Lugano

A long lakeshore park, its benches under old trees. It holds the city library and an old villa, and the iron gates are locked at night. In spring camellias and azaleas flower sooner, the season running about a month ahead of lands north of the Alps.

The mountain east of the city, reached by funicular with one change of car on the way up. Just below the top, the village of Bre hangs sculptures and murals along its stone lanes, an easy walk on the way down. Clear weather puts the snowy Alps on the skyline.

A cone-shaped peak over the lake, reached by funicular from Paradiso with a change of car halfway. The small church on top has a roof viewpoint, and a few more steps up open the lake on every side. The funicular stops running in winter.

An arcaded old-centre street alongside the shore, with watch, fashion and jewellery shops under the columns. The covered walkway keeps you dry on a rainy day. One alley uphill leads into older lanes mixed with cheap coffee bars and bakeries.

A museum and concert hall opened in 2015, its huge glass lobby facing the lake and opening onto the waterside square. The lobby needs no ticket, and many sit out a rainy day there. Exhibitions upstairs are run by the Museo d'arte della Svizzera italiana.

Plain outside, but inside the whole wall dividing the nave from the altar is covered by Bernardino Luini's Passion fresco. It was painted in 1529. Visits stop during Mass, so go outside service times.

San Lorenzo stands on the slope over the old centre, its white marble front in Renaissance style. The stepped square before it looks across the roofs to the lake. It is on the walk from the railway station down into town, so many stop in with their bags.

A fishing village of stone houses stacked on the lake's eastern slope, closed to cars, so you arrive by boat or on the shore path. The walk from the Lugano side passes olive trees with labels and boards. Steep lanes make flat shoes the better choice.

A village on a cape at the lake's south end; from its arcaded waterfront a little over 400 steps climb to the hilltop church and cemetery. The lake view from the cemetery is the best spot in the village. A boat from Lugano gets there slowly along the shore.

A peak climbed by rack railway from Capolago, with Mario Botta's petal-shaped stone building just below the summit. Clear days bring several lakes and the plain around Milan into one view. The train halts for winter, so check the season before setting out.

An open-air park on the lakeshore at Melide, south of Lugano, with Swiss castles, bridges and stations built in miniature. Little trains and boats actually run among the models. Its season spans spring, summer and autumn; winter is closed.

Three castles and a wall guarding the valley neck north of Lugano, together listed by UNESCO. Castelgrande, near the station, has a lift up through the rock. On Saturday mornings a large market fills the old town streets.

A wooded mountain south of the lake whose rich haul of fossil fish and marine reptiles from its days as sea floor made it a UNESCO site. The fossil museum in Meride village was redone by Mario Botta. A fossil trail climbs from the village into the forest.

In Montagnola, where Hesse lived from 1919 until his death, his manuscripts, watercolours, glasses and typewriter are gathered. From the museum, his old walking route leads to his grave at the Sant'Abbondio cemetery. A bus climbs the hill from Lugano.

A valley of clear green water among boulders, its signature view the twin-arched stone Ponte dei Salti at Lavertezzo. Icy water and sudden surges cause frequent accidents, so keep out of deep pools. Bungee jumpers leap from the dam at its mouth.

A piece of Italy on the shore of Lake Lugano, surrounded on all sides by Switzerland. A big casino building stands by the water. Boats from Lugano reach it fast; no one checks papers at the border, but carry ID anyway.

The broad central square of the old quarter, with the city hall along one side and open-air cafes round the rest. It is a block in from the lake, a natural coffee stop on a stroll. On summer evenings the tables stay full late.