Lugano

With its compact cluster of Italianate piazzas and extensive tree-lined promenades, Lugano is the most alluring of Ticino's lake resorts, less touristic than Locarno but with, if anything, double the chic. Centre of town is Piazza della Riforma, a huge café-lined square metres from the exceptionally beautiful Lago di Lugano. Through the maze of steep lanes northwest of Riforma, Via Cattedrale dog-legs up to Cattedrale San Lorenzo, characterized by a fine Renaissance portal, fragments of interior frescoes, and spectacular views from its terrace. Also from Riforma, narrow Via Nassa - home of big-name designer boutiques - heads southwest to the medieval church of Santa Maria degli Angioli, containing a stunning wall-sized fresco of the Crucifixion. A little further south is the Museo d'Arte Moderna, Riva Caccia 5 (Tues-Sun 9am-7pm; entry varies), with world-class exhibitions; and a little further still is the modestly named district of Paradiso, from where a funicular rises to San Salvatore, a rugged rock pinnacle offering fine views of the lake and surrounding countryside. The best of the lake is behind (south of) San Salvatore on the Ceresio peninsula, accessed by boats or postbuses. Here you'll find tiny Montagnola, where the writer Hermann Hesse lived for 43 years; his first house, Casa Camuzzi, is now a small museum (March-Oct Tues-Sun 10am-12.30pm & 2-6.30pm; Nov-Feb Sat & Sun same hours; Fr.6), with an excellent 45-minute English film on Hesse's life in Ticino. Jewel of the lake is Morcote on the gorgeous southern tip of the peninsula; tranquil stepped lanes lead up to its photogenic church of Santa Maria del Sasso, and several walks explore the lush woodlands, including a trail back to San Salvatore (2hr 30min).

Lugano's train station overlooks the town from the west, linked to the centre by a short funicular or by steps down to Via Cattedrale. The tourist office is in Palazzo Civico, off Riforma (Mon-Fri 9am-5.30/6.30pm; April-Oct also Sat 9am-12.30pm & 1.30-5pm, Sun 10am-3pm; tel 091 913 32 32, www.lugano-tourism.ch); boats around the lake (IR & ER no discount, SP free) depart from directly opposite. An excellent HI hostel (with swimming pool) is at Via Cantonale 13, Savosa (tel 091 966 27 28, www.youthhostel.ch; dorms Fr.31, rooms £20-30/$32-48 (€29-44); March-Nov; bus #5 to Crocifisso from the stop 200m left out of the train station). There's another HI hostel in Figino village nearby (tel 091 995 11 51; dorms Fr.27, rooms £20-30/$32-48 (€29-44); March-Oct; postbus from tourist office to Casoro). The SB Montarina is behind the station, Via Montarina 1 (tel 091 966 72 72, www.montarina.ch; dorms Fr.25, rooms £30-40/$48-64 [€44-58]). La Piodella (tel 091 994 77 88) is one of several lakeside campsites in Agno, a short train-ride west. For eating, central Piazza Cioccaro is home to a big Manora and Sayonara serving inexpensive staples; La Tinèra, off Via dei Gorini, behind Riforma, has tasty Ticinese chicken stews. The many cafés around Riforma are packed with evening drinkers, while in the warren of the Quartiere Maghetti nearby is Etnic, with Mediterranean-style food, beer, cocktails and a cosy studentish atmosphere. From Lugano, the Palm Express bus (www.postbus.ch) runs daily on a lovely route up to St Moritz.