Best Things To Do in Zurich

Have you booked a flight to Switzerland's financial capital? Well done! This corner of the Swiss Confederation is home to medieval buildings, large banks, historic chocolatiers and lush nature.

Read on to find out what to see and do in Zurich, Switzerland's most surprising city. You won't regret it!

The medieval heart of the city is called the Altstadt and is located in a privileged spot: it follows the last stretch of the Limago River until it flows into Lake Zurich. The most famous areas and monuments are concentrated in this area:

See the exhibitions at the Cabaret Voltaire

Did you know that Dadaism was born in Zurich? In 1916, when the First World War was raging, intellectuals and artists found refuge in the Swiss city.

Their meeting point was the Cabaret Voltaire, which inspired the birth of this movement that abhorred war and bourgeois society and exalted chaos, spontaneity and the irrational.

Today it is an exhibition space with an adjoining bar. On the official website you can find all the information you need to find out what's on offer at any given time.

Stroll through Lindenhof

The oldest part of the city. It was founded as a Celtic settlement, housed a fortress during Roman times and later became the official residence of Ludwig the Germanic, the grandson of the more famous Charlemagne. It is situated on an elevated site and from its streets you can see the river Limago and the old town.

Here you will find the town hall, two important churches - Peterskirche and Fraumünster, known for Chagall's stained glass windows - and the pedestrian area of Augustinergasse.

If you're looking for accommodation, this area is highly recommended and is also home to a number of restaurants for you to relax during your Zurich tours.

Enter Grossmünster

Above the rooftops of the city centre, an austere church juts into the sky. It is recognisable by the two parallel neo-Gothic towers that were added to the structure in the 18th century. It played a key role in both the construction of Swiss national identity and the Protestant Reformation.

If you want to visit it, you'll have to pay around CHF5 (just over 5 euros) and you can do so every day from 10am to 6pm (except for Sundays when the opening hours are 12.30pm to 6pm). Its main attractions are the Romanesque crypt, the stained glass windows and the bronze doors by Otto Münch.

This is the most important street in the city and is home to the most prestigious brand-name shops. It starts in front of the Hauptbahnhof (central station), crosses the beautiful Paradeplatz and ends at the lake shore. I advise you to take some time to look in the shop windows and buy some souvenirs of your holidays.

If you are travelling to Zurich with children (or you want to buy them a present), I recommend you to stop at Franz Carl Weber, one of the oldest toy shops in the world. Here you'll find tin soldiers, wooden horses, trains and more modern toys.

On a clear day, you can admire the best view of Zurich from the top of the Uetliberg. The mountain overlooks the city from a height of 871 metres and is easily accessible by train.

The S10 line connects the central station with the Uetliberg station. Once there, it is only a few minutes' walk to the lookout point.

Once in the area, there is one trail worth taking: the path of the planets. It can be done in about two hours, is suitable for the whole family and each stage is dedicated to a planet of the solar system. If you are staying in Zurich for 3 days, I recommend you dedicate one of them to this activity.

The Landesmuseum is Switzerland's national museum and documents the country's cultural history from prehistoric times to the present day. It is easily recognisable as it is housed in two very different buildings: a fairy-tale palace and a futuristic concrete structure.

The permanent exhibition on the first floor illustrates the history of Zurich and can be visited free of charge.

To access the rest of the collection, you have to pay about 10 Swiss francs (about €10). The museum is open from 10:00 to 17:00, except for Thursdays, when it closes at 19:00.

If you are interested, you can find all the necessary information on the museum's official website.

Zurich would not be the same without its mirror of water. While it was once crucial for trade with other Swiss regions, today it is a popular destination for outdoor activities, visiting the villages on its shores or just sunbathing - there are a thousand ways to experience it!

Rent a bike

For more experienced cyclists, there is a 90-kilometre route that starts in Zurich and ends in Rapperswil, a beautiful village in the canton of St Gallen. It's called Herzroute and is signposted Route 99. To rent a bike, I recommend Rent a Bike and Bcyclet.

Lie on the beaches

Switzerland is landlocked, but that doesn't mean it has given up beaches - far from it! In summer, the lake fills up with bathers who cool off while gazing at the Alps. In Zurich, it's worth visiting Mythenquai, the only lakeside with a paddleboard vending machine.

In addition to sand and grass, you'll find trampolines of various heights, ping-pong tables and a restaurant. This area is mostly frequented by families and can be reached by tram number 7 (to the Brunaustrasse stop). This is just one of more than 20 beaches in the city.

Taste the local wines

Although many people don't know it, Zurich is surrounded by wine estates. On the shores of the lake, grapes grow lushly and excellent bottles of Riesling, Pinot Noir and Räuschling are produced.

For a different kind of day out in nature, I recommend a visit to the Bachmann or Höcklistein wineries. Another great option is to take a tuk tuk tour that teaches you how to pair wine with Swiss chocolate.

Soar over the water in a hot air balloon

A unique way to admire the lake and surrounding scenery is a hot air balloon ride. The flights don't leave from Zurich, but from nearby, easily accessible locations, and the tour lasts about two hours.

Although from the air, this is perhaps the most entertaining type of excursion to discover Switzerland from Zurich. For more information on fares and details, you can take a look at the official website of the Swissraft agency.

It's certainly not the most famous cuisine on the old continent, but that doesn't mean it's not worth trying. In addition to excellent cheeses and chocolate, Swiss cuisine has a lot to offer:

• Birchermüesli, a rich yet healthy breakfast. It is a mixture of oat flakes, milk, yoghurt, almonds and fresh fruit. It was invented in the same city by nutritionist Max Oskar Bircher-Benner.
• Tirggel, a typical honey biscuit with ginger, aniseed, coriander and rose water. They are recognisable by their decorations, which often depict elements of Swiss culture or the city of Zurich.
• Malakoffs, a puff pastry-shaped cheese from the canton of Vaud. According to legend, they were first prepared for Swiss mercenary soldiers returning from the siege of Sevastopol in the 19th century.
• Röschti, a tasty omelette with coarsely grated potatoes browned in butter with bacon and onions. It's the classic Swiss breakfast, perfect for braving the winter temperatures. In Zurich, I recommend you try it at Johanniter (Niederdorfstrasse 70) and Zeughauskeller (Bahnhofstrasse 28A).
• Älplermagronen, macaroni au gratin with potatoes, cream, cheese and onions. Usually served with a side dish of stewed apples, bacon and fried onions.
• Raclette, Melted cheese served with 'Gschwellti' (boiled potatoes), pickled gherkins and mustard. The main cheeses used in the preparation of this recipe are Appenzeller, Gruyere and Emmentaler
• Wiedikerli, the local long sausages. If you are staying in a rented house, I recommend buying it at the historic butcher's shop Keller (Manessestrasse 88).
• Zopf, probably the most famous Swiss bread. It has a typical plait shape and a soft texture due to the mixture of butter and milk.
• Zürcher Geschnetzeltes, Zurich-style stew. Veal cut into strips and sprinkled with flour is cooked together with mushrooms, cream and white wine. The result is very tasty. Among the best restaurants in town are Kronenhalle (Rämistrasse 4) and Rosaly's (Freieckgasse 7).

The country's economic capital hides a trendy, alternative soul. From an unattractive industrial area, Zürich-West has become a magnet for designer boutiques, murals, urban gardens, original restaurants and even a container tower: the Freitag Tower.

Other points of interest include the Viadukt - a railway viaduct housing numerous shops - and the Markthalle, a covered market where farmers and livestock breeders offer their produce. Getting there from the centre is easy, just take tram line 4 and get off at the Schiffbau stop.

Switzerland and chocolate are an inseparable duo. But if the country owes part of its fame to cocoa production, much of the credit goes to Zurich. The famous Lindt brand was born in Zurich in 1899, when entrepreneurs Rudolf Sprüngli-Amman and Rodolphe Lindt joined forces to create the Lindt & Sprüngli company.

Lindt Home of Chocolate, a large museum dedicated to the Swiss brand, is located a few kilometres outside the city, in the village of Kilchberg. Without leaving Zurich, you can find the best chocolate at:

• Teuscher, famous for pralines and Champagne Truffes, a heart of whipped cream and Dom Pérignon wrapped in a dark chocolate ganache (Bahnhofstrasse 46).
• Vollenweider, known for its traditional recipes made according to a precise artisanal method (Theaterstrasse 1)
• Confiserie Honold, here you can not only taste truffles and chocolates, but also accompany them with something hot in the adjoining café. I also recommend you try the almond sweet Pain de Gênes (Rennweg 53).

The latest work by the Swiss-French architect is located on the shores of Lake Zurich. This glass and steel structure was created as an ideal exhibition space and vaguely resembles a boat. Work began in 1964 and was completed in 1967, three years after Le Corbusier's death.

It can be visited every day of the week from 12:00 to 18:00 (except Thursdays, when it is open from 12:00 to 20:00). Tickets cost approximately 12 Swiss francs. To find out which exhibitions are housed inside, I recommend you check the official website.

As well as a beautiful lake, Switzerland's economic capital is surrounded by mountains. An organised excursion to the Alps from Zurich is the best way to enjoy the alpine scenery without sacrificing the comfort of a train journey.

From Zurich, the most popular tours take you to these destinations:

• Jungfraujoch, a mountain pass where Europe's highest railway station is located (3,454 metres above sea level). There is also a viewing terrace with views of the nearby mountain range and the Aletsch glacier.
• Bernese villages, picture-postcard scenery with green meadows, grazing cows and stone and wooden cottages in the shade of high peaks. You'll take the famous Wengernalp cog railway.

Most of these routes also include a bus ride. For more information, read our post on the best scenic trains from Zurich.

Besides the famous Alps, another amazing place you should also visit on your trip to Zurich is the Rhine Falls, the largest waterfalls in Europe. At over 23 metres high and 150 metres wide, this natural treasure is a true spectacle for the senses and is located just 50 kilometres from the Swiss capital.

The best thing to do is to take an organised tour, some of which combine the route with a visit to the Black Forest or the medieval town of Schaffhausen. In any case, if you are interested in finding out more about a trip to this place, here is our post on how to visit Rhine Falls from Zurich.

Zurich's climate is continental-alpine: it is characterised by cold winters and mild summers, while the seasons in between tend to be quite unstable. If you're looking for good weather and are interested in outdoor activities, I recommend visiting Zurich in summer.

Not only will you be able to enjoy the beaches and explore the city more freely, but you'll also be able to attend major events. In June there's the Blues 'n Jazz festival while in August there's the Street Parade, the world's biggest techno party.

Is it worth going to Zurich in winter?

It depends on your tastes and hobbies, but one thing is certain: during the Christmas season the weather is unbeatable. Snow blankets the city in a thin layer of white and locals flock to the cafés for a cup of hot chocolate (heisse schoggi in Swiss German).

The classic Christmas markets with mulled wine, handicrafts and regional food are not to be missed either. You'll find them at the central station (Christkindlimarkt), on Sechseläutenplatz just in front of the Opera House (Wienachtsdorf) and in the Old Town (Münsterhof, Dörfli and Werdmühleplatz).

Are you a winter sports enthusiast? Then Zurich is the ideal destination for you. The following ski resorts are less than two hours away by public transport:

• Flumserberg, 65 kilometres of slopes with extraordinary panoramic views of the Churfirsten and Spitzmeilen mountain ranges. From Zurich, simply take the S2 train and get off at Unterterzen. Once there, simply take the cable car to
• Mythen, the destination for all tastes. In addition to alpine and cross-country skiing, you can rent a sledge, go snowshoeing or simply sunbathe on a sun lounger. To get there, take the IR46 to Schwyz and then take the 503 bus from Schwyz Bahnhof (a two-minute walk from the station) to Rickenbachstrasse 163, where you'll find the funicular railway
• Sattel-Hochstuckli, the ski resort for the whole family. In this case, it is best to rent a car. The journey takes about 45 minutes.

For more ideas, I recommend reading the post listing the top 10 things to do in Zurich in winter.