On foot · Bellinzona, Ticino · September 2026
Bellinzona, the three-castle loop
Day one in the Grisons, and love at first sight: the Jeep stays below and we climb on foot from one fortress to the next, from Castelgrande to Sasso Corbaro, before a well-earned spritz on the square.
- Date
- September 2026
- Castles
- Castelgrande · Montebello · Sasso Corbaro
- Heritage
- UNESCO World Heritage
The route · indicative
Castelgrande and Montebello
Ramparts above the town
Bellinzona has guarded the way to the Gotthard since the Middle Ages, and its three castles are on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Castelgrande sits on its rock in the heart of town; you admire it from the ramparts of Montebello, which tumble down towards the old town.
In between, cobbled lanes and crenellated walls trace the walk. Every battlement is a window onto the rooftops and the valley.
Sasso Corbaro
The highest of the three
The climb continues through meadows and vineyards to Sasso Corbaro, perched at the very top above the forest. From there the view takes in Montebello, Castelgrande and the whole Ticino plain.
A few short-haired sheep graze below the walls. A fair amount of climbing, three legendary fortresses, and the spritz on the old-town square, in the shade of the arcades, tastes all the better.
