With miniature masterpieces in the 1:25 scale, the Swissminiatur theme park is a fun day out for all. With miniature Swiss buildings and chalets, movable objects like Swiss trains and boats and stunning scenery, the park has a bit of everything.
Open to the public of all ages, this activity is perfect for an hour or two of your time while in the Ticino canton. You get a free guide to follow the route of little buildings, where you can learn about each one along the way. It’s a fun location to explore, with a park restaurant and souvenir shop on site.
For prices and our personal experience in visiting the Swissminiatur park, read on!
Where Is The Swissminiatur?
If you are wondering which region of Switzerland you would one find the Swissminiatur at, that would be in the Ticino canton!
Located just a short journey from Lugano, the Swissminiatur is located in the village of Melide. This is only 10 minutes away by train from Lugano Central train station. You can also consider a public bus that takes around 21 minutes.
If you are based in Zurich and want a day out to Lugano with this activity, its only 2 hours and 12 minutes away (by train)!
Google Maps Address: Via Cantonale 13, 6815 Melide
What Can You See In The Swissminiatur Park?
You can probably guess that the Swissminiatur a beautiful park, which has stunning mini Swiss buildings, events and overall Swiss life in miniature scope.
They have movable items all over the park, such as the cars, trains, boats and ski cable cars! We spotted even the orange famous San Gottardo scenic train along one of the routes. These of course you are not allowed to touch, but you can spend ages watching where they all go!
However while watching these movable objects, you can also join in on the fun with a mini train that you can actually sit on yourselves. This is lovely for those with children, where you pass by the mini Switzerland buildings while on a small train as well.
The park has a range of buildings from all over Switzerland, so you really get to see a bit of everything Switzerland has to offer. Each building has a description in the free guide you get at the ticket office. You can read about each building as well as see the local canton flag. There are even a few local Ticino spots, such as seeing the Locarno Film Festival square and the Bellinzona castles.
Before leaving, there is a little restaurant selling refreshments, as well a souvenir shop with some unique items. For a bit more fun, there are even some arcade games in one area of the park.
Keep a look out for the local wildlife too, there are ducks, koi fish (that you can also feed) and turtles!
We have a fully-loaded, high content Ticino Guide listing local things to see, do and explore with each season: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.
CLICK HERE
The Swissminiatur Prices
For our visit as of 2023, the entrance prices for adults and children are the following:
| Adult 18.90 | Online Price |
| Adult 21:00 | Entrance Price |
| Children (6 and 15 years) 12.60 | Online Price |
| Children (6 and 15 years) 14.00 | Entrance Price |
They also have other tickets, such as grandparents, students, group and seniors.
You can order your tickets online and get a 10% discount with these. They are valid for one year, so you are also flexible to buy the tickets online and visit on a sunny day like we did!
Our Personal Experience
Visiting on a warm sunny day, I visited together with my mum one afternoon. There was parking right outside, and no queues to go in, despite it being Summer.
Once inside, we were first not 100% sure what route to walk, but the general flow showed a circular route starting on the left of the park at the entrance. This worked out lovely, following the numbers of each mini Swiss location! You get a book guide when at the ticket office for your visit.
When following the pathways, it was really nice to freely stop, sit and watch as the movable trains, cars and boats passed by with the buildings. Once you get to the mountainous locations of Switzerland on the route, you will start seeing funiculars and ski lifts moving too!
We enjoyed our visit, which took us casually 1-2 hours walking around. You are free to stay as long as you prefer here, as well as getting a bite to eat from the restaurant if you like too.
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