where to stay St. Gallen or Appenzel

I was in that part of Switzerland many decades ago. Both St. Gallen and Appenzell were nice, but I remember Appenzell as being smaller and more picturesque. At that time, the cows were taken through town on the way to graze in the summer; we woke up to the sound of cow bells. Things could have have changed greatly in the intervening years, though.

There's no need to rent a car, as Switzerland has an excellent public transportation system.

My suggestion would be to stay in Appenzell, as there are some nice hiking opportunities in that area. Appenzell is a beautiful smaller town with an interesting local culture.

You may find this interesting......

http://www.appenzell.ch/en/home.html

We have only past through St Gallen on the way to Appenzell. So I can only comment on Appenzell.
We enjoyed the quaint little town very much and used it as a gateway for hut to hut hiking in the region. Gastof Hotel Hof is a good place to stay and a short walk from the bahnhof.
The train is very convenient and renting a car is not necessary.

Liechenstein has little to offer other than saying you were there.
If you still want to hike after Zermatt, a great view of Liechenstein from high above is on the trail between Hoher Kasten to Stauberen.

Jay

I've quite enjoyed the town of Appenzell and surrounds on a couple of different visits. Hikers can also consider staying further up the mountain.

St. Gallen is an industrial town. Not like Detroit industrial but industrial for Switzerland. Appenzell is your destination.