Monte Brè in Lugano, Switzerland: Your Ultimate Travel Guide

Discover Lugano’s Monte Brè: An In-depth Guide

If you want to visit Monte Brè while you’re in Lugano, Switzerland, I’m here to answer all questions about this lovely little mountain in the Alpine foothills.

Known as the sunniest mountain in Switzerland, Monte Brè is one of two mountains flanking the lakeside town of Lugano in the Ticino region of Switzerland. Perhaps best known for its funicular, Monte Brè is an essential Lugano destination for hikers, art lovers, or those looking for Lugano’s best view.

This Monte Brè guide provides an introduction to the mountain and lays out the many different ways to reach the top of Monte Brè. (No, you don’t have to take a cable car if you don’t want!)

To help with planning and budgets, I’ve included the Monte Bre funicular schedule and rates. I’ve also shared popular Monte Brè hikes with their time estimates. 

I’ll introduce you to the village of Brè and help you settle the eternal Lugano visitor debate of  Monte Brè vs. San Salvatore.

To help you decide if you want to do the popular Lugano day trip hiking down Monte Brè to Gandria, you can read about my experience on the trail November 2023.  Spoiler alert: this fun Lugano excursion involving cable cars, medieval villages, lake views, mountain treks, and a Lake Lugano passenger ferry shouldn’t be missed!  

Read on to discover Monte Brè and learn why I fell in love with this mountain during my week in Milan and the Italian Lake District.

An Introduction to Monte Brè

Location: Sits at the eastern edge of Lugano, right on the shores of Lake Lugano in Switzerland’s
Ticino canton which borders northern Italy.
Claim to fame: Sunniest mountain in Switzerland; Best View in Lugano
Hikes: Several hiking options, including hiking down the mountain to Gandria, across the mountain range to the neighboring Monte Boglia and beyond, or down to the Pregassona quarter of Lugano.
Cost To Visit: Technically free. Funicular fares range from 16 – 35 CHF depending on which ticket you choose.
Height: 925 metres (3035 ft)
How To Get to the Top: Funicular in eastern Lugano (Castagnola), hike, drive. Public bus 12 goes as far as Bre village.
Mountain range: Lugano Prealps
Guided tours: Available, but in my opinion, not necessary.

My Must-Do Activities on Monte Brè

• Take the funicular from Cassarate to the summit
• Enjoy the panoramic overlook
• Hike down the mountain through Brè Village to Gandria
• Boat ride from Gandria to Lugano

Funicular

By far the most popular way to get to the top of Monte Brè is by cable car. You use two sections of funicular to ascend the mountain.

First Funicular Up Monte Brè – Cassrate to Suvigliana: This station – Cassarate – is located directly across from the Grand Hotel Villa Castagnola. This automated cable car runs every 15 minutes.

There’s no cost for the (less than) four-minute ride up to Via Ceresio di Suvigliana. Once you arrive at the top, cross the road and head into the Suvigliana station.

Second Funicular Up Monte Brè – Suvigliana to Monte Brè: This is where you’ll actually purchase your funicular tickets. This train runs every 30 minutes and takes about 10 minutes to reach the summit.

We took both sections since we were literally staying across the street from the Cassarate station. When we boarded the cable car at the Suvigliana, an American family sat below us and loudly talked about how they skipped the Cassarate section because it’s “just free public transportation.” Clearly, I’m still not over what a weird thing this was to say. (Americans, am I right?)

But yes, if you just want a very short, free funicular ride, you could just ride the Cassarate section up and down.

Monte Brè Funicular Schedule

Cassarate – Suvigliana: Runs on the quarter hour from 7:00 – 21:00 every day. Extended summer hours are 7:00 – 23:15.

Suvigliana – Monte Brè: Runs on the top and bottom of the hour every 30 minutes from 9:00 – 17:00 every day. Extended summer hours are 9:00 – 23:00.

Monte Brè Funicular Cost

All prices are CHF (Swiss Francs)

Bringing your dog with? If it’s a medium/large dog (I’m guessing this means it can’t/won’t sit in your lap) the charge is 8.50 one way; 13 for a return.

Techinically, the Ticino ticket (which is given to all Lugano hotel guests) should get you a 30% discount off your funicular fare. Either we forgot to mention it or if it didn’t apply since we were doing an already discounted combo fare. At rate, we definitely paid the listed price for our funicular/boat adventure.

Other Ways To Get Up Monte Bre

Car

If you have a car in Lugano you can absolutely drive to the top of Monte Brè. It’s about a 20-minute drive from eastern Lugano (Cassarate) to the viewpoint. This drive is rife with switchbacks and I would imagine not for the faint of heart!

Bus

If you prefer to put your life in someone else’s hands on the road up Monte Brè, you can always take the public bus. Lugano Bus 12 will get you as far up the mountain as the village of Brè. Lugano buses are free with the Ticino ticket.

Hike

And of course, there’s always your two feet. There are plenty of routes both up and down Monte Brè. We took it easy and walked down Monte Brè. However, given the state of our calves over the next few days, I’m not sure we got off that easy!

What’s At the Top of Monte Brè

As the sunniest mountain in Switzerland – probably because of Lugano’s subtropical climate – you’re almost always guaranteed a good view.

In addition to the vista, amenities near the Monte Brè funicular station include:

• Funicular station exhibits about the railway’s history. The first funicular track from Cassarate – Suvigliana dates back to 1908!
• A playground
• Two restaurants: Osteria Funicolare and Ristorante Vetta. (FYI: Everything I read before visiting Lugano indicated that both restaurants are rather lackluster. Only Osteria Funicolare was open when we visited in late November and we skipped it.) Still, I wouldn’t knock a summer aperitivo at one of these spots. 
• A boutique
• A small church, Maria Assunta

The View From the Top of Monte Brè

While you don’t get a 360-degree view from Monte Brè, it was instantly obvious why this is considered the best view of Lugano. You also get a stunning southerly view looking towards Milan and the Italian Lake District. To the north and west, you’ll spy the Swiss Alps, including Monte Rosa.

Points of interest you can see from the Monte Brè overlook include:
• Lugano and the villages of Melide and Paradiso
• Lake Lugano and the bridge across it
• Monte Rosa – a local in Como City told me this mountain gets its name because appears pink at sunrise
• Monte San Giorgio
• San Salvatore

The Village of Brè

About a kilometer down the mountain from the funicular station, you’ll find the village of Brè sitting at 798 metres.

Brè dates back to at least the 13th century, although until the early 20th century, the only way to access the small town was by mule! Despite being petite – the village is home to about 300 residents – depending on your interests, this medieval village might warrant a visit.

In particular, an art trail leads from the medieval church – Chiesa dei Santi Simone e Fedele – through town. Along the way, you’ll spy murals, sculptures, and other artwork by local artists. You can also visit the Wilhelm Schmid Museum in the Brè painter’s former home.

Since the dining near the funicular station is not particularly celebrated, you might prefer to stop in Brè for a bite to eat if you’re hiking down to Gandria. There are a couple restaurants in town, including the popular Grotto Castagneto.

Hiking on Monte Brè

Once you’re at the top of Monte Brè, you can take off on hikes in many different directions. All the hikes are clearly signed on yellow signposts with time estimates. As you walk along, watch for white and red striped painted markers on fences and posts that will make sure you stay on track.

Hiking destinations from the top of Monte Brè include:

The official Monte Bre website has full write-ups and maps of popular Monte Brè hiking and mountain biking routes. I really wished I’d discovered this while I was in Lugano, because the Cureggia hike in particular sounds charming! 

Our Monte Brè Hike – Monte Brè to Gandria and Lugano Day Trip

Our hike down Monte Brè was somewhat spontaneous. While we knew we wanted to do it, we weren’t sure how it worked logistically. When we asked the ticket attendant at the funicular station, he sold us the tickets and told us the walk would take about 1.5 hours. Other than that, we were flying blind! In hindsight, I would have packed a couple more snacks.

Happily, the hike down Monte Brè to Gandria is quite easy and forgiving, especially on a nice sunny day. It’s a pretty urban hike, mostly use sidewalks and paved paths. Near the mountain top, you’ll pass by people’s homes. For a moment, a cat joined us for a stroll before ducking back into his yard.

The path becomes much more wooded as you near the bottom. About 30 minutes out from Gandria, the trail narrows into a dirt path. Since we were hiking in late autumn, at times fallen leaves obscured the path and got a little slippery underfoot. But at all times, the path was well-worn and easy to follow.

Before we set out from the Monte Brè funicular station, I had my Gaia GPS app map out our route to Gandria. In the end we just followed the trail signs down the mountain. I’m not sure where my app wanted to take us, but we saved at least a kilometer of walking by following the trail signs instead of Gaia.

Along the way you’ll find a couple benches where you can take a breather or enjoy a snack. You’re also rewarded with several nice overlooks of Lake Lugano.

Once you reach the small village of Gandria, you continue to follow the white and red striped trail markers through the town. (You’ll see the markers painted on the sides of buildings.) Eventually, they’ll lead you straight to the boat dock where you can catch a ride back to Lugano.

What’s in Gandria?

Gandria is a small medieval city nestled right against the shores of Lake Lugano, about 3 kilometers outside of the eastern edges of Lugano. Home to just 200 residents, Gandria offers a handful of restaurants, inns, and the medieval church, Church of Saint Vigilio.

Located below the main road around Lake Lugano, the town is car-less. Instead of streets, there’s a network of stone stairways and alleys. We were completely alone as we made our way through the ancient town. The experience was slightly eerie, but mostly magical.

Returning to Lugano from Gandria

Once you reach Gandria, I think the clear winner for how to get back to Lugano is taking one of the passenger ferries operated by Lake Lugano Navigation Company. Since you can buy your boat ticket at the Suvigliana funicular station, all you have to do when you reach the dock is wait.

There’s a small restaurant and visitor information center right beside the dock. They also appeared to sell handicrafts from local residents. I definitely would have popped in side if they were open, but they were firmly closed during our off-season trip in late November. 

If you still have some hiking left in you, you can also return to Lugano via the Olive Tree Trail.

Otherwise, consider swinging into the Swiss Customs Museum on your way back. This small museum, also sometimes referred to as the “Smugglers’ Museum” is located directly across the lake from Gandria and accessed by the Cantine di Gandria boat stop.

While I expected to enjoy Monte Brè, I was surprised by just how much you can do on this Lugano mountain. From dining to art to hiking, visitors with all different interests and physical abilities should plan to experience Monte Brè when visiting Lugano.

I hope this post answered all your questions about how to visit and what to do on Monte Brè. If you’re still wondering about something, send me a quick message and I’ll add my answer to this post.