The Swiss Customs Museum, or Museo delle dogane, lies on the shore of Lake Lugano in an idyllic and quite symbolic location close to the border with Italy. There is a wonderful view of Monte Brè from the terrace.

Visitors to this former border guard post can learn all about the history of Swiss Customs – from the time of the founding of the Swiss Confederation to the present day. They are also shown how the duties and occupations within Customs have changed over the years. Combating the smuggling of goods, white-collar crime, trademark piracy and illegal migration, as well as drugs searches, precious metal control, species protection and protection of cultural property: visitors gain an insight into the multifaceted day-to-day work of border guards and customs agents.

The new special exhibition is dedicated to the topics of counterfeits and product piracy. It was realised in collaboration with STOP PIRACY, the Swiss anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy platform. The exhibition provides information about counterfeiting and piracy, and highlights how you can recognise counterfeits and why it pays to buy the original.