Campione d'Italia

The Casinò di Campione is one of Italy's oldest Casinos, as well as Europe’s largest casino and the largest employer in the municipality of Campione d'Italia, an Italian exclave within Switzerland's Canton of Ticino, on the shores of Lake Lugano. The casino was founded in 1917 as a site to gather information from foreign diplomats during the First World War. It was owned by the Italian government, and operated by the municipality. The income from the casino was sufficient for the operation of Campione without the imposition of taxes, or obtaining of other revenue.The casino was declared bankrupt on 27 July 2018 and as of January 2019 it was closed; on 26 January 2022 it was reopened after three years of inactivity.

The Sottoceneri ('Under the Ceneri'; Ticinese: Sotascender) is the part of the Swiss canton of Ticino that lies to the south of the Monte Ceneri Pass through the Lugano Prealps. It includes the Swiss shore of Lake Lugano, and the cities and towns of Lugano, Mendrisio and Chiasso.The Sottoceneri is not a half-canton with formally defined boundaries, but roughly maps to the districts of Lugano and Mendrisio. The remainder of the canton is described as the Sopraceneri ('Above the Ceneri'), and includes the valley of the Ticino river and the towns of Bellinzona, Biasca, Riviera and Locarno.Whilst the Sottoceneri comprises 432 square kilometres (167 sq mi), or only about 15% of the land area of the canton, it contains 189,123 people, or 57% of the cantonal population (2008). It is therefore characterised by a markedly higher population density and level of economic activity, when compared to the Sopraceneri.

Lake Lugano (Italian: Lago di Lugano or Ceresio, from Latin: Ceresius lacus; Lombard: Lagh de Lugan) is a glacial lake which is situated on the border between southern Switzerland and northern Italy. The lake, named after the city of Lugano, is situated between Lake Como and Lago Maggiore. It was cited for the first time by Gregory of Tours in 590 with the name Ceresio, a name which is said to have derived from the Latin word cerasus, meaning cherry, and refers to the abundance of cherry trees which at one time adorned the shores of the lake. The lake appears in documents in 804 under the name Laco Luanasco. There are various mountains and tourist destinations on the shores of the lake including Monte Brè to the east, Monte San Salvatore west of Lugano, and Monte Generoso on the south-eastern shore. The World Heritage Site Monte San Giorgio is situated south of the lake. Also located to the south is the Cinque Vette Park. The lake is drained by the Tresa, which empties into Lake Maggiore, the latter being drained by the Ticino and the Po.

Arogno is a municipality in the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino, located south of Lake Lugano in the southernmost tip of Switzerland.

Bissone is a municipality in the district of Lugano, in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.

The Melide causeway crosses across Lake Lugano in the Swiss canton of Ticino, connecting the communities of Melide and Bissone, and provides the only domestic land connection between the southern section of Ticino, around Mendrisio and Chiasso, and the rest of Switzerland.Today the causeway carries the Gotthard railway, the A2 motorway, and a main road. A bridge within the causeway permits water flow and navigation between the two halves of Lake Lugano. The causeway makes use of a submerged glacial moraine, which stretches across the lake reducing its depth to around 10 metres (33 ft), as opposed to the lake's maximum depth of 288 metres (945 ft).The causeway was designed by Pasquale Lucchini, a self-taught Ticinese civil engineer, who arranged for large quantities of rock to be dumped on top of the moraine to create the causeway. The causeway was built between 1841 and 1847, and opened for road traffic in 1848. The railway was added to the causeway in 1872, and the motorway in 1980.

Capo San Martino is a locality in the municipality of Lugano, Switzerland, situated on the eastern side of Monte San Salvatore, along the cantonal road that connects Lugano with Melide. As the name suggests, Capo San Martino ("Cape of Saint Martin") is a natural cliff overlooking Lake Lugano. Historically, the locality of Capo San Martino was also known as Forca di San Martino ("Saint Martin's Gallows"), because capital punishments by hanging were executed there. The last hanging took place in 1804.Until 1861, Capo San Martino was in Italian territory, as it belonged to Campione d'Italia. In 1863, Capo San Martino became a hamlet of Pazzallo, then still an independent municipality in the district of Lugano.During the 19th century, a lime furnace operated from Capo San Martino, along the lake shore. This furnace was just one among several others in Caslano, Melide, Castagnola, Pazzallo, Cimadera, and Melano, which exploited the abundant deposits of limestone of the Sottoceneri region for the production of lime.

Melide railway station (Italian: Stazione di Melide) is a railway station in the Swiss canton of Ticino and the municipality of Melide. The station is on the Swiss Federal Railways Gotthard railway, between Lugano and Chiasso. It is situated immediately to the west of the Melide causeway, which carries the railway, along with several roads, across Lake Lugano.

Caprino is a village on the southern shore of Lake Lugano in the Swiss canton of Ticino, to the east of the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia and below the summit of Sighignola. Some 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) east of Caprino village is Cantine di Caprino, a smaller settlement. Politically both form part of the Castagnola-Cassarate quarter of the city of Lugano, although until 1972 Castagnola-Cassarate was an independent municipality under the name Castagnola.Caprino has no direct road connection with rest of the city of Lugano, or indeed the bulk of its quarter of Castagnola-Cassarate, which lie on the other side of Lake Lugano. An indirect road connection can be made via Arogno, Maroggia and the Melide causeway, but by this route Castagnola is some 21 kilometres (13 mi) distant, compared to under 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) across the lake. Cantine di Caprino has no road access, although it is linked to Caprino village by a footpath.Boats of the Società Navigazione del Lago di Lugano (SNL) provide several crossings a day to central Lugano. Boats call at San Rocco landing stage in Caprino village and at Cantine di Caprino. Water taxis are also available.

The Monte San Salvatore (912 m) is a mountain in the Lepontine Alps above Lake Lugano and the city of Lugano in Switzerland. The Monte San Salvatore funicular links the city with the summit of the mountain. The village on top of its peaks, Carona, is a popular destination to enjoy views over Lake Lugano and to walk through the exotic plants and flowers of Parco San Grato.

Paradiso is a municipality in the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. It lies on the shore of Lake Lugano and, although administratively independent of the city of Lugano, it is surrounded on all other sides by that city.

Melide is a municipality in the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. The village lies very close to the mountain Monte San Salvatore and is directly on the Lake of Lugano. The Melide causeway to the east was built to make it possible to cross to Bissone and to allow a north-south highway to be built. Melide is known worldwide for the famous Swissminiatur, a museum that shows famous buildings in Switzerland presented in miniature form.