If you’re planning to visit Liechtenstein with your dog, you’ll be happy to know that this charming microcountry welcomes four-legged friends. It’s a wonderful destination for you and your pup for beautiful hiking and the country’s capital, Vaduz, has plenty of dog-friendly activities. Here is all you need to know about visiting Liechtenstein with your dog.
What you need to bring your dog into Liechtenstein
Though it is independent from the surrounding countries, there were no real border controls. However, it’s important to follow regulatory requirements that are relatively uniform within all of the EU. Your dog must be microchipped and have an up-to-date rabies vaccination. You’ll need a pet passport, or an official vet health certificate if coming from outside the EU. Since Liechtenstein doesn’t have its own airport, you would likely undergo document check for your pet in another country like Switzerland. This could involve quarantine if you’re coming from a high-risk country. However, since our dog is an EU citizen with all the required paperwork, this is not something we had to worry about. No one even looked at his passport.
Dog-friendly activities in Vaduz
Take a hike
With Vaduz as a base for exploring the region, there are plenty of dog-friendly hikes nearby. One of the most popular is the short hike to Vaduz Castle, which is the actual residence of the princely family and is not open to the public. However, you and your dog can enjoy beautiful viewpoints on the way up to the castle and past it on the Schlossweg trail. The 4 km up to the ruins of Burg Schalun take you past several epic viewpoints over Vaduz and the territory of Liechtenstein. You can even continue on this path to other major hikes in the Triesenberg region, including the Philosopher’s Path and Fürstensteig. Just make sure your dog is physically fit enough to endure hikes that are up to a half or full day.
Visit the princely winery
As long as you keep them away from the grapes, you and your dog can stroll around the vineyards of the princely winery of Liechtenstein, Hofkellerei des Fürsten von Liechtenstein. You can visit the winery just to sample the wines or do a guided tasting, both of which are dog-friendly as long as your dog can sit through a 90 minute presentation about wine.
Explore Vaduz city center
Though dogs are not allowed in the museums that dot the main pedestrian avenue in Vaduz, the peaceful city center makes for a beautiful short walk for you and your dog. It’s certainly one of the calmest European capitals, so your dog won’t be bothered by noise or crowds. The walk on the Städtle takes you from the square at the town hall to the majestic neo-Gothic Kathedrale St. Florin. Liechtenstein is so small that you can even continue past the cathedral to nearby villages of Triesen (3 km away) or Balzers (8 km away).
Dog-friendly restaurants in Vaduz
Most restaurants in Vaduz are dog-friendly, though it’s always a good idea to ask. As a general rule, terraces and outdoor seating are almost always dog-friendly. It may vary indoors, although we were pleasantly surprised by some of the places that welcomed our dog. Here are some places you can wine and dine with your dog.
Featuring a large terrace that overlooks the Städtle, this is a great open for people watching with regional and Asian fare.
A higher-end Japanese restaurant, but the dog was welcomed with a bowl of water even inside.
Other things to know when traveling to Liechtenstein with your dog
- Though Vaduz is easily walkable, if you want to use the bus system in Liechtenstein to get around or to get to other towns, they must be muzzled and on a leash.
- Liechtenstein is exceptionally clean, which you’ll see if you wipe your dog’s paws after a walk.
- To that end, there is no dog poop anywhere and you should keep it that way by carrying poop bags with you. There are plenty of trash bins even in the forested trails.
- Though you should always have your dog protected against mosquito-transmitted heartworm, I highly recommend minding this in Liechtenstein. There are small streams and fresh water basins that attract mosquitoes in the forested area surrounding Vaduz.
- The people of Liechtenstein are extremely friendly and it’s polite to greet people you walk by, which is especially noticeable when you’re walking around with your dog.
As you can see, Vaduz is exceptionally pet-friendly, and the surrounding natural beauty makes for an attractive destination for dog-friendly travel.
This article is also featured on GPSmyCity. To download this article for offline reading or create a self-guided walking tour to visit the attractions highlighted in this article, go to Walking Tours and Articles in Vaduz.
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