The tiny European country with no airport and overflowing with millionaires

Tucked away in the Central European Alps lies one of the continent's - and the world’s - smallest countries, sandwiched between Austria to the east and north and Switzerland to the west and south. It is known as a doubly landlocked country - a nation that is surrounded by other landlocked countries and requires travelling through at least two countries to reach the sea.

It is also what’s known as a microstate, defined as a sovereign state having a very small population or land area, usually both. But thanks to its small size, it has earned an impressive title as one of the world’s richest nations and is still ruled by a monarch who is one of Europe’s wealthiest men. In 2020, it had the highest millionaire households per capita in the world.

As Europe's fourth-smallest country, Liechtenstein spans just over 62 square miles and is home to a population of 40,023, making it the sixth-smallest nation globally.

The semi-constitutional monarchy of Liechtenstein is headed by the Prince of the House of Liechtenstein, currently under the leadership of Hans-Adam II. As of March 2025, his net worth was estimated by Bloomberg Billionaires Index around £7.9billion, making him the 277th richest person on earth.

Liechtenstein is also one of the very few countries worldwide without debt. It was once known as a billionaire tax haven, culminating in a tax affair in 2008, but the principality has since made significant efforts to free itself of this reputation.

In 2020, Liechtenstein was the country with the highest millionaire households per capita - known as millionaire density - where 19% of households are millionaires. Switzerland ranked second with 15%, followed by Bahrain with 13% and Qatar with 12.7%.

Being an Alpine country, Liechtenstein's mountainous terrain makes it a popular destination for winter sports, such as the Malbun resort.

However, due to this mountainous terrain, there is not much space to build an air hub. As such, it is one of few countries in the world to not have an airport.

The nearest airport for Liechtenstein residents is Altenrhein Airport in the canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland, which is about half an hour away by car. If you wish to fly from Zurich Airport, it takes just under an hour and a half by car from the capital city of Vaduz.

It also has a lack of train stations and, clearly, ports. The best rail access is via the Swiss border stations at Buchs or Sargans, or via the Austrian station at Feldkirch. All are well served by express trains and connected with Vaduz via bus.

Nevertheless, Liechtenstein is not completely cut off from air transport - there is a privately operated helicopter airfield in Balzers.

Liechtenstein is a member of the United Nations but is not a member state of the European Union. Nevertheless, it participates in both the Schengen Area and the European Economic Area. It has a customs union and a monetary union with Switzerland, with its usage of the Swiss franc.

Politically, a constitutional referendum in 2003 granted the monarch greater powers, after he threatened to leave the country should the referendum fail. Over 64% voted in favour of the “Princely Initiative”. The BBC stated that the referendum in effect made Liechtenstein an “absolute monarchy”.