Nestled between the turquoise of the lake and the green of the mountains, enriched by historical buildings and elegant villas, Lugano is a city of water and nature, art and culture, offering many options to visitors.
A modern, cosmopolitan city that thrills those looking for a nature getaway, those looking forward to immersing themselves in urban shopping or getting lost among museums, cultural events and historical sites.
The heart of the city stretches from Piazza della Riforma, surrounded by neoclassical buildings and elegant bistros, via Nassa, with its boutiques and porticoes, where fishermen used to spread their nets, to the Cathedral of St Lawrence, via Pessina and Chiesa di Santa Maria degli Angioli.
Opened in 2015, the LAC (Lugano Arte e Cultura) is Lugano’s largest cultural center. It houses the Museo di Arte Contemporanea della Svizzera Italiana, a theatre and a concert hall with a packed program of shows.
Just a few steps from the city centre, by the lake, Parco Ciani is the green heart of the city, a natural oasis with centuries-old trees, artistic installations and a lively meeting place for young people and families.
Overlooking the waterfront, one step away from the Splendide, it offers a rich exhibition of ethnic and oriental artworks collected by artist Serge Birignoni as well as works by contemporary artists.
Accessible by panoramic cable car from Lugano, the Monte San Salvatore (912 m) offers an all-round viewpoint over the lake and the mountains and several nature trails. A little further north, the Monte Brè (925 m), considered the sunniest mountain in Switzerland, accessible by bicycle or cable car, grants a splendid view on the city and the lake.
Overlooking Lake Lugano, with train and ferry-boat service from the centre of Lugano, Switzerland’s miniature theme park displays more than 120 miniature models of some of the country’s most popular attractions.
In the small village of Montagnola, just a few kilometers from Lugano, where German writer Herman Hesse lived from 1919 to 1931, today there’s his house-museum, open to the public: paintings, works and items once belonged to the writer, who won the Nobel prize in 1946, are on display.
30 km away from Lugano, accessible through a spectacular rack railway train, Mount Generoso (1.704 m) offers an unparalleled view that encompasses Lake Lugano and Monte Rosa all the way to the Matterhorn, the Bernina massif and the Po Valley.
25 km south of the city of Lugano, at the door of Mendrisio, this museum houses a collection of excellently preserved fossils coming from Monte San Giorgio, an UNESCO world heritage site.
To get further information and tips please refer to the luganoregion.com web-site.
