Easy Walk through the Vineyards above the Magadino Plain near Locarno

Saturday November 22, 2025 -- A cold front has hit Switzerland with temperatures of up to -20 degrees in some parts, and surely quite cold in the mountains, plus not a lot of sunshine on the weekend. But once again in the south we could expect sunshine and temperatures of up to 9 degrees, so even though it is getting harder to find new hiking trails (without a lot of shade), we headed down there anyway. 

Because we are centrally located, we can be down in the sunshine in less than two hours and so it's no loss to us to head down for a few hours. Our planned hike was on the sunny side of the Magadino Plain on the vineyard trail (Via delle Vigne), along the mountain flank east of Locarno where we have actually been three times before, but were able to find another parallel path which we hadn't done before. There are always lots of interesting houses and structures to admire, great views of the flat Ticino River Basin, Lago Maggiore and the surrounding mountains, and the always interesting juxtaposition of palm trees and snow-capped mountains.

Even though there was a wind blowing, it was not really cold, (although I did put on my gloves a few times) and we had lots of sunshine. It was a pleasant stroll, 2½ hours (not counting breaks), and not at all strenuous.We started shortly before 11 a.m. in Gudo, and caught the 14:55 train in Riazzino. Back home in less than two hours. 

We started our hike at 10:50 (after a trip of just over two hours to get here) at the bus stop next to the church in Gudo, which is about halfway between Bellinzona and Locarno along the Magadino Plain. 

Even though we had started here once before on a similar hike in November 2022, we still had another quick look inside the church in Gudo, before heading up the hill. 

Look at all the cacti on this property!

On the other side of the Magadino Plain we get a good look at Monte Tamaro with the communication tower (on the left) where we were on the summit in October 2014. In the center is Monte Gambarogno, and we had been on that peak as well, in December 2016. The ridge on the right is one we have not walked yet. 

Exactly three years ago (on November 20, 2022), we did a similar hike also starting here in Gudo and ending in Riazzino, but somewhat higher up. This time we tried to find trails and roads which we hadn't walked on before. This here was a new trail along a leaf-strewn path which we tried out this time, to get to the road higher up. There was a nice couple here at this superb location, and we spoke with them for a while. 

Here in the forest we ran across what used to be a community wash-basin. 

After a 20-minute walk up the hill from the main road in Gudo, we came to the paved road which we were going to follow for a short stretch. This trail is called "Via delle Vigne", or "Vineyard Trail". 

It was an 8-km walk we did about 100 meters higher than the level of the Ticino River. We started at about 11 a.m., and got to Riazzino train station at about 2:45 p.m. It was an easy walk along paved roads as well as forest and vineyard trails. 

There were quite a few Kaki (Persimmon) trees with unpicked fruit!

There was a wind blowing, but generally a nice day for this walk above the Magadino plain, with views of the Ticino River below and Lago Maggiore to the west. This trail is called the "Vineyard Trail". As this hillside receives lots of sunshine, it is ideal for growing grapes. There are lots of palm trees as well. 

Beautiful view eastward along the Magadino Plain. 

Here some nice soft forest trails. 

From here we headed up into a little hamlet called Cacima, where there are vacation houses to rent. (This is the website: https://tenutacasacima.com/)

Details of this little cluster of houses. 

It was very lovely here. 

Heading out of the little cluster of buildings. 

There are even some lovely pools and waterfalls here, where the guests from Tenuta Casa Cima can cool off in summer!

Now the trail heads down through the Tenuta Casa Cima Vineyards. 

Nice view toward Lake Maggiore. 

As it's now 11:50 (about an hour after starting on our hike), we figured this was a great place to stop for a lunch break. The owner of the property showed up and we chatted with him for a while. He was surprised to learn that we had lots of snow in the northern part of the country!

View from our lunch bench (Zoomed view of Lago Maggiore and the community of Brissago on its west side).

A look back at Cacima as we continue on our hike. 

So many pretty stone houses like this one. 

A painting on the wall on the subject of vineyards!

Now we are walking along roads where we have not walked before 

Up ahead, a little village called Malacarne. 

Still following the "Via delle Vigne" Vineyard Trail, we are headed toward Cugnasco. 

This is a hotel called B&B Brack in the hamlet of Al Bosco.

This beautiful house is for sale, but I could not find it on the Internet. I'm sure it costs over 2 million Francs!

A look behind us at another small village we passed through, called Al Bosco. 

That is a BEAUTIFUL palm tree!

It's nice that there is still some colour in the gardens!

All those stairs, stone walls, and palm trees!

We even passed by an old mill. 

Here we stopped for another break on a bench, to enjoy this view for a while. Below us is the town of Cugnasco, where we previously ended two other hikes we did along this hillside. (February 2018 and December 2018) 

Close-up view of the mountains to the east, which actually form the border with Italy. 

Down below us is one of two beautiful churches in Cugnasco. This one is called the Church of the Sacred Heart, which we have not visited yet, although we did end one of our hikes on the main road quite near to here. 

At 1:30 p.m. it was time to keep going. Behind Urs is the bench we sat on!

Enjoyable walk in the sunshine. 

Past the stone houses and palm trees, more of Lago Maggiore becomes visible. 

Very pretty. 

These are the best-looking banana trees we have yet encountered. 

The walls are magnificent. 

In the last village before our descent to Riazzino (Agarone/Piandèss) we ran into this slide which we had seen once before when passing through here on that November 2022 hike. (In fact, checking my map shows this is the fourth time we have walked through this hamlet, even starting a hike here once in June of 2020). We still wonder what the purpose of this slide is!

This is the closest we could find to a church in the little hamlet of Piandèss. 

Close-up view of the peaks of Mts. Camoghè and Gazzirola to the east (on the other side is Italy), and another persimmon tree. 

Making our way down now from Piandèss toward valley bottom. (It's now 2 p.m.)

A long and winding trail through the forest, lots of steps mostly of stones, and leaf-covered trail, so we had to descend carefully. 

Now at the valley bottom with a view up to the level of the villages where we had walked. It took us about 20 minutes. 

These cool flowers are apparently a type of chrysanthemum! (Called Kakinomoto). 

We still had to walk about a kilometer along the railway tracks to reach the station at Riazzino. This is the railway line between Bellinzona and Locarno, and many trains pass here (three in each direction every hour).

We got to the station about 15 minutes early for the 14:55 train back to Bellinzona. We were home 1¾ hours later.  

Heading back to Bellinzona by train, we get a good view of the villages along the Vineyard Trail where we just walked (for the fourth time!)

What our walk looks like on Google Satellite Maps, starting in Gudo and ending in Riazzino. 

This map shows the four different hikes we did along the Vineyard Trails through the little communities just above the valley floor. (Twice in 2018). Each time we tried to walk on roads we hadn't walked before. (The yellow trail on the left is the June 2020 hike we did to quite high on the mountain.)

As the train heads toward Bellinzona, we can see the villages which we have walked through several times now.

Back at Bellinzona train station, the peak of Pizzo di Claro looms large. The lone building on the hillside there is the Claro Monastery, the oldest monastery in Canton Ticino (founded in 1490). 

And this is what we returned to on the north side of the Gotthard Base Tunnel! (Lake Lauerz near Goldau). 

Lovely sunset along Lake Zug. 

Location of the Magadino Plain within Switzerland.