Appenzell's main square is rimmed with elaborately painted hotels and restaurants. It's a striking backdrop for April's Landsgemeinde cantonal assembly.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
![SWITZERLAND - JANUARY 01: Library of the monastery St. Gallen, Switzerland. 2000 hand writings, 1635 incunable and almost 100.000 books. The library was built between 1758 and 1767 und richly decorated. (Photo by Imagno/Getty Images) [St. Gallen, Schweiz: Ehemaliges Benediktiner-Kloster. Stiftsbibliothek mit 2000 Handschriften, 1635 Wiegen- und Fruehdrucken (Inkunabeln) und schliesslich 100.000 Buechern, 1758-1767 erbaut und kunstvoll ausgestattet. Stift St. Gallen: 612 Zelle des hl. Gallus, eines Gefaehrten Columbans, 719 wird durch den hl. Otmar das Kloster errichtet, das 747 die Regel Benedikts annimmt, 1805 saekularisiert.]](https://lp-cms-production.imgix.net/2021-08/Stiftsbibliothek_St_Gallen.jpg?auto=format&fit=crop&ar=1:1&q=75&w=1200)
Stiftsbibliothek
6.46 MILES
If the greatest masterpieces on earth are wrought for the glory of God, St Gallen’s Stiftsbibliothek (Abbey Library), is like a living prayer. Religious…
Schloss Vaduz
14.35 MILES
A riot of turrets and towers plonked high on a hillside and set against the theatrical backdrop of jagged mountains, Schloss Vaduz is quite the fairy-tale…
Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein
14.3 MILES
This black concrete and basalt cuboid on pedestrianised Städtle hosts temporary exhibitions, revolving around the gallery’s collection of contemporary art…
Liechtensteinisches Landesmuseum
14.44 MILES
This museum provides a fascinating romp through the principality’s past, heritage and natural history, from medieval witch trials to the manufacture of…
Flumserberg
19.5 MILES
For a little Alpine fun, take the winding mountain road to Flumserberg, perched high above the lake and facing the impenetrable rock wall of the…
Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona
29.44 MILES
Centred on the peak of Piz Sardona, this nature reserve has held Unesco World Natural Heritage status since 2008. A geologist's dream come true, it's one…
Altstadt
0.08 MILES
Set against a backdrop of rolling hills that rise to rugged mountains, Appenzell's Altstadt is Grimm fairy-tale stuff. The carved gabled houses that grab…
St Martin im Calfeisental
28.52 MILES
Located at 1350m, this stuck-in-time Walser-speaking hamlet is great for slipping off the map for a while, with its ludicrously picturesque cluster of…
Nearby Northeastern Switzerland attractions
1. Altstadt
0.08 MILES
Set against a backdrop of rolling hills that rise to rugged mountains, Appenzell's Altstadt is Grimm fairy-tale stuff. The carved gabled houses that grab…
2. Hauptgasse
0.09 MILES
Appenzell's main pedestrian drag is a stunner, lined with lavishly muralled facades and shops selling everything from folk costumes to local cheese and…
3. Appenzell Museum
0.11 MILES
This heritage museum gives the inside scoop on rural life and folk traditions in Appenzell. Occupying seven floors, it displays beautifully painted wooden…
4. Pfarrkirche St Mauritius
0.15 MILES
Looking back on almost 1000 years of history, Appenzell’s church is easily identified by its whopping great late-Gothic bell tower, embellished with a…
5. Brauquöll Appenzell
0.25 MILES
Pure local spring water goes into the refreshing Appenzeller Bier that's brewed here. The hands-on visitor centre whisks you through brewing history and…
6. Kunstmuseum Appenzell
0.3 MILES
In a town as deeply traditional as Appenzell, this startlingly modern gallery, with its metallic facade and zigzag design, comes as quite a surprise…
7. Appenzeller Volkskunde Museum
4.04 MILES
This folklore museum, its collection spanning everything from pastoral paintings to embroidery, provides an insight into rural Appenzell life. From April…
8. Appenzeller Schaukäserei
4.19 MILES
Cheese-lovers won't want to miss out on a visit to this dairy, where an iPad tour gives you a behind-the-scenes look at the cheesemaking process,…