Things To Do in Vaduz
Bookstore
Available as paperback
and as e-book.
Vaduz Attractions
Traffic is allowed one-way on the main street, Städtle. Also at the center of Vaduz is the Rathaus (town hall). The post office is across the street. Vaduz offers a wide range of sports and entertainment. Facilities include a miniature golf course, tennis courts, and a large swimming pool.
One of the best ways to get around Vaduz -- and other parts of the country -- is to rent a bike or a small motorcycle. Rentals are possible at Bike Garage, Landstrasse 323 (tel. 00423/390-03-90; www.bikegarage.li). The cost is 35F per day for the average bike.
The prince's castle, Schloss Vaduz, dates from the 12th century. The oldest parts are the keep and the buildings on the east side. The castle was burned down by Swiss troops in 1499 and rebuilt at the beginning of the 16th century. It has round bastions at the northeast and southwest corners. Once a bleak and gloomy fortress, the castle is much improved. The interior -- not open to the public -- contains lavish furnishings, antiques, and priceless artwork. The exterior of the fortress is surely worth seeing. The climb along the wooded footpath takes 20 minutes and starts between the Hotel Real and the Hotel Engel. There's a sweeping vista from the grounds of the castle.
In the upper village, on the road to the castle, is the Red House. This was the seat of the vassals of the counts of Werdenberg during the Middle Ages. The house was acquired along with the vineyard by the Monastery of St. Johann in the Toggenburg.
Vaduz Shopping
If there's any flash and glitter in Liechtenstein at all, it appears only in very subdued form. You may notice this during your shopping excursions, which are best limited to central Vaduz, a neighborhood that can never really escape the sense of being a somewhat overgrown village. An outlet that sells gift items from Liechtenstein, Austria, Italy, and Switzerland is L'Atelier, Städtle 36 (tel. 00423/232-46-88). Its merchandise, as selected by the outfit's longtime owner, Hélène de Marchi, includes lamps, dolls, hand-painted silks, stoneware, pewter, and other handmade objects.
Liechtenstein has been famous since the turn of the 20th century for its rustic and durable pottery, produced in natural-looking colors such as blue, beige, and yellow, in factories that lie within a 10-minute drive of Vaduz. The larger of the principality's two factories for stoneware is Schaedler Keramik A.G., which straddles Churer Strasse (tel. 00423/373-14-14), the main street of the hamlet of Nendeln, 8km (5 miles) north of Vaduz.
The principality's premier outlet for wines produced by vineyards belonging to the prince is the Hofkellerei des Fürsten Liechtenstein, Feldstrasse, Vaduz (tel. 00423/232-10-18). Set in a solid, not particularly imaginative-looking building that's owned by the prince, it stockpiles the fruit of his family's vineyards, most of which are either in the principality or in Lower Austria (Niederösterreich) just across the border. Look for both whites and reds -- and a somewhat heavy-handed emphasis on the organization's royal connections.
When shopping, don't overlook the Liechtenstinian postal service, which produces more stamps than are ever used to actually mail letters. One of the busiest emporiums in the principality is the bureaucratic-looking kiosk in the main post office, Postwert Zeichenstelle der Regierung, Städtle, FL-9490 Vaduz (tel. 00423/236-64-44). Here stamps that commemorate Liechtenstein's history, botany, zoology, and achievements are sold to avid collectors, and even to folk who never thought they were collectors.
Vaduz Nightlife
Conservative -- and according to its critics, drab -- Liechtenstein can't even begin to compete with the nightlife options of larger cities in Switzerland. Your best bet will probably involve retiring early after a nightcap at your hotel bar. Discos aren't really a factor here. A noteworthy bar, however, is Vanini Bar, a youthful, high-energy meeting place in the Hotel Adler, Herrengasse (tel. 00423/232-21-31).
