By Gemma Tedaldi | Published: 1st March 2020 | Updated: 29th November 2024
Now we seem to have a thing for visiting micro-countries, hitting up 4 of the 7 smallest countries in Europe; including Liechtenstein, San Marino, Malta, and Vatican City. What can we say, tiny countries happen to just be some of our favourite destinations to visit.
Where else can you spend 24 hours in one country and get to explore every nook and cranny possible? With that in mind we’ve decided to help you decide on which tiny country should be your next destination, between Liechtenstein or San Marino;
Planning Your Trip? Use our favourite travel resources below:
Accommodation: We recommend Booking.com
Rental Car: We recommend Rentalcars.com
Flights: We recommend Kiwi.com
Tours: We recommend Get Your Guide
Liechtenstein
Situated in the mountainous slopes between Austria and Switzerland is the 4th smallest country in Europe, the wonderful Liechtenstein!
With views for days over the surrounding countries, Liechtenstein is somewhere you can easily sit and watch the world go by or hit up the hiking trails. The landscapes of this miniature country are stunning, to say the least, and with beautiful timber buildings alongside the alpine trails, what is not to like?
Word of warning, if you’re driving in Liechtenstein the roads are super SUPER windy! One minute you are doing a 180 left and the next it’s a 180 right…
Population – 38,557 | Area – 160km2 | Language – German | Currency – Swiss franc | Capital – Vaduz
📍 Where to find the top viewpoints in Liechtenstein – Pretty much anywhere along the road Steg up to Malbun, (a ski-resort village) and sitting on the balcony overlooking Vaduz at Bäckerei Guflina.
📍 Where to eat in Liechtenstein – Bäckerei Guflina on your way up or down from Malbun. Make sure you try the local hot chocolate, its like the famous chocolate from across the border, but so much better!
📍 Where to stay in Liechtenstein – Camping Mittagspitze AG. With spacious pitches to pitch a tent or drive in your camper, as well as some onsite cabins, this has to be one of the best places to stay in Liechtenstein.
Check out one of our other tiny country visits – Malta
San Marino
Surrounded by the rolling north Italian hills is the 3rd smallest country in Europe, the stunning country of San Marino.
Being one of the world’s oldest republics, the country is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, so the architecture is beyond beautiful. With medieval town walls to climb and the three towers of San Marino to explore, it may be small but there is a lot to see! One thing you have to do is climb the town walls when you get to the capital and walk across the top of them to get to the heart of San Marino.
Because of its location, San Marino is also a great place to explore Northern Italy’s Emilia Romagna from. It also means that the food and wine are as amazing as the views over Italy…
Population – 33,400 | Area – 61.2km2 | Language – Italian | Currency – Euro | Capital – San Marino
📍 Where to find the top viewpoints in San Marino – The 3 towers of San Marino, Guaita Fortress, Cesta Tower and Montale Tower, the medieval town walls and pretty much anywhere along the cobblestone streets.
📍 Where to eat in San Marino – Restaurant Pizzeria Nido del Falco with local wine and pizzas to die for.
📍 Where to stay in San Marino – We visited during a trip from Rimini so didn’t stay in San Marino, but anywhere you could stay will have amazing views!
Want to find out more about San Marino? Check out our post on 10 things to do in San Marino
Liechtenstein or San Marino FAQs
Which is the smallest San Marino or Liechtenstein?
San Marino is the smallest country out of San Marino and Liechtenstein, with Liechtenstein sitting roughly 2.6 times larger than San Marino.
Is San Marino the smallest country in the world?
San Marino is the fifth smallest country in the world behind Tuvalu, Nauru, Monaco, and Vatican City, (the smallest).
Conclusion: Liechtenstein or San Marino
Which one is best, Liechtenstein or San Marino? That is for you to decide! Go explore these micro countries and discover these incredible places for yourself then report back to The Travelling Tedaldi to find out which place is most loved by you lovely travelling folk out there.
Planning your own trip to San Marino or Liechtenstein? Make sure you check out our Travelling Tedaldi Amazon Store Travel Guides for all your guidebooks and maps. (We’ve done the hard work for you and linked all the things we used to plan our trip!)
Gemma Tedaldi
Gemma is the owner and author of The Travelling Tedaldi, a travel blog helping travellers to discover the best road trips and travel itineraries throughout the UK and Europe. When she isn’t writing about her favourite travel destinations, she can often be found out exploring local hikes or planning future trips.
