Alpine mountain coaster in Switzerland: Monte Tamaro

Riding the Coaster Bob at Monte Tamaro

The first time I came to Monte Tamaro it was a day trip with friends, many late summers ago, and it is still one of the most fun low-effort adventure days I have had in Switzerland. A cable car, a toboggan run through the trees, a lake, and a train home: not a complicated formula, and it works. Since that first visit I have returned to Ticino in every season, and I keep finding reasons to go back.

Ticino is the southernmost canton, Italian-speaking, and on the far side of the Alps from the German-speaking rest of the country. It is sunnier. The architecture leans Italian, the cooking is closer to northern Italy than to the Swiss classics, and Lugano and Locarno sit on palm-lined lakes that look more like the Riviera than the postcard idea of Switzerland. Monte Tamaro, a short hop from Lugano, is the easiest way to see what the region is about.

Why Ticino is worth a day of your Swiss trip

Most first itineraries run through Jungfrau, Interlaken, Lucerne and perhaps Titlis, and those places earned their fame. What they do not do is show you the other Switzerland: Italian in language and temperament, warmer in weather, and much less crowded with the same itinerary as everyone else.

This is the region I suggest to people who want something beautiful without the queues. Monte Tamaro is a good example of why. It is close to Lugano, simple to reach by train and cable car, and still fairly unknown outside Switzerland. If you have never heard of Ticino before, treat this as the introduction, and treat the mountain as the reason to add a day or two to your trip.

Getting to Rivera-Bironico

The cable car leaves from Rivera-Bironico, a short train ride south of Bellinzona and about 15 km from Lugano. From Lugano, Locarno or Bellinzona it is barely more than half a day out.

It also works from further north. I travelled from Basel. Rough travel times, each way:

• Lugano, Locarno or Bellinzona: 15 to 45 minutes, an easy half-day outing.
• Zurich: around 1 hour 50 minutes to 2 hours 20 minutes via the Gotthard Base Tunnel, comfortable as a day trip.
• Lucerne: around 1 hour 50 minutes on the direct InterCity or EuroCity route through the base tunnel. Do not use the scenic Gotthard Panorama Express for this: it takes about 5 hours 30 minutes one way and deserves a trip of its own.
• Basel: around 2 hours 45 minutes to 3 hours each way, so 5.5 to 6 hours of travel in total. This is the route I took. It works if you start early.

The Treno Gottardo is the train to know: hourly, and it links Basel, Lucerne and Zurich directly with Bellinzona and Locarno along the historic Gotthard line, which covers most of the starting points above on a single service.

The valley station is a short walk from Rivera-Bironico station. If you drive, there is a car park, reached from the A2 motorway at the Rivera exit.

The cable car up to Alpe Foppa

The ride takes about ten minutes and climbs to 1,530 metres. The cabin has panoramic windows, so the view starts immediately and does not stop: Bellinzona below, Lake Lugano opening out, and on a clear day Lake Maggiore in the distance.

At the top there is a small lake just below the restaurant terrace, which is the quietest place on the mountain and a good spot to sit for a few minutes before the activities begin.

Cable car fares are CHF 20.80 rather than CHF 26.00, or CHF 27.20 rather than CHF 34.00, depending on the ticket. Children pay CHF 10.40 rather than CHF 13.00, or CHF 13.60 rather than CHF 17.00.

A chapel by Mario Botta

Before the adrenaline, walk to the Chiesa di Santa Maria degli Angeli, the chapel designed by the Ticino architect Mario Botta, standing right at Alpe Foppa. It is a striking building and an unexpected one to find at the top of a cable car, and it makes a useful pause before the noise of the park.

Coaster Bob, the main event

This is what most people come up for, and it is as good as it looks. The numbers: 800 metres of track, 80 metres of descent, a top speed of 50 km/h, two-seater carts each with its own manual brake.

That brake is the point. You set your own pace, which makes the run feel closer to a toboggan than a roller coaster. Take the banked curves slowly if you like, or let it go and see what 50 km/h feels like with the Ticino pre-Alps spread out below. Photographs never manage to convey that part.

Children from three years old can ride. Under-eights must be with someone aged eight or over who is at least 1.35 m tall. Prices are CHF 5 for one run, CHF 22 for five and CHF 42 for ten. The cable car ticket to Alpe Foppa is separate and required.

Everything else at Alpe Foppa

The coaster is the headline, but the mountain has more than one way to spend an afternoon.

• Adventure park: treetop rope courses at several levels of difficulty.
• Zip line: a flying fox across the valley.
• Paragliding: tandem flights if you want the view from higher still.
• Hiking: the Monte Tamaro to Monte Lema traverse is the standout, about 5 hours 30 minutes one way, with Lake Lugano on one side and Lake Maggiore on the other. A shorter version, roughly two hours, goes up from Alpe Foppa and back. For a two-day trip there is a mountain hut on Monte Tamaro where you can stay the night.
• Mountain biking: 70 km of marked trails, with e-bike charging points at Alpe Foppa.

Splash and Spa, and a slow finish in Lugano

If you are with children, or simply want to end the day differently, Splash & Spa Tamaro is a full water park and spa at the valley station in Rivera, a short walk from the cable car and open every day of the year. Plenty of families we saw were clearly doing both in one day: the mountain in the morning, the water park afterwards.

Our own finish was Lugano, about 15 km away, for a walk along the lake and an ice cream. After a day of brakes and curves it is the right way to end things.

The practical part: trains, tickets and timing

Swiss rail discounts are worth ten minutes of planning.

SBB Sparbillett (saver ticket): up to 50% off regular point-to-point fares, available from six months before travel until the day before departure. The quota is limited, so early booking gets the best price, and the ticket is tied to a specific train, meaning you cannot change your connection once it is booked. Check sbb.ch.

SBB Spartageskarte (saver day pass): if you are combining stops in one day, perhaps Bellinzona in the morning and the mountain in the afternoon, this can cost less than separate tickets. In 2026 prices start at CHF 29 with a Half Fare Card (Halbtax) or CHF 52 without, for unlimited travel across the whole GA network area, including trains, buses, trams and boats, for the day. Interdiscount and Coop sometimes sell CHF 49 day tickets; these appear only a couple of times a year, but are worth watching for.

RailAway: if you hold a Sparbillett you may also qualify for up to 50% off leisure attractions, so check before buying separate cable car tickets.

Ticino Ticket: if you stay overnight in the region, ask your accommodation about it. It gives discounted entry to Monte Tamaro and other attractions nearby.

Opening hours in 2026: low season, 1 April to 30 June and 1 September to 8 November, 08:30 to 17:00. High season, 1 July to 31 August, 08:30 to 18:00. New for 2026 are winter openings on weekends and during school holidays, in late December to early January and mid to late February.

One last thing, and it matters: check the cable car's current status on montetamaro.ch on the morning of your visit. Weather and maintenance decide more than any timetable.