Could you imagine walking across an entire country from border to border? While I’ve seen ambitious feats of people doing things like this in the past (take Torbjorn Pedersen who recently traveled to every country in the world without taking a single flight), I never envisioned myself as someone doing anything remotely similar. Call me an environmental hazard, but I love me a good plane or train. However, after I walked to Paraguay from Brazil, I realized traveling in unconventional ways is quite fun.
So, when I found myself on a hot girl summer in Europe for 2023, I knew I wanted to finally try to see some of Europe’s smaller sovereign nations. I was in Innsbruck, Austria, and being only about 2 hours from the Liechtenstein border, I seized my opportunity. But I couldn’t just VISIT Liechtenstein, I had to find a way to conquer it. So? I decided to walk across it, from the Austrian border to the Swiss border.
Getting to Liechtenstein from Austria
To get to Liechtenstein from Austria, you’ll need to take the train to all the way west to Feldkirch. I used my Eurail pass to go from Innsbruck to Feldkirch, which took approximately 2 hours 20 minutes. Once you get to Feldkirch, you’ll need to catch a bus right at the station to cross the border into Liechtenstein. There are several bus options, depending on what part of the border you want to begin at, but I took the 11. Once I caught the bus, it took about ten minutes to get to Liechtenstein.
My Journey of Walking Across Liechtenstein
As soon as we crossed the border, the bus stopped, and that’s where I got off. Thus began my journey of walking across the entire country of Liechtenstein. I wanted to time it to see how long it would properly take, so I marked down that it was 5:02PM.
I began walking and the plan was there was no plan. I saw on Google Maps that the road I was, which was called Feldkircherstrasse, on could take me directly across the entire country, and was estimated around 1 hour 30 minutes. My plan was to stop somewhere to take some photos, where I would not take into consideration the time, and to stop and get food and/or a drink, where I would also “pause the time.”
My immediate impressions were that there was not a whole lot going on in Liechtenstein, at least near the Austrian border. There was a decent amount of scaffolding and construction, and not another soul in sight. I passed a few businesses, mainly auto repair shops and gas stations.
I looked on Google Maps to see there was a 1950’s American Diner coming up, and I thought it would be a cool experience to eat American diner food smack in the middle of Liechtenstein. You can imagine my disappointment when I approached the eatery to see the gates shuttered, despite Google Maps saying they were open. I figured, no big deal, there will certainly be somewhere else to eat somewhere along the way.
It was extremely hot the day I chose to do this, and I was grateful I brought water with me. About halfway through, I saw a giant open field and decided to have a photoshoot. I “paused the timer,” and danced like a fool in a Liechtenstein field.
After my impromptu photoshoot, which took exactly 14 minutes, I continued to walk. At this point, I was starting to get frustrated with the lack of dining options. Everything I passed was closed. To me, it’s crucial to grab a meal if you want to count something as visiting a country. But what are the rules when you literally do not have the option? Was the entire country of Liechtenstein closed for business on a Monday?
As I got closer to the Swiss border, the atmosphere started to change. The houses became much more colorful, and the overall scenery was cleaner and more detailed.
Google Maps said there was a bar coming up that served fondue, and I was really looking forward to that, but turns out, they were closed, too. At this point, I had accepted my fate that I would not be eating in Liechtenstein, as I knew I was approaching the Swiss border.
Arriving at the Swiss Border
The border came up quickly. There were cars driving up over a hill, and I almost continued to walk. Had I done that, I would have accidentally walked right into Switzerland. I wouldn’t have been against it, but it was starting to get late and I still needed to get all the way back to Innsbruck. I looked up and saw the sign that confirmed I was at the Swiss border. The total time to walk across the entire country of Liechtenstein, minus the 14-minute photoshoot, was 1 hour 26 minutes.
Overall Takeaways
Time Taken To Walk Across
1 hour 26 minutes
What To Do
Apparently, if I had taken a different road just a little south, I would have cut through Vaduz, the capital, and my SOL approach to not being able to eat anything would have been solved.
- Pro-tip: If you want to book a more organized way to walk around Liechtenstein, this 60-minute walking tour of Vaduz is a great option.
What I Would’ve Done Differently
Almost nothing. I think if I could have changed one thing, I would have left Austria earlier so I could also walk back, and I would have taken a different route either there or back to see more of the country.
Is It Worth It To Walk Across Liechtenstein?
To me, absolutely, yes! Though I didn’t get a great feel for Liechtenstein itself. it was a fun memory and a unique way to experience a new country.
DISCLAIMER: I might make a small commission from some of the links throughout this article, but the price is the same for you. This helps keep my business running so I can continue to provide free travel tips!