This hike from Monte Brè ends in Gandria, a small fishing village on Lake Lugano. Population about 300. We first learned about this hidden gem from this YouTube video. (Djemo Graphic has a great channel for exploring just about every corner of Switzlerland.)
Because Ticino borders Italy, and Gandria is just a few kilometers from the border, the town has an Italian vibe. There are no streets for cars in this village – you must park on the road above town. We looked for some gelato, but we only found sit-down restaurants.
The weather predictions here are not too accurate. Many days it will predict rain all day, then it will be only partly cloudy for half a day. However, we did not want to hike in possible rain. Swiss Family Fun sends out a newsletter for which I just subscribed. In yesterday’s inbox, the newsletter suggested going to the canton of Tessin for the weekend. Tessin is the Italian canton in Switzerland, and folks there call it Ticino. We had been to Bellinzona in Ticino in Jan. 2015.
Our best bet was to take a funicular up to the top of Monte Brè near Lugano and hike downhill to the tiny town of Gandria. Like last weekend, if our idea was good, you can bet that plenty of other Swiss folk agreed. The train to Lugano was packed at the start in Zürich, some people standing.
I would post a photo here of the amazing Gotthard Tunnel, the world’s longest train tunnel, but you will just have to imagine a black square. This tunnel was completed in 2016, and this YouTube video shows the opening ceremony. I highly recommend this video if you need 6 ½ minutes of pure entertainment. The tunnel is 57 km long and takes just under 20 minutes to zip through at about 120 mph.
On the left side you can see a track up the mountain (called Switzerland’s sunniest mountain at about 3,000 ft. high). We rode that funicular up to the top. Not the steepest, not the newest, but certainly less expensive than the Stoos excursion. With our GA cards, it came to 8 CHF per person one-way. The same woman who sold us the tickets then drove the funicular up to the top, then got out and took some paper towels into the public restroom.
Once at the top, we ate our sandwiches and apples before walking down over 2,000 ft. In some ways, this is the easy way to do the hike. However, the footing is very rocky in many places, and there are some narrow switchbacks in places. I was happy to use my hiking poles.
Glamping in Switzerland 