Switzerland · City break

Zurich City Guide

Metropolis and postcard at once. A medieval old town on both banks of the Limmat, the towers of Grossmünster and Fraumünster with Chagall's glowing windows, the elegant Bahnhofstrasse and, behind it, Lake Zurich with the Alps on the horizon. One ready-made day route from the main station takes you down to the water.

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Our walking tours of Zurich

Ready-made routes from the station guide you through Zurich, to the right spots from the very first step, with no planning needed.

Old Town, Limmat & Lake

From the elegant Bahnhofstrasse up to the peaceful Lindenhof with its old-town view, to St. Peter's church with Europe's largest church-tower clock face and into the Fraumünster for Chagall's glowing windows. Over the Münster bridge to the twin-towered Grossmünster, through the lanes of the Niederdorf to the Kunsthaus and down to Lake Zurich with its Alpine view.

Bahnhofstrasse. The walk begins at the main station and heads onto Bahnhofstrasse, one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world, a ruler-straight, car-free boulevard of department stores, watch and jewellery shops and the great banks at Paradeplatz, running straight down to the lake.
Lindenhof. Above the old town lies the Lindenhof, a shady square with old lime trees on the hill where the Romans and later an imperial palace once stood. From the parapet the view sweeps over the roofs of the Niederdorf, the Limmat and across to the towers of the Grossmünster. A calm lookout cherished by locals.
Schipfe. From the Lindenhof a stairway leads down to the Schipfe, one of Zurich's oldest artisan quarters right on the Limmat. In the narrow lanes of old guild and craftsmen's houses, silk weavers and tanners once worked; today small studios, workshops and cafés line the water. A quiet contrast to the busy old town.
St. Peter's Church. St. Peter's is Zurich's oldest parish church, and its tower holds a record, the largest church clock face in Europe, over eight metres across. For centuries the fire watchman sat here, scanning the city. The plain interior is worth a brief look.
Fraumünster. The Fraumünster, once a women's abbey, is today famous above all for one artwork, the five glowing choir windows Marc Chagall created in 1970 in his old age. In deep blue, red and green they tell biblical scenes and bathe the choir in a magical play of colour against the light. The walk's most striking moment.
Münster Bridge. The Münster bridge links the Fraumünster and Grossmünster across the Limmat and offers the walk's finest view, with the lake upstream, the old town downstream and the striking twin towers of the Grossmünster rising opposite. On the bridge stands the equestrian statue of Mayor Waldmann.
Grossmünster. The Grossmünster with its two characteristic towers is Zurich's landmark and the cradle of the German-Swiss Reformation. From here Huldrych Zwingli preached from 1519 and changed the country. The interior is austere and plain, with modern windows by Sigmar Polke adding accents. Climb the Karlsturm for a sweeping view of the old town.
Niederdorf. The Niederdorf, affectionately called "Dörfli" by locals, is the lively heart of the right-bank old town, a tangle of narrow, cobbled lanes full of boutiques, cafés, taverns and craft shops. By day for browsing, by night it turns into one of the city's going-out strips.
Kunsthaus Zürich. The Kunsthaus Zürich is one of Switzerland's most important art museums. From the Impressionists Monet and van Gogh through Munch, Picasso and classical Modernism to contemporary art, the collection spans wide, extended by the Chipperfield annexe opened in 2021. A rewarding stop for all art lovers. Closed on Mondays, though.
Bürkliplatz & Lake Zurich. At Bürkliplatz the Bahnhofstrasse ends and the view opens onto Lake Zurich, with a broad promenade, sailing boats, swans and, on clear days, the Alpine chain beyond. From the pier the ZSG scheduled boats set off on cruises across the lake. A lovely, relaxed way to let the day wind down. At weekends a flea market draws crowds here too.

Planning your visit

One day is enough. The route from the main station runs 3.5 kilometres down the Bahnhofstrasse, over the Lindenhof with its view of the old town, through the Schipfe to St Peter and the Fraumünster with its Chagall windows. Then come the Grossmünster, the Niederdorf and Lake Zurich. Zurich is expensive, but the water from the public fountains is drinkable and free. Seven evening tips are ready, plus the Uetliberg and the Rhine Falls for a second day.

Going out & nightlife

Rooftop bars

Clouds. At the very top of the Prime Tower, the city's tallest building, sits the bar and restaurant Clouds on the 35th floor. A panoramic view over Zurich, the lake and the Alps, best at sunset.

Nightlife quarters

Niederdorf. On the right bank of the Limmat winds the Niederdorf, the old town's pub and nightlife lane, with bars, wine taverns and small venues packed into medieval alleys, full of life at night.
Langstrasse (Kreis 4). The Langstrasse in Kreis 4 is Zurich's most colourful nightlife quarter, once rough, now hip. A dense mix of bars, clubs, street food and multicultural life that buzzes until morning.

Food & restaurants

Zeughauskeller. In the late-Gothic arsenal near Bahnhofstrasse, the Zeughauskeller has long served Zurich classics in generous portions, sausages, rösti and beer under historic beams. Rustic, central and popular with locals and visitors alike.
Kronenhalle. The legendary Kronenhalle at Bellevue is both institution and art collection. Originals by Chagall, Picasso and Miró hang on the walls, classic Swiss cuisine on the plates. An evening here is a piece of Zurich history.

Bars & clubs

Zürich-West (Kreis 5). The former industrial district of Zurich-West is now the city's club heart, with techno and hip-hop clubs like the Hive or the Supermarket, plus bars under the viaduct and in Frau Gerolds Garten. The place for long nights.

Stage & concerts

Opernhaus Zürich. The Opera House on Sechseläutenplatz ranks among Europe's leading opera stages, with opera, ballet and concerts at the highest level in a magnificent 1891 building right by the lake.

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Practical information for Zurich

Public transport

Operator. ZVV stands for Zürcher Verkehrsverbund and bundles fares, timetables and ticket sales for all bus, tram, S-Bahn and boat lines in Greater Zurich under a single joint brand. Travellers buy every ticket, no matter which route they're on, through the same channels, the ZVV ticket machines, the ZVV app, or the online ticket shop at zvv.ch. Phone customer service can be reached on 0800 988 988. Which individual company actually operates a given tram or bus route makes no difference to passengers, since the timetable, zone map and ticket price are uniform across the whole network.

Network. A very dense tram network plus S-Bahn, buses and boats on the lake.

Modes of transport. Tram · Bus · S-Bahn · Boat

Operating hours. Daytime service in Zurich starts early. The official ZVV stop timetables for the 2026 annual schedule show, at the Zürich, Central stop on weekdays, the first service of line 11 at 4.41 am, line 3 starting at 5.10 am, line 4 at 5.18 am. During the day, city routes mostly run every seven to ten minutes, in the evening every ten to fifteen minutes. Service thins out after 11 pm. The last services fall, depending on the route, between 12.27 am and 1.05 am, a little later on Fridays and Saturdays than on other days of the week. From Sunday to Thursday, service ends around 1 am, after which nothing runs until service starts again in the morning. On the nights before Saturday and Sunday, as well as before public holidays, night buses take over, running according to VBZ between 1.15 am and 4.15 am and starting from the main station roughly every half hour in most places.

Night service. From Friday into Saturday night and from Saturday into Sunday night, a dedicated night network takes over service from 1 am, with all night buses and night S-Bahns identifiable by the letter N. There is no separate night ticket, the regular ZVV single ticket, multi-ride card or day ticket remain valid unchanged.

Buying tickets. Single, multi-ride and day tickets are sold by the ZVV ticket machines at stops, the ZVV app, and the online ticket shop at zvv.ch. Printed multi-ride cards must be validated at the machine before travel, whereas app tickets and the digital check-in day ticket are valid immediately upon purchase. Group tickets for ten or more people run through a separate sales channel with a reduced fare.

App and payment. The check-in function in the ZVV app automatically calculates the correct fare for the whole journey, even outside the ZVV area, replacing manual zone selection. Accepted payment methods in the app are TWINT, Mastercard, Visa, American Express, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PostFinance Card, REKA money, and purchase on account via CembraPay.

Which ticket. For journeys within the city of Zurich, a ticket for one to two zones is enough, because zone 110 counts double in the fare calculation. A single ticket for this costs 4.70 CHF in 2nd class with 1 hour's validity, the 24-hour ticket for the same area 9.40 CHF, exactly the equivalent of two single rides. For very short distances within the short-hop zone there is a short-hop ticket for 2.80 CHF with 30 minutes' validity. Anyone travelling only from 9 am onward can use the 9-o'clock day pass for 28.00 CHF to travel through all of Switzerland's zones, and at weekends and on public holidays it is even valid all day with no time restriction. Children aged 6 to 15.99 and Half-Fare Travelcard holders pay half price for all of these tickets.

Fare zones. Zone 110 corresponds to the whole city of Zurich and counts double for fare calculation. A ticket for one to two zones is therefore enough for all journeys within the city limits.

Tip. The scheduled boats on Lake Zurich are part of the fare network and covered by an ordinary day ticket.

Getting there

Main station

Location. Switzerland's largest station, with several underground levels. Bahnhofstrasse starts right outside the exit.

Long-distance trains. Zürich HB is the central hub of Swiss long-distance rail. According to SBB network data, services from here include the IC 1 to Bern, Lausanne, Geneva and Genève-Aéroport, the IC 2 via Zug and Arth-Goldau to Bellinzona and Lugano, the IC 3 to Sargans, Landquart and Chur, the IC 5 to Olten, Biel and Lausanne as well as, in the other direction, to Winterthur, St. Gallen and Rorschach, plus the IC 8 to Bern, Thun, Visp and Brig, and the IC 81 to Interlaken. Regular IR routes run to Lucerne, Locarno, Constance, Basel and Schaffhausen. Internationally, EuroCity, ICE and TGV trains call at the main station. The EuroCity services continue over the Gotthard toward Milan, in the north an international route runs via Schaffhausen toward Stuttgart, and ICE and TGV run via Basel. All figures come from the official SBB long-distance network map, valid from 14 December 2025.

Opening hours. According to SBB, the station operates 365 days a year, from early morning to late evening. The website does not give exact times for the first and last trains.

Airports

ZRH

Into the city. Trains run every few minutes to the main station, around ten minutes.

Local quirks

Summer means swimming. The lido baths on the lake and the Limmat are public and cheap. The Oberer Letten river bath is the city's summer gathering spot.
The multi-ride card must be validated. According to ZVV, printed multi-ride cards for tram, bus and S-Bahn are only valid after being stamped at the machine at the stop. Anyone who fails to validate before travelling counts as a fare dodger during an inspection, even though the ticket has been paid for.
The 9 am pass is valid all day at weekends. According to ZVV, the cheap 9 o'clock day pass is only valid from 9 am onward on weekdays. On weekends and public holidays, the same pass is instead valid all day with no time restriction at all.

Good to know

Currency: CHF Fr.
Emergency number: 112
Plug type: J · C
Time zone: Europe/Zurich
Driving: right

Speed limits. built-up areas 50 km/h, outside towns 80 km/h, motorway 120 km/h

Motorways marked with blue signs have a 120 km/h limit, while expressways marked with green signs are limited to 100 km/h. Using motorways and expressways requires an annual vignette on the windscreen regardless of the distance driven, even for a single short trip.

Tipping. Service is included. Rounding up is customary, nothing more.

Tolls. Motorways require an annual vignette, digital or as a sticker. No shorter option exists.