Lugano is Switzerland's third-largest city and the largest in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, situated on Lake Lugano just 30 km from the Italian border. The people speak Italian, dress Italian, and eat Italian — in many ways it feels like you've already crossed into Italy, except the trains run on time and the streets are spotless.
The city wraps around the northern end of the lake, with the Monte Brè and Monte San Salvatore cable cars offering excellent panoramas from the surrounding hills. The Piazza della Riforma in the city centre is an attractive arcaded square lined with cafes, and the lakeside promenade is particularly pleasant in spring and summer when it's lined with flowering plants. The Villa Favorita gardens and the Cantonal Art Museum (MASI) are the main cultural attractions.
Day trips are easy and excellent: to Lugano for the weekly market, to Gandria (a tiny fishing village accessible by boat), and across the border to the Italian lake towns of Como and Locarno. Switzerland's most interesting medieval town, Bellinzona, with its three UNESCO-listed castles, is just 25 km north. Lugano hosts various music and film festivals through the year, including one of Switzerland's largest jazz festivals in the summer.