Bellinzona, Switzerland – Experience an interesting hike and learn lots of history!

I got out of my bed in my house on Lake Como, Italy at 6.00am. After a short walk, a 30 minute bus journey and a 52 minute train journey I arrived in Bellinzona, Switzerland. Bellinzona is in the region of Ticino on the Swiss border, close to Italy.

I was able to leave my rucksack in a locker at the train station for 7 CHF (€7.42) until 3pm.

So within 3 hours of getting out of bed, I was up at the castle gates all ready to learn about Bellinzona and why I could see castles in all directions ! 

However, to my dismay the castle didn’t open until 10.00am so I walked back to the town and looked for somewhere inviting to have my first Swiss breakfast of this trip.

I have been to Switzerland before and one of my favourite local delicacies is the Swiss Bircher Muesli. A cafe with an outdoor dining area advertised two selections so I opted for a small traditional one. This was now my 3rd and most expensive breakfast of the day – CHF 14.50, (€15.36).

After I finished breakfast, I walked back to the castle (a 10-12 minute steep walk through a residential area). I was then ready to start my castle tour !

Before I tell you about the castle, allow me to digress for a moment !

Ticino Tourist Card 

My hotel had very kindly emailed me a link to the local tourist card the day before my arrival. I often don’t read the emails from hotels as they usually are the standard stuff about checking in. Thankfully I opened this one. 

You had to register for this card and you could then save it in a digital wallet. It was advertised as offering discounts to local attractions and free travel on local buses. Mine was valid for three days i.e. including the days of my departure and arrival.

The Bellinzona Castles 

There are three castles in Belinzona. You can see the castles from various small streets in the town. I was intrigued as to why there were so many castles in what appeared to be a small town.

The ticket attendant, at the first one I went to, asked if I was planning on going to all three. You don’t have to go to them on the same day. The ticket cost 20 CHF (€21.19), with my Ticino Card giving a 7 CHF (€7.42) discount.

Castello di Montebello

The interior of the castle is quite small but the space is well utlilized. There are small viewing areas on five different floors, accessed via a wooden staircase. Each floor has items representing a different age or era in history i.e. Bronze Age and Roman Era. 

Large glass cabinets display lots of historical artefacts on each floor. They had everything from shoes, to earthenware jars, to jewellery. All the signs are in Italian but it’s obvious what everything is.

On the fifth floor there is a viewing area which had glass windows and you can see a panoramic view of the town and countryside.

There is also a screen in this area with an animation video explaining the history of Bellinzona. A man and two small children were engrossed in it. Several scenes showed where and how the artefacts displayed had been found. There was also a scene showing where a body had been buried and how it decayed over time. The small children chatted loudly about this, in French, but didn’t appear to be disturbed by the gory content !

I walked around the grounds for a while. There are steps at various areas allowing you to access the top of walls. The views are breathtaking and it’s worthwhile climbing several of them.

I didn’t see wheelchair access anywhere inside or out. I think touring this would be extremely difficult for people with mobility issues or with small children.

I spent about ninety minutes visiting this castle.

A twenty minute walk back towards the train station and then to the center of the town brought me to the second castle. 

Castelgrande 

This is one of the most impressive structures I have ever seen in the center of a town. There is literally a gigantic rock in the middle of a square with a castle on top. A large sign denotes “The Fortress of Bellinzona”. The rock i.e. hill is called the San Michele Hill.

You enter this via a small walkway to the left. There is a cafe and shop near the entrance. It is a very strange gap leading you through a tunnel which has a lift (elevator) at the end. The lift takes you to the castle grounds.

The reception to this castle is much larger and they have a small shop selling souvenirs. There are also signs advertising a restaurant, which wasn’t open the day I visited.

When I showed my ticket to the attendant, she asked if I was interested in the history of the castles. When I said I was, she explained that they had a fifteen minute video available in a small theatre. She said as it wasn’t busy now she could put it on for me straight away in the language of my choice (English, Italian, French or German).

I am extremely glad I watched this ! So the area was originally under the control of the Dukes of Milan. One known as “The Moor” ruled in the 15th century. The Dukes of Milan built the castles. The town and area was ruled by Italy for many centuries but they surrendered to the Swiss Confederation in the 16th Century. It became the capital of the Ticino region in 1803.  The castles now form a World UNESCO Heritage Site. 

I then walked through the various rooms. They have lots of pictures and artefacts. They have laminated signs in various languages that you can take around with you to understand what you are looking at.

The highlights to me were the family crests, the pieces of stone and the artwork. Lots of paintings were discovered in the castle. The English painter Turner spent time here and painted some wonderful landscapes of the area.

There are also lots of pictures and tools explaining the excavation process which uncovered so many of the items displayed. 

I spent about ninety minutes walking around the interior and exterior here. In hindsight, I should have visited this castle first. Seeing the historical video explained why they have three castles. They are all connected by walls, going through and around the city.

Castlello di Sasso Corbaro 

It’s a thirty six minute walk uphill to the third castle so I decided to get the bus. The number 4 bus goes from outside the train station twice an hour. The journey takes about ten minutes.

I am always amused by the “honour system” on Swiss buses. Rarely do you see anyone show the driver a pass. He looked very amused when I proudly showed him my Ticino card ! People enter the bus at several doors and either validate single tickets or just sit down. I presume some people have season tickets.

The bus dropped me and two other tourists at the last stop. It wasn’t clear how to get to the castle but you could see it above us. A small number of cars were parked to the left of the bus stop.

I then saw a trail which looked as if it was going in the right direction so I climbed it. It had 133 extremely uneven steep stone steps which took me to the outside of the castle.

As I was now up quite high and further away from the city the views were really amazing. Belinzona is surrounded by some absolutely beautiful Alpine mountains. The town looks very flat and spreads across the area. You can see the other two castles from here also.

There was a small church to the right of the courtyard. Again this castle has several rooms displaying artefacts excavated over the years. There was a video being shown on a loop. It was in Italian with French and English subtitles. It was a condensed version of the history of the area I had seen earlier.

After enjoying the view and taking lots of photographs I went back down to wait for the bus, which came precisely on time ! It leaves at one and thirty one minutes past the hour from 10am to 4pm. From 4-7pm there is just one bus at 31 minutes past the tour. A small tourist trolly bus also takes you to a side entrance of this castle so that’s another option. 

I spent about an hour at this castle. I do suggest you visit all three, however, go and see Castlegrande first. 

Town Center

I went back to the train station and got my rucksack. After checking into my hotel, I walked around the town. It has lots of narrow streets and piazzas. The Italian influence is very visible both in the architecture and lots of the shops are Italian branded !

As in most of Switzerland, the streets are pristine and the buildings in extremely good condition. It’s really important to look up as the window frames, balconies and statues everywhere are beautiful.

The church of St. Peters and Stephen, is in Piazza Collegiata and has lots of 15th century frescos. It is very ornate inside with pink, orange and black marble. There are several small side altars including one dedicated to St. Bernadette, the French saint from the town of Lourdes. 

Just to the side of the church is a beautiful ornate building which has several busts of famous people including  Dante, Volta and Galileo. 

I enjoyed my first day but was glad to have an early night as I had a big day planned for the following day !

Hiking to the Tibetan Bridge

If you have read any of my blogs or social media posts, you will know that hiking is one of my favourite hobbies. When I started researching hikes in Switzerland, the Tibetan Bridge jumped out at me. I have hiked in the Himalayas and crossed some wonderful rope bridges, which are typical in that area, so I was intrigued as to what a Swiss version would be.

I found several posts online about this. All explained that there are several ways to get to it. I wanted to find the longest trail to allow me to see as much of the countryside as possible. All of the posts I read went into detail about the opportunity to sample local cheeses and wine along the route. This excited me although my primary goal was to get a good workout. However,  I think it would be rude to ignore the local offerings !

The day before, I went into the local Tourist Office (at Piazza Collegiata) and picked up a pamphlet about the hike. The agent told me about the cable car which goes near to the bridge. When I said I wanted to hike she told me all about the wine and cheese along the way. I asked if the route was well signposted and she said it was. I asked what the terrain was like and she said “it’s an easy trail and a road”. 

The following morning I decided to have a small portion of the Swiss Bircher Muesli at my ‘local cafe’. After all, I’d be filling up on local cheeses soon ! I had decided to take the No. 2 bus to the start of the trail. 

It was a lovely day so I wore my hiking sandals rather than boots. As this didn’t seem like a difficult climb and I’d potentially be spending more time sitting down, than walking, they seemed appropriate.

Like most Swiss buses, it left on time. There were several other people on board wearing hiking gear and looking like tourists. I wondered who I’d meet along the route or at the ‘pit stops’. My first warning sign was that everyone else got off the bus at a stop earlier than me ! It referenced a church so I thought they were going to see that before starting the trail.

What a surprise I was in for and who wrote the posts I had read (maybe they were AI generated…) ? Certainly not anyone who has hiked this route ! I had to stop myself the following day from going in and having a ‘chat’ with the agent in the tourist office.

As to the trail – well at times there is no trail and you walk on uneven stones. For a lot of the time I was scrambling over rocks and looking up at the markings to ensure I was still on the route. It was extremely challenging and I wished I had worn my boots and also brought walking poles with me.

I also felt I broke all my safety rules about hiking in unfamiliar places alone. For at least one hour I didn’t see a soul. One misstep could easily cause you to fall or twist your ankle and while there was phone service, you could be stranded for a while. I met one couple, who were walking in the opposite direction. They seemed surprised to see me and didn’t acknowledge me even though I said hello in several languages to get a reaction.

Thankfully I brought water and snacks with me as both were needed. I never saw the various huts and homes selling cheese and wine. I kept waiting and on the few occasions I came to a stone structure I got excited. I did pass one hut, early on, with a fridge offering drinks on an honour system.  I didn’t look too closely so don’t know if anything was actually in it though !

So as to the view – yes it was wonderful. The view of Bellinzona, with its three castles and Alpine mountains is beautiful. The countryside all the way is also lovely although 90% of the time I was walking uphill through a forest. Occasionally there are some yellow signposts.

Did I get to the bridge – I hear you ask ? I certainly did and not surprisingly it’s a modern version of a ‘rope’ bridge in Tibet. It’s 270m long and it’s made of timber and steel. It is pretty spectacular though. A sign at the start asks you to walk across directly as your time is being tracked ! I am not sure what that is all about … 

There was no one else on the bridge and I couldn’t hear or see anyone so I took my time and took a few photographs along the way. Just as I got to the end a small boy appeared (about 8 or 9 years old). He was shouting to some people in the other direction in German and he looked as shocked to see me as I was to see him. We nodded at one another as if to overcome our embarrassment. He was delighted when I asked him if he would take my photograph ! Thankfully today’s children are experienced with camera phones. I decided not to ask him to take it with my camera as usually children don’t know how to use them. Bless his heart, he took great care and took several photographs and we wished one another a multilingual ‘goodbye’. 

I met his family a few minutes later. They didn’t seem surprised to see me as clearly Junior had informed them that they were not alone.

Now the trail at the other end is quite different to the way I had come. Firstly I met lots of people of all ages and nationalities. There were several groups of young adults and teenagers who appeared to be on tours. I also met lots of couples and families.

Again there were some signs showing options on where next to walk to. I decided to walk the 55 minute trail to Monte Carasso, where the cable car stopped at.

An elderly German couple stopped me and asked me about the route when I was about ten minutes from the bridge. They both had walking poles and looked as if the route was taxing them. I told them what the short journey to the bridge was like. They asked what way I had come and they told me they had just got off the cable car. When I said I had walked from Bellinzona, they asked if I recommended they do that as they had the rest of the day. I told them a little bit about my experience. They seemed surprised as they had read all about the wine and cheese huts also ! 

Anyway, a few minutes later I came to a lovely old church, which unfortunately was closed. The view from it was wonderful and I wasn’t surprised to see some people resting by it. 

To my delight I soon arrived at the picturesque village of Curzutt. It has some beautiful stone buildings. Apart from the large colourful signs on some walls, it looked like something out of a fairy tale.

While I saw a sign for a restaurant, I didn’t hold out much hope as Curzutt appeared to be deserted or closed for the day !

I wandered through the small cobblestone streets enjoying the view and watching the empty cable car go overhead every few minutes. I then surprised a male for the second time that day as a waiter walked out of one of the buildings. He literally jumped when he saw me but recovered quickly and asked if I wanted lunch. I resisted the temptation to kiss him as he led me to a small patio area with several tables and umbrellas. I was the only customer.

I was surprised at the amount of choice on the menu and at this stage I was ravenous so selected the vegetarian carbonara gnocchi, something I have never had before. I hesitated about ordering wine as I was a little concerned about how I was going to return to my hotel. But given the beautiful scenery I decided to throw caution to the wind and ordered a local Rose. 

My meal was delicious and while it was a huge portion I ate every bite. The rose, a lot darker than ones I am used to, was the perfect choice. No other customers arrived and I was there for at least ninety minutes.

The cable car continued to go by periodically, always empty. On a cloudy day it might have been quite eerie but it was warm and sunny. I decided I wanted a photograph of the cable car going over the stone buildings so I planned where to go to take it.

My meal which cost CHF 38 (€40.26), with water and espresso. I then had another look around the village and headed to take my photograph. As I sat on a stone wall waiting to take it I realised a farmer in an adjoining field was watching me, watching the sky ! Maybe he was my third male of the day to startle or he was just wondering what the hell I was doing. After two attempts I got the shot I wanted.

Energised by my carbonara I decided I was walking down the trail, but by a different route than the one I had come up. I naively thought I would find the one I had read about and that the tourist office thought existed !

I walked by several small vineyards with lots of extremely ripe grapes which looked ready to pick.

But no, I was back to the forest and a mix of rocks and part of a trail. This one did end periodically at a road which meandered down the hill. So you crossed it and followed the road and then rejoined the trail. Again I met no people and I second guessed my decision to hike this trail alone. But, I stuck to it and eventually got back to the street a little bit further away from the bus stop I had left seven hours before. 

Do I recommend this hike ? I certainly enjoyed seeing and walking across the bridge. If you are not an experienced hiker, I don’t recommend either route I took and suggest taking the cable car. While I never saw anyone in it, all those people I met on one section of the trail must have taken it at some stage.

Also, I highly recommend the carbonara and rose in “Ristorante Ostello”. I think I will remember that meal for many years to come !

Final Thoughts 

I thoroughly enjoyed my two nights and two days in Bellinzona. Even though it is heavily influenced by Italy, it’s also very Swiss. I hope that doesn’t sound strange but I enjoyed the cultural mix. The majority of the locals speak Italian with German being the second most popular language.

While the hike didn’t exactly go to plan, I was delighted to get a great workout. I also learnt a lot of history I didn’t know.

Switzerland is quite an expensive country to visit but Bellinzona wasn’t too bad. The Ticino Tourist Card is great and the local bus service easy to navigate.

The majority of the restaurants serve Italian food and Aperitivo’s were also available in the early evening.

There is a small cafe beside the entrance to the Fortress that I suggest you have an Apperitivo in as the view is just spectacular from it.

When I next visit Bellinzona I want to go to the Villa dei Cedri and the Church of Santa Maria Grazie. I’d also like to visit the Saturday markets at Piazza Collegiata. I am also determined to find those wine and cheese huts in the Alpine mountains !

So my first stop on my five stop tour was a success so please watch out for four more posts !