from top to bottom of the country, it would be just 15.6 miles (25 kilometres) long.

Yep, Liechtenstein is tiny!

It’s full of tiny churches too! (and some larger ones, as well). This one is Kapelle HI. Kreuz (Rofenbergkapelle), Eschen

And, you can explore the entirety of this tiny country by walking its 75-kilometre-long national trail from Balzers on the Swiss border to Schaanwald on the Austrian one.

Which is exactly what I decided to do over the bank holiday weekend at the end of May.

The official Liechtenstein Trail website splits the route up into five official stages, as follows:

• Balzers to Triesenberg (15.4 kilometres)
• Triesenberg to Vaduz (8.5 kilometres)
• Vaduz to Nendeln (17.9 kilometres)
• Nendeln to Ruggell (14.5 kilometres)
• Ruggell to Schaanwald (19.6 kilometres)

As I’m fairly competent at walking daily distances longer than these (I walked the Camino Primitivo last September and my average daily distance covered was 24.9 kilometres), I wanted to shave a least a day off this.  In hindsight, I could’ve shaved two days off and walked it in just three days.  If you feel capable of doing the same, I’ll cover a suggested itinerary for that later in this post.

A little bit about Europe’s fourth smallest country

Liechtenstein is located in the Central European Alps, and is bordered by Switzerland in the west and south and Austria in the east and north.  The official language is German, but there are around a dozen local dialects spoken, which is a surprisingly high number considering the diminutive population size.

• Liechtenstein is one of only two doubly landlocked countries worldwide, along with Uzbekistan
• Liechtenstein has the second highest per capita income in Europe, behind only Monaco.
• Liechtenstein has no airport; the closest one is Zurich in Switzerland.
• Liechtenstein is the second least-visited country in Europe, seeing just 80,000 tourists each year.
• There are more jobs in Liechtenstein than there are residents — a significant part of the country’s workforce are commuters from Switzerland, Austria and Germany.
• Only 11% of the country is settlement space; the rest of Liechtenstein is agricultural land, forest areas, mountains and bodies of water. 
• Liechtenstein has one of the lowest crime rates in the world.  There are currently seven people being held in the country’s only prison, which has a total capacity of 20!

Katholische Pfarrkirchhe St. Laurentius, Schaan.

Walking the Liechtenstein Trail | Statistics 

The Liechtenstein Trail was inaugurated in 2019 to celebrate the country’s tricentennial and developed by Liechtenstein Marketing — a mainly government-funded agency.

It’s 75 kilometres long (well, 75.9, to be precise), with an overall elevation gain and loss of just over 2000 metres, and takes around 21 hours to complete.

Landweibelhaus – home of the Domus Village Museum in Schaan.

Why choose the Liechtenstein Trail?

For those of us who work full-time jobs, a lot of hiking trails are immediately off the cards due to the sheer length of time it would take to complete them — we simply don’t get enough annual leave!  And, whilst I appreciate that you don’t have to walk a hiking trail in its entirety (a few years ago, a friend and I chose to walk the best bits of the Lycian Way in just 10 days and I regularly pick up parts of the Wales Coast Path here in the UK), there is something significantly more satisfying about walking a trail from start to finish.

So, by preference, and if at all possible, I always choose a trail that I can complete in one go.

And, a hiking trail that’s just 75 kilometres long and which takes me from one end of a country to the other over a long weekend?  Well, I’m gonna be all over that!

Humble wooden structures in the foreground offer a stark contrast to the majestic peaks behind them, Oberdorf, Eschen

What time of year should I walk the trail?

This is a very good question because I chose to walk the Liechtenstein Trail at the end of May, thinking that the weather would be, on balance, largely warm and sunny at that time of the year.

However, I only had one warm and sunny day out of four.  And, for two of those days, it was raining pretty much all day.

It was very dull, cloudy and wet for the entirety of my first day walking the Liechtenstein Trail.

Conversely, it was beautifully sunny the afternoon I arrived into the town of Ruggell on my third day of walking the Liechtenstein Trail.

Upon returning, I did some proper research into the country’s climate, and discovered that, in actual fact, the warmest months are also the wettest ones.  So, if you want to try and avoid the worst of the rain, you’ll need to travel between the 8th of September and the 3rd of May.  The driest month is February.  However, temperatures in February are cold, with highs of just four degrees!

So, whilst there’s no ideal time of year to visit weather-wise, if walking the Liechtenstein Trail is the primary reason for your visit, then you’ll want to avoid the winter months when temperatures hover around freezing and there can be snow up in the mountains.  But, you’ll need to be prepared for rain, regardless of the time of year.  Liechtenstein experiences an average annual rainfall of 1000mm, which is very similar to the UK.

Temperatures tend to vary between -3 and 24 degrees across the year, with summer (June to September) temperatures generally between 15 and 24 degrees.

How fit do I need to be?

First of all, I’ll start by saying that fitness is a relative concept, so my observations about the difficulty level of the trail are from my perspective as a moderately active, moderately fit individual.  I run two or three times a week and go hiking (quite often in the beautiful Shropshire Hills close to where I live) as often as I can.

Flowers along the Liechtenstein Trail.

If you stick to the suggested five-day itinerary on the official Liechtenstein Trail website, the maximum distance you’ll walk in a day is 19.6 kilometres, which is just 12.2 miles.  So, I’d advise being comfortable walking distances of at least 10 miles before you start walking the Liechtenstein Trail.

In terms of the elevation, there are a few steep climbs and one steep descent (as you approach Nendeln), but on the whole I found the trail to be fairly easy walking.  To give you some stats to back this up with, over the whole trail, you’ll climb 2263 metres and descend 2276.  Over five days, this is an average of 452.6 metres of ascent and 455.2 metres of descent per day, spread out across the whole day – which, in my opinion, is a very manageable amount of climbing and descending.  The trail is hillier at the start and flattens out for the last couple of days.

What’s the scenery like?

Conjure up in your mind what you imagine Swiss mountain scenery to look like and you’ll have a pretty accurate picture of the kind of landscapes you’ll find in Liechtenstein.  Think imposing mountains, rolling green hills, lush valleys, medieval castles and pretty alpine architecture.

Typical scenery along the Liechtenstein Trail.

Around 42% of Liechtenstein is covered by forests, so, whilst the landscapes are diverse and constantly changing, you will spend a large chunk of the trail walking along shaded tree-lined paths.  The majority of the route’s climbs are through alpine forests, too.

Forest paths along the Liechtenstein Trail

And how about the food along the trail?

Prepare yourself, because eating out in Liechtenstein is not cheap!  My advice would be to book accommodation where breakfast is included in the price, if at all possible.  Firstly, because the breakfasts are normally buffet-style, so you can load up on enough to keep you going until the evening, and, secondly, because it saves you time searching for somewhere that will serve breakfast at the start of each day.

I’m a Pescetarian (I don’t eat meat, but will eat fish on occasion), but as Liechtenstein is landlocked, you won’t find much seafood on the menu.  So, essentially I was limited to vegetarian options during my time in Liechtenstein.  And, there was always at least one vegetarian main-course item on the menu of the restaurants I ate at; usually a pasta-based dish.

In Vaduz, you’ll have plenty of dining options available, but choice is limited once you leave Liechtenstein’s capital.

Although my internet research indicated that Liechtenstein’s cuisine is heavily influenced by neighbouring countries, Austria, Switzerland and Germany, I found Italian-style cuisine to be the most affordable and widely available option on the menus of the restaurants I visited.  I didn’t have a bad meal in Liechtenstein, and particular standouts were the Schlutzkrapfen (semi-circular stuffed pasta, originating from the Tyrol region of northern Italy) filled with ricotta and spinach, tomato ragout and grated appenzeller (Swiss hard cheese) that I ate at Gasthof Au in Vaduz, and the wild garlic soup I was served at Hotel Restaurant Weinstube in Nendeln.

Delicious food at Gasthof Au in Vaduz and Hotel Restaurant Weinstube in Nendeln

To give you a general idea of the price of an evening meal in Liechtenstein, mine would usually consist of a mixed salad, a pasta dish and a beer and cost me an average of €45.14 (£38.73).  The coffees I purchased cost me an average of €6.55 (£5.62) each.

Do I need to speak German?

Absolutely not! I remember nothing more than a few words and phrases from the 12 months I spent studying German at school, but I didn’t need to rely upon them because everyone I came in contact with spoke and understood English well, even in the less populated areas of the country.

Having said that, locals will always appreciate your efforts to learn a little of their language, so simply saying “Guten Tag!” (‘hello’) and “danke” (‘thank you’) can help to build positive relationships along the trail.

If you’re English, you’ll find some amusing-sounding place names in Liechtenstein!

Walking the Liechtenstein Trail | Resources

• The official Liechtenstein Trail website.  This is a good starting point as it will give you a general overview of the trail, along with a description of each stage, which includes elevation and descent, the type of terrain you’ll be walking on, current weather conditions, the start and end points, public transport links, and suggested rest stops.
• The Footpath app.  Long-term readers will know how much I love this app; I never go running or hiking in unfamiliar territory without it.  Essentially it allows you to map a route by tracing a line along roads and footpaths with your finger.  When you’ve finished, you save the route and the app will calculate the total distance of the route you’ve created as well as giving you an accurate elevation profile.  As you follow the route in real time, you’ll be able to see where you are along the route and the distance you’ve covered up to that point.  It’s also really easy to spot when you’ve deviated from the trail, and to find a route to get you back on to it.  Whilst you need internet coverage to map your route, you don’t need to be connected to the internet to follow it.   And, the best bit? The app is completely free!
• The LIstory app.  Developed by the Liechtenstein Institute and launched on 22 May 2019, the LIstory app was designed to help visitors to learn about the history and culture of the country as they hike through it.  There are a total of 148 ‘interactive stations’ (points of interest) spread across Liechtenstein’s eleven municipalities, all of which are marked on the map.  You can follow your journey in real time as you walk along the trail (your current location is marked by a little red dot), ‘unlocking’ information about each interactive station as you arrive.  Restaurants and accommodation are integrated into the app as well.  The only problem with using this app is that it drains your battery super quickly.  Unless you’re travelling with an uber powerful battery pack and are prepared to keep your phone permanently plugged into this while you walk, I wouldn’t entertain the idea of using it full-time.  I primarily hiked with my phone in flight mode, using it solely for navigation and photo-taking until I knew I was approaching an interactive station I didn’t want to miss, when I would re-connect my phone to mobile data and launch the LIstory app.

You’ll find these information plaques on the outside of each of the Liechtenstein Trail’s 148 interactive stations.

Walking the Liechtenstein Trail | Accommodation

Similar to food in Liechtenstein, accommodation is of a very good standard, but with prices to match.

Hostels are non-existent, as far as I can fathom.  Airbnbs are available (according to the Airbnb website, there are a total of 109 in the country), but I chose not to use these because the prices didn’t really differ much from hotels and the majority of the hotel rates included breakfast.

My breakfast at Hotel Kommod, Ruggell

One of the main things to note about hotels in Liechtenstein is that you’ll need to check in electronically, via a screen outside the hotel entrance or in the lobby/reception area.

In theory, this is great, but in my experience it wasn’t always the easiest or quickest process in the world, and on one occasion (Landhaus Boutique Motel, I’m looking at you!), after around 20 minutes of attempting to get the computer to recognise the letters/numbers I was tapping into the screen above, I was actually getting rather concerned (and incredibly frustrated!) about whether I’d be able to gain access to the hotel at all.

When I left a review detailing my frustrations about the check-in screen not being calibrated correctly, I realised that other customers had experienced exactly the same issue.

It wouldn’t have been so bad if there had been someone I could have called upon for help (which I had to do at Giessen Hotel and Coffeehouse, because the machine kept telling me the information I was entering was incorrect), but the check-in machine was outside the entrance to the hotel, and I subsequently didn’t see any staff during the entirety of my stay.

I stayed at the following hotels and, aside from the issue with the check-in screen at Landhaus Boutique Motel, I was very happy with all of them.  However, my favourite was Giessen Hotel and Coffeehouse in Vaduz, firstly, because it has its very own coffee shop attached, and secondly, because my room came with its very own balcony from which I could appreciate this stunning view of the city’s crowning glory — its castle.

Views from my room at Giessen Hotel and Coffeehouse, Vaduz

• Day 0 | Josephine’s Guesthouse, Zurich
• Day 1 | Giessen Hotel and Coffeehouse, Vaduz
• Day 2 | Landhaus Boutique Motel, Nendeln
• Day 3 | Hotel Kommod, Ruggell
• Day 4 | Zleep Hotel, Kloten (near Zurich airport)

Walking the Liechtenstein Trail | Planning your stages

How you choose to plan your stages will depend upon how much time you have available to walk the Liechtenstein Trail, how far you want to walk each day, and where you’ll find available accommodation.

The easiest way of walking the Liechtenstein Trail is to stick to the official five stages on the Liechtenstein Trail website, as detailed earlier in this post.   Doing so will see you walking a minimum of 8.5 and maximum of 19.6 kilometres per day, and you’ll find accommodation readily available in the locations at the end of each stage.

Decorative house entrances, Liechtenstein.

However, if you have less than five days at your disposal with which to walk the Liechtenstein Trail, you’ve looked at the elevation profiles each day and you feel comfortable walking longer daily distances than those advertised, you can easily shave a day off by combining the shortest day (day two) with either day one or day three.  I chose to combine it with day one because day one is a slightly shorter distance and I figured my legs would be less tired at the start of the trail.  So, my four stages were as follows:

• Day 1 | Balzers to Vaduz (23.9 kilometres / 14.9 miles)
• Day 2 | Vaduz to Nendeln (17.9 kilometres / 11.1 miles)
• Day 3 | Nendeln to Ruggell (14.5 kilometres / 9 miles)
• Day 4 | Ruggell to Schaanwald (19.6 kilometres / 12.2 miles)

However, having now walked the Liechtenstein Trail, I definitely feel like I could easily have completed it in three days.  With the exception of the first day (when, according to Strava, I actually walked 28 kilometres and climbed a whopping 1026 metres of elevation), the other days on the Liechtenstein Trail were fairly easy walking.  This meant that, in spite of not leaving until somewhere between 8.30 and 9 a.m. every morning, I was still arriving into my final destination not long after lunchtime.

Scenes from Vaduz, Liechtenstein

And, because the Liechtenstein Trail takes you past all the best places to visit in Liechtenstein, with the exception of the capital, Vaduz (where you’ll find a few museums and art galleries to visit), there’s not really a lot else to see and do in the other towns when you arrive.

So, if I walked the Liechtenstein Trail again, I’d break my days up as follows:

• Day 1 | Balzers to Vaduz (23.9 kilometres / 14.9 miles) | Stay: Giessen Hotel and Coffeehouse
• Day 2 | Vaduz to Bendern (26.8 kilometres / 16.7 miles) | Stay: b_smart hotel Bendern
• Day 3 | Bendern to Schaanwald (25.2 kilometres / 15.7 miles) | Stay: travel back to Zurich once you finish the trail

The main benefits that I can see from walking the Liechtenstein Trail in three days is that:

• Your miles are more evenly spaced across all three days.
• You save on a night’s accommodation, which in Liechtenstein is a pretty big saving; I paid on average £130 per night for a hotel room in Liechtenstein!
• You may then have time to squeeze in the ‘bonus’ trail stage in Malbun.  I only found out about this after I downloaded the LIstory app on my journey over to Zurich, and I was gutted I hadn’t discovered it beforehand, because Malbun is located in Liechtenstein’s alpine region, at 1600 metres above sea level, and the scenery looks stunning!  The place I bookmarked to stay here (if I needed to) is Hotel TURNA Malbun.

Walking the Liechtenstein Trail | What to pack

I kept my pack nice and light for walking the Liechtenstein Trail.  Here’s why:

• I was only walking for four days.
• I was staying solely in hotels, so things like towels, bedding and toiletries were provided.
• I was walking the trail at the end of May, when the weather was relatively mild during the day.  So, there was no real need to bring warm layers.
• This is not a remote, mountainous trail — you’ll pass through numerous towns and villages along the way, where you can grab supplies and top up your water.  There’s also no shortage of drinking fountains along the trail.

Drinking fountain along the Liechtenstein Trail

I took the 24-litre women’s specific fit North Face Trail Lite backpack in a size XS/S, which was perfect for my small frame (I’m 1.55 metres tall and weigh 48 kilograms).  Here is everything I either wore or packed inside it:

• A lightweight waterproof backpack liner.  I put this inside my backpack and then packed everything inside this.  I find it offers more a reliable level of waterproof protection when compared to the covers that go over your backpack.
• A pair of  Inov8 Roclite G275 trail shoes. I also walked the Camino Primitivo in these.  They’re so comfy I now wish I’d bought multiple pairs as they are sadly now discontinued and no longer available in my size.  But, shoes are a very individual choice because everyone’s feet are different, so find a pair that work well for you.
• Inov8 Race Elite 3/4 women’s tights.  These are officially the most lightweight pair of walking leggings I own.  They’re super soft and stretchy, pack down very small and dry quickly.
• A couple of Rab Syncrino merino wool t-shirts for hiking in.  I’m a huge fan of merino wool.  Merino is well known for being odour-resistant (meaning you can wear it for longer before needing to wash it) and for keeping you cool in hot temperatures and warm in cold temperatures.
• Mountain Equipment Odyssey Women’s Jacket.   Because I wasn’t carrying as much gear overall as I did on the Camino Primitivo, I decided to pack my slightly heavier, thicker waterproof.  It also offered a little more warmth, which meant that I didn’t need to pack a separate down jacket.
• The North Face waterproof over-trousers.  I’ve had these years so I’ve no idea of the variant name or whether they’re still available to buy.  But, I love North Face’s trousers because they’re available in short length, which is perfect for me.
• Rab Dihedral Crew.  I have three of these in various colours and I love them!  The Dihedral Crew is a super lightweight long-sleeve layer that’s fleece-lined.   It’s perfect for layering over the top of your t-shirt for those cooler mornings or when the wind picks up.  Unfortunately, Rab seem to have discontinued this particular product, but the Nexus Crew is very similar.
• A pair of lightweight trousers for the evening.  My Frilufts culottes weigh just 140g, pack down to almost nothing and require zero ironing, so are perfect for travel.   They’re also something I feel comfortable wearing around town when I’m not hiking.  I like to bring something a bit more stylish to change into after I’ve showered, in case I end up eating at a restaurant which is not usually frequented by hikers. And, this happened a lot in Liechtenstein!
• A lightweight, comfortable t-shirt for the evening.  Again, I bring something I wouldn’t use for hiking in, so that I feel a bit more respectable when I go out for dinner.  On this occasion, I brought a merino t-shirt from Sweaty Betty.
• Rab Nexus Hoody.  A super lightweight but warm hoody with two large zip pockets either side.  I’ve got a really chunky Samsung S24 Ultra phone in a drop-proof/waterproof rubber casing, and it fits in these pockets!  I brought this with me primarily to wear in the evenings over the top of my t-shirt, but it was also an extra layer if I got too cold during the daytime.
• Xero Z-Trail sandals.  I bought these specifically to take on the Camino Primitivo with me last year, because they’re smaller and lighter than any pairs of flip flops I own, and a darn sight easier to walk in!  They’re zero-drop/barefoot shoes, so they’re not for everyone, but I found them perfectly fine for casual wanders around town in the evening.
• Socks.  These are very much personal preference.  I have a selection from Hilly, Balega, Salomon, and Darn Tough, and they’re all really comfortable.  I prefer those that are ankle length like these, rather than those which are more like trainer socks, because I find the latter tend to let tiny stones in when I’m walking.
•  A water bottle or bladder.  I took a bladder on the Camino Primitivo, but just packed a couple of my 500ml Salomon Soft Flask water bottles on this trip, because I knew I’d never be too far from civilisation and that drinking fountains were available at regular intervals along the trail.
• A portable battery pack.  I never go anywhere hiking without this.  It has been a life saver on more occasions than I care to count!
• A first aid kit filled with blister plasters, anti-histamines, ibruprofen, and immodium.  Fortunately, I didn’t need any of them, but you never know!
• An umbrella, which I used all day on day one because, whilst my waterproof jacket and trousers keep me dry, I needed some additional cover for my mobile phone and GoPro.  Yes, my mobile phone is housed in a waterproof casing, but my touch screen doesn’t work when it gets too wet, and I needed it for navigation.
• My Go Pro Hero 12, charging cable and hand grip.  I appreciate that these are luxury items, but I decided last year that I really wanted to try and capture more of my adventures on film, so these items are in order to facilitate this.  Now I just need to find the time to learn how to edit my video footage!

Walking the Liechtenstein Trail | Getting to the start of the trail (and returning at the end!)

As previously mentioned, the closest airport to the start of the trail is Zurich.  Flights to Zurich are both affordable and readily available from various airports across the UK.

Due to the limited amount of annual leave I had available with which to complete the Liechtenstein Trail (I work a full-time day job in local government administration), I needed to fly out over the bank holiday weekend at the end of May, so I did have to juggle flights a little in order to ensure that they remained within my budget.  As a result, I ended up flying out of Gatwick and back into Manchester, both with Easyjet.

I’ve always struggled to find hiking-specific packs that I can take as hand luggage on flights without paying extra for priority boarding.  However, my North Face one was perfect!  If you don’t need a hiking-specific pack, I always take and can 100% recommend the 28-litre Cabin Zero backpack.  It’s my go-to pack for long weekends away.  I’ve even taken it with me for a two-week long adventure exploring the Greek islands.

As I didn’t arrive into Zurich airport until 8:30 p.m., I stayed overnight in Zurich and then made my way to the start of the trail early the following morning.

Although I did little more than sleep there, I can thoroughly recommend Josephine’s Guesthouse.  Its USP (Unique Selling Point, for those of you who’ve not worked in retail 😆) is that it’s for women only.  Whilst not really relevant to me (I’m comfortable mixing with both male and female travellers), I can understand that for those women new to travelling independently or those who feel safer with that same-sex reassurance, this is a perfect choice.

My room at Josephine’s Guesthouse, Zurich

The main reason I decided to stay here was its proximity to Zurich’s main train station — Zurich HB.  It’s just an 800-metre walk down a well-lit, busy main road.  Another plus point is that breakfast is included in the room rate.  But, unfortunately, I left too early to take advantage of this.

From Zurich airport, it’s an easy 10-minute train journey to Zurich HB.  You’ll need to buy a ticket in advance from one of the ticket machines (I paid the equivalent of €7.28 / £6.34 for a one-way journey) and specify which train you’re getting on at the time of purchase.  So, make sure you know where your platform is and how to get there before you buy the ticket.  Lines S2, IC1, IR75 or S24 all run to Zurich HB and you shouldn’t have to wait any longer than around seven minutes for a train.

I pre-booked my journey for the next morning from Zurich HB to Sargans Bahnhof, because I needed to get on a specific train and I didn’t know how busy it would be or how much of a faff it would be to get my ticket at the station.  I did this via the SBB Mobile app.  I could then simply show the barcode on my phone rather than worrying about a physical ticket.  I caught the 06:38 train, which arrived into Sargans Bahnhof at 07:33.

It’s important to note that Liechtenstein doesn’t have a rail network so public transportation around the country is by bus only.

At Sargans Bahnhof, you’ll need to exit the main building and then head to stand C where you’ll need to catch the number 11 bus to Balzers Höfle, which should take approximately 30 minutes.  From there, its a 1.4 kilometre (around a 15-minute walk) to the start of the trail.  Just punch ‘Neue Churerstrasse’ into Google Maps.

I started walking at around 08:15 on day one, so it had taken me around one hour and 40 minutes to get from Zurich HB to the official starting point, where I could begin walking the Liechtenstein Trail.

An old border stone in Balzers marks the official start of the Liechtenstein Trail

When I finished walking the Liechtenstein Trail, I had to re-trace my steps along the main road in Schaanwald to the bus stop opposite the Pizzeria Sapori, marked on the map as ‘Schaanwald, Zuschg.’

You can catch the number 11 directly to Sargans Bahnhof.  Alternatively, the number 13, N1 or N2 goes to Schaan Bahnhof.  From there, you can head to stand C1, where you can catch a number 12 bus to Buchs SG.  Once you arrive at Buchs SG, there is a train to Sargans Bahnhof.  The final leg of this journey is to book a ticket back to Zurich HB.  The entire journey should take between one and a half and two and a quarter hours, depending on the route you take.

I was staying overnight at an airport hotel in Zurich in order to catch an early flight home the next morning, so I had to subsequently catch a train to Kloten station, but obviously, if you’re staying in Zurich, this will be the end of your journey.  If, however, you do need to stay at an airport hotel, I can recommend newly-opened Zleep Hotel.  They don’t have a restaurant on-site, but there is an Aldi directly opposite the hotel.  Alternatively, the Co-op just outside Zurich HB station is pretty reasonably priced.  I got all this (because I didn’t know about the Aldi until I arrived in Kloten) for the equivalent of €13.76 / £11.98.

My dinner at the end of my hike, courtesy of Co-op near Zurich HB

And finally, what can I expect from the walk itself?

Yet again, another of my posts has ended up being a lot longer than I’d originally intended it to be!  So, I won’t go into detail about what each individual day involves and what you can expect to see along the way — particularly as you may well end up organising your days very differently to mine.

What I will do is share a few of my observations about walking the Liechtenstein Trail, as well as a few of my highlights.

Observations

• Whilst I’d expected the Liechtenstein Trail to be quiet in comparison to hiking trails I’d walked in countries that see a higher number of visitors than Liechtenstein, I wasn’t expecting it to be quite as quiet as it turned out to be.   I saw zero other hikers during the entirety of my four days along the trail.  No-one.  Not a single soul.  And, that’s not just on the trail itself — that’s also including in the cafes and restaurants I stopped at and in the hotels at which I stayed.  It didn’t really bother me, but it did mean that my experience of walking the Liechtenstein Trail was a very different one to that of walking the Camino Primitivo.
• On the whole I found the trail really well signposted — you’ll find the red and blue ‘Liechtenstein-Weg’ signposts at every junction, turn and forest track.  Although, sometimes these are slightly obscured by vegetation, or are on the opposite side of a wide road, so you’ll still need to keep your eyes peeled.  And, it definitely helps to have the route loaded on a map, so that you can quickly see if you’ve gone off trail.

• I found a lot of the historic building and monuments along the trail to be closed when I arrived.  I’m not sure whether it was just bad timing (I was visiting over a bank holiday weekend) or whether their opening hours are rather random and somewhat limited.  So, I would advise checking prior to starting your walk if there are any you’re keen on having a peek inside.

Biedermann-Haus – one of the oldest surviving residential buildings in Liechtenstein, dating back to 1518. This was all locked up when I arrived; I took the interior photo through the window.

• Considering how beautiful the Liechtenstein Trail is, the finish line is somewhat of an anti-climax.  There is nothing whatsoever to mark the end of the trail, aside from a rather official looking border control checkpoint and a sign indicating that you’re entering Austrian territory.  I thought I may have been able to get my passport stamped if I walked over the border, but none of the border control officials seemed bothered as I casually wandered through to Austria and back again 😂

In spite of the hideous weather, this beautiful fluffy cat ventured out to witness my final few hundred metres of walking the Liechtenstein Trail

Highlights 

1 | Gutenberg Castle.  Perched around 70 metres above Balzers, this medieval fortress is visible from the moment you start walking the Liechtenstein Trail.  And, in fact, the photograph at the start of this blog post was shot just five minutes into the 75-kilometre-long hike.  You’ll need to take a small diversion in order to climb up to the castle, but it’s only around 5-10 minutes, and although you’ll need to visit on a Sunday between 1 May and 31 October (10:00-17:00 hours) to find anything beyond the outer bailey open, it’s still well worth a visit and the surrounding views are incredible!

2 | Creepy wooden sculptures between Triesenberg and Vaduz.  Ok, so this may be a bit of a niche highlight, but I absolutely loved these!  I was a little puzzled by their significance when I first saw them, and the information plaque written solely in German offered me no clues.  However, I’ve since translated this and it appears that the figures depict the ‘Night Folk’ of Oberland.  Legend has it that these shadowy figures travelled in procession through the nearby village, murmuring prayers, and should a villager be woken by these murmurs, a terrible fate would befall them.  On a bleak rainy day in the mountains, they definitely stopped me in my tracks and had me immediately reaching for my camera.

Wooden legendary figures (‘Night Folk’) on the WalseSagenWeg, Liechtenstein

3 | The walk through Vaduz’s old district and views of Vaduz Castle.  This was probably my favourite part of the entire trail — from the moment I approached the Prince of Liechtenstein Winery, I found myself exclaiming “wow!”  every few metres I walked.  Everywhere was just so damn pretty.

The ridiculously pretty wine growing region in Vaduz, Liechtenstein

And then, I came upon the famous Red House.  After Vaduz Castle, the Red House is considered to be the second most important landmark in the city.  Built in 1338, it has been in possession of the Rheinberger family since the dissolution of the monasteries in 1807.  The striking medieval-looking tower was added much later, in the beginning of the 20th century, according to plans drawn up by sculptor and architect Egon Rheinberger, who was actually born in the Red House.

The Red House, Vaduz, Liechtenstein

And, just at that point when I thought the views couldn’t get any better, I was treated to this spectacular perspective of Vaduz Castle — perched atop a rocky outcrop, nestled amidst dense tree cover and backed by towering snow-capped peaks of the surrounding mountains.

Vaduz Castle, viewed from the city’s old district.

4 | Opening the gate into the gardens of St. Laurentiuskirche in Schaan.  I almost wandered right on past this church, as it didn’t look much at all from the outside.  But, I’m so pleased I made a last-minute decision to open the gates into the grounds, because what I found was one of the prettiest and best-kept cemeteries I’ve ever laid eyes upon!

St. Laurentiuskirche, Schaan

5 | Admiring the views and the beautiful ceiling frescoes at the Chapel of St. Maria zum Trost auf Dux in Schaan

As you leave Schaan, you’ll start ascending up a road called Duxgass. When you arrive at a crossroads, take a right to deviate slightly off trail to reach this partially-hidden chapel.  Whilst I found the door to the chapel locked when I visited, I absolutely adored the portico area, with its colourful frescos and stunning views across the surrounding countryside.

Chapel of St. Maria zum Trost auf Dux, Schaan

6 | Taking a break at the Benefice Buildings (‘Pfrundbauten’) in Eschen

Of course, it helped that the sun was out in full force by the time I arrived here, but this place made for a lovely little stop on my third day of walking the Liechtenstein Trail.

The Benefice Buildings date back to the Middle Ages. For centuries, they were owned by the monastery in Pfäfers and served as the residence of the priest of Eschen until as recently as 1967.  In the 1970s, having lain empty for some years, they narrowly escaped demolition thanks to a few local residents who fought to preserve these historic buildings.  And in 1974, they were given protected status and renovated in the style of the mid 19th century.

Nowadays, the Benefice Buildings have been repurposed as an arts and cultural venue, hosting regular exhibitions and small concerts.

Benefice Buildings (‘Pfrundbauten’) in Eschen

7 | Discovering the ‘Resonare’ sculpture by Edgar Buchel

I spotted this sculpture situated somewhat randomly on the edge of a hillside in a place called Krest, just off the historical Eschnerberg Trail.  I instantly thought it would make a great photo with me stood inside it, complemented by a backdrop of cloud-covered mountains rising up from a lush green valley floor.

I subsequently spent an inordinate amount of time attempting to prop my phone up in a suitable position against my backpack in order to try and capture this.  The perils of travelling solo!

Playing around with my self-timer and a random piece of artwork on a hillside along the Liechtenstein Trail

8 | Bendern Church Hill

I lingered for a long time up at beautiful, peaceful Bendern Church Hill, admiring the architecture and soaking up the views of the Rhine Valley.

Records indicate that the area has probably been inhabited for around 4000 years and that a church was built on the hill as early as the 6th century.  The Gothic-style parish church that exists here now was inaugurated in 1481, with the rectory added in 1539.

Bendern Church Hill

Bendern Church Hill is an important area historically because it’s here, in the Schwurplatz” (‘Oath Square’ – at the top of the hill leading up to the church in Bendern) that the people of Liechtenstein pledged allegiance to the Prince of Liechtenstein on the 16 March 1699.  The fountain here was erected to commemorate this event.

Bendern Church Hill – one of my highlights of walking the Liechtenstein Trail

My favourite building here was the Governer’s Office (circa 1539, pictured below), with its stepped gables and pretty candy-stripe shuttered windows.

Governer’s office building with cute shuttered windows, Bendern Church Hill

And that concludes my experience of walking the Liechtenstein Trail!  If you’re still with me then thank you for taking the time to make it this far.  If there’s anything else you’d like to know that I haven’t covered in this post, please drop your questions in the comments box below, and I’ll get them answered as soon as I can 🙂

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