Fun things to do in Liechtenstein

This is the visitor's centre of Liechtenstein and it is a good place to go to find out more about this little country. This is where you will also be able to purchase for a couple of Euros, a passport stamp if you would like to have one. Since there are no border controls going in and out of Liechtenstein, this is the only opportunity you will probably get to have "Leichtenstein" stamped on your passport.
There are plenty of brochures and other such reading materials available and the folk who work there are very friendly and most helpful. There is not much in the way of souvenirs available but if you move further up the mall you will find a really good souvenir shop on your right coming from the Government area.

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The Government Building is relatively young at just a little over a hundred years old. It stands between the new Parliament Building or Landtag and the parish Church of St Florin which was built about thirty years earlier. As you can see from the photo, the Government building was undergoing major renovations when I was there.

This area is often referred to as the "Government area" and is quite an attractive little area at the beginning of the main pedestrian mall.

Since it is not possible to see the real castle up close you can see this wonderful model of it in the little square where the tour buses arrive and depart. It would appear that there is a lot more to the real castle than can be seen from the town.

I have seen many photos of the model and all feature the garden in front which is full of beautiful brightly coloured flowers. They are changed regularly and so look different from photo to photo. I think the flowers in my photo are gorgeous.

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Malbun is one of the small towns in Liechtenstein's eastern highlands. It is Liechtenstein's only ski resort during the winter, but its chairlift also runs during the summer. You can take the chairlift up to the top of the mountain ridge that looms over the town. From the top, you can get some amazing views of the local mountains and valleys. It takes about 10 minutes to get from the bottom to the top on the chairlift.

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Although Liechtenstein is a small country, it has some of the most beautiful scenery in Europe. It largest towns, Vaduz and Schaan, are on a flat plain alongside the Rhine River. However, if you head east just a few miles, you enter some amazing scenery, with farms, small towns, and mountains. You can also get some great views of the Rhine River valley once you get up into th hills above Vaduz.

Liechtenstein's national museum is located in Vaduz, the country's capital. It is fairly small, but is worth a visit in order to learn about Liectenstein and its people. It has a good variety of collections, including exhibits about the country's history, its animals, its land, its royal family, and its economy. The museum also features a small, but high quality collection of art from the 1300s to the 1800s. In addition to the permanent collection, the museum has a number of rooms that host temporary exhibitions. When we were there, they had an excellent exhibit of Faberge items.

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The national Museum of Liechtenstein occupies more than one building in Vaduz. The buildings are bordered by the new parliament on the one side and the Information Centre on the other. There are 42 rooms of displays covering archaeology, protecting Middle Ages, ruling Modern Era, celebrating Ethnic Studies, creating 19th to 21st Centuries, Natural History.

Opening times:
Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Wednesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Prices:
Adults CHF 8.- (2011)
Students, apprentices, seniors and groups of at least 10 persons CHF 5.-
Children up to 16 free.
Annual passes, family tickets, combination tickets etc., are published on the Website of the National Museum.

Guided tours:
Guided tours by reservation, offer and price on request.

To say that this is an unusual building would be to make the greatest understatement of the century. My first impression was that it was some sort of electrical sub station or similar. When I found out that it was actually the Parliament Building, I was gobsmacked.

It would seem redundant to have a parliament in Liechtenstein because the Royal Family still rule completely and have the right to make or dissove the rules and laws almost as they wish. They can also dissolve parliament and appoint judges.