Zurich

Eco-friendly travel guide to Zurich advises how to be a responsible tourist. Learn how to explore the attractions in a sustainable way and how to respect the local people and culture. Make your trip green by supporting locally owned hotels, organic restaurants and other businesses. Read more on how to protect the environment by making conscientious choices and how to travel green in Zurich, Switzerland.

Zurich Skyline

Air quality: 3.8 / 5

Exploring by foot: 3.0 / 5

Exploring by bicycle: 3.8 / 5

Public transportation: 4.0 / 5

Parks: 3.6 / 5

Outdoor activities: 3.6 / 5

Locals' English level: 3.5 / 5

Safety: 4.0 / 5

Accommodation: US$50 - $250

Budget per day: US$80 - $300

Responsible Travel

When we travel to a new place, it becomes our responsibility to behave according to what the place demands. We must be respectful of the people, their culture, and their heritage. We must try our best to boost local businesses by shopping or buying things from them. All these factors are critical for traveling to a new place because even though we are just on vacation, our spendings help a lot of people pay for their bills. On the other hand, how we behave creates an impression of how the people of our country are Because when we travel to a foreign land, we are not just representing ourselves but our people too.

Air Quality and Pollution

Zurich’s air quality can fall anywhere between moderate to Good. On most days, the air quality is actually good, and the pollution levels are a bare minimum.

Respect the Culture

Whenever we visit a new place, whether it be for a vacation or living, we are supposed to follow the culture, the dos and don’ts, and rules. The same goes for Zurich. When we visit Zurich, we must be aware of the local customs and how the locals behave. This is extremely important because unless we know how to behave in a foreign land, we might very well offend the locals by mistake by our actions. If we expect our tourists to behave in a particular way, we must do the same as tourists in other countries.

Now when it comes to Zurich, we must keep the following cultural rules in mind:

Greetings: The Swiss culture has been heavily affected by German, Italian and French cultures. So the Swiss culture is like something in between the cole Germans and the affectionate Italians. So when you are meeting someone for the first time, a firm handshake is excellent, but make sure you maintain eye contact while doing so. Breaking eye contact is considered to be rude. If you’re meeting someone you’ve met before, you can greet them by giving three kisses on the cheeks. When you’re meeting someone for the first time, it’s always nice to address them by their family name along with a formal pronoun.

Street behavior: You shouldn’t harm or disturb anyone in public.

Don’t litter: It is a punishable act by the Law if you litter the streets by throwing garbage. There are multiple garbage cans available which you can use for throwing garbage.

Respect older people: Elderly people are highly respected in swiss society. Hence we must respect them too. You should always offer your seat to an elderly person if the need arises.

Chewing gum: Do not chew gum in public because it is considered rude.

Be quiet: Swiss people absolutely do not like people who make a lot of fuss or noise. So when you are on a mode of public transport or in public, stay as quiet as you can.

Making appointments: It is imperative to make appointments before meeting anyone in Zurich. No one will meet you without appointments in Zurich. Specifically in the business area.

Punctuality: punctuality is essential in Zurich. People do not like it if you are late. If required, go 5 mins earlier than being late. If you can’t make it, make sure to call early and cancel the meeting properly.

Dress Code: You must follow the proper dress code as required in Zurich. If you are going to a meeting, you must wear formal business clothes.

Conversation topics: If you are talking to a local, you can talk about many things like food, politics, sports, etc. But you must at all costs avoid topics like the swiss military, swiss neutrality, and any personal questions.

Bringing a gift: When you visit someone’s home, you must bring a gift. It doesn’t need to be expensive, but you must bring something.

Following these rules will make sure that your vacation in Zurich is smooth and without any issues.

Top 10 Places to Visit

Zurich is Switzerland’s largest city and is also considered one of Europe’s most important cities. Both financially and industrially. Being Switzerland’s cultural and economic hub, it is quite a given that it attracts many tourists. Of course, there are many monuments, Museums as well for people to visit. There is even an old town which is filled with Renaissance and medieval buildings. Apart from these, there are a lot of must-visit places in Zurich. Let us take a closer look:

Old Town: As mentioned Before, Zurich is a modern city that is nothing short of a powerhouse but in the middle of this city's financial powerhouse is a small neighborhood filled with historic charm. You’ll find 17th-century ornament ironwork and 13th-century Grimmenturm. There are many things to observe and to breathe in this town. There are also shops where you can buy mementos and cafes where you can grab a bite.

Uetliberg: If you want to observe the city's best views and of course the lake, you must visit Uetliberg. It is located to the southwest of Zurich and is the highest point of the Albis Ridge, standing at 871 meters. You can easily reach this place via Uetlibergbahn, which is actually a mountain railroad that runs for the whole year to the upper station from the Selnau station. From there, the summit is just a 10-minute walk. You can walk through the broad walkway and reach the summit restaurant, a fully glass-enclosed area, and from there, you can see a magnificent sight of the city lights. From this place, you can take a ridge walk and reach Felsenegg, which takes about more than an hour. You can take a cableway from there and descend to Adliswil. You can then easily return to Zurich by the Sihltalbahn. This whole trip is one of the best things to do in the winters in Zurich.

Lake Zurich and Bürkliplatz: It is one of Zurich's most important spots and is also a beloved spot for locals and tourists alike. The shore of the entire lake is covered with parks, promenades where locals and tourists can jog, have a picnic, sunbathe, and even swim in the lake. But if you truly want to enjoy the lake, you must take a cruise in the lake. During the cruise, you’ll be blessed with beautiful views of the Glarus Alps. To connect Bürkliplatz with Bellevueplatz, a streamer landing at Bürkliplatz needs to be taken. If you travel for around 1.5 kilometers from Bellevueplatz, you will come across a beautiful park called Zürichhorn Park, built-in 1939 for the National Exhibition. In the park, you will find a Chinese garden and a restaurant. From May to October in Bürkliplatz, you will be greeted with a flea market, where around 500 vendors come. You will be able to buy a lot of things from here.

Kunsthaus Zürich (Museum of Fine Arts): It is considered Europe’s one of the best art museums. Anyone who is remotely interested in arts and is Visiting Zurich should not miss the chance to visit this Museum. The Zurich society of arts runs this Museum, and if traced back, the history of the Museum can be traced to a society of artists who were active in and around 1787. This Museum has a huge collection of art by various artists all over the world. This Museum has more paintings by Charles Munch than any other museum in Europe except Oslo. It has more works of Monet than any Museum outside of Paris. The Museum prides itself on showing the best quality of work by various artists all over the world. The Museum has a lot of art based on modern schools, post-impressionists, and impressionists. When it comes to impressionists it has work by Delacroix, Manet, Courbet and Corot. There is even a room full of characteristic dreamlike works of Marc Chagall. It also has artworks from world-famous artists like Cezanne and Van Gogh. Overall we can see that this Museum is a dream of art lovers. There isn’t an artist whose work you will not find in this Museum. The ground floor of the Museum also contains contemporary sculptures.

Bahnhofstrasse and the Bahnhof: This is Zurich's main street. The busy pedestrianized street, called Bahnhofstrasse, stretches from the main train station, called Bahnhof, to Bürkliplatz, located at the head of the lake. This 1200 meter street is home to Europe’s best fashion stores. You will find the whole street full of the most famous stores. Along with these, you will also see that there are Fountains, trees, and even various distinguished buildings. The middle part of the street was built in 1867 by filling in an old moat. The part of the street which is towards the lake and station were built after a few years. Now in the basement of the street, the Bahnhofstrasse 31, the Uhrenmuseum Beyer Zürich, contains a huge collection of clocks and watches. These clocks range from oil, sun, and water clocks to swiss clocks. These clocks have Nuremberg pendulums and wooden wheels. On the other hand, the Bahnhof, the train station, is also a huge tourist spot. There are various shops and cafes outside the station, and there is a huge mall underneath the station. Also, the largest Christmas market of Zurich is held under the Bahnhof.

Fraumünster: Fraumünster translates to Women’s Church, but the name is often mistranslated as Church of Our Lady. The Church is named after an Abbey, founded in 853 for the aristocratic Women of Europe by the then Emperor Ludwig, specifically for his daughter, Hildegard. Till the high middle ages, the person who was the head of the convent was also the governor of the city. The Church has a pillared Basilica and is three-aisled. It also has a Gothic Nave which was built from the 13th to the 15th century. It doesn’t end there; the Church also has an early Gothic Transept and a Romanesque Chancel. If you look at the undercroft, you will find the remains of the 9th century Abbey Church’s crypt. It must be noted that the Church itself is magnificent but what makes the tourists visit the Church over and over again is the five stained glass windows that Marc Chagall created in the Chancel in 1970. The colored windows from Right to Left show Moses, the end of the world being trumpeted by an Angel, various scenes of Christ’s life, Jacob, and finally Elijah’s ascent to heaven. Marc Chagall's work that can be found in the Church is The rosette in the southern Transept.

Lindenhof: located in between the left bank of Limmat and the Bahnhofstrasse, it is a tree-shaded park with lots of benches where Tourists and chess players come to relax and enjoy the beautiful view of the old town. It was previously a fortified settlement that the Romans built to protect themselves against the migrations from the North. After about 5 centuries, Charlemagne’s grandson built a palace on this spot as a royal residence. Soon all the structures in this place started disintegrating, but this place remained a crucial place. The oath regarding the Helvetic Constitution was taken here in 1798. So we can see that when it comes to important ceremonies, this place is important.

Zurich Zoo: It is one of the finest zoos in Europe. In this zoo, you will find that there are more than 360 different species of animals. This is a huge number considering it is a zoo. That is why tourists from all over the world who love Animals make sure to visit this zoo. The best part about this zoo is that Animals are made sure to be kept as close to their natural habitat as possible. For example, snow leopards are kept in a Rocky Himalayan landscape; you will find penguins swimming in chilly cold water. You will also notice flying foxes in a 13,000 square meter tropical rainforest. There is also an elephant park inside the zoo called the Kaeng Krachan Elephant Park. If you visit this park, you will see Elephants playing with their babies and swimming around. The whole park is designed like a multi-environment Thai outdoor complex which they created to resemble their Thai natural habitat. There are trams and train services available which will take you directly to the zoo.

St. Peter’s Church: St. Peter’s Church is located in the Old Town, which is the south of Lindenhof. If you enter the town, you’ll notice that the Church is sitting on top of a small hill. It is the oldest parish church in Zurich. If you look carefully, you will notice that underneath the Chancel, the original 9th Century foundation lies. Inside, you will notice that there is a 13th-century Romanesque choir under the tower and that there is a Baroque Nave with three aisles. There are also galleries. The Church actually holds a record. It has the largest clock dial in Europe, which is 8.7 meters in diameter. The Church is quite famous in Switzerland, and not only tourists but locals also visit daily.

Bellerive Museum: It is considered Switzerland’s one of the most important Museums of applied arts. This is because it has an astounding collection. The collection is also very diverse. If you visit this Museum, you will notice diverse exhibitions on display that explore various themes and topics. This topic lies anywhere between design and art and also covers various historical periods. The Museum specifically covers art from the Art Nouveau era, of which they have precious ceramic art pieces. Other art pieces like textiles, marionettes, and modern ceramics, which 20th-century artists created. Also, the diverse collection of the Museum has 200 different musical instruments.

The northern part of Albis (ending in Üetliberg) above a sea of clouds, as seen from Felsenegg

Explore

Zurich is a city which is modern by every standard but at the same time retains its historical charm and its culture. Even though it has all the modern facilities, modern buildings, and all the modern amenities, it also has a small town called the Old Town where you can experience this beautiful city's history. Basically, this is a city which keeps the balance of old and new very well. If you are to visit this place, you can be sure that you will get an experience that very few cities in the world will give you.

When it comes to exploring Zurich, this city's balance between the old and new, exploring this city is a joy. You can visit all the various old monuments and yet when you want to come back to the current century by visiting a modern place. Hence exploring Zürich is a joy, so let us see a few must-visit places:

Grossmünster

Fraumünster

Uetliberg

Bahnhofstrasse

Lake Zurich

Sechseläutenplatz

Lindenhof

The Old Town

Zürich-West

Polyterrasse

Fraumünster

City Parks

Like most cities in the world, there are many city parks here in Zurich as well. This is a very modern city, but the city makes sure that it keeps its past in touch with itself too; hence parks have been existing in this city for a long, long time. Locals, as well as tourists, visit these parks. Many old people come to have a walk or sit and relax and watch kids play. Kids visit these parks to play, and if you visit the parks in the evening, you will notice children of various ages playing football or some other sport. After a day of traveling around, tourists also visit these parks to rest and relax to energize themselves for the next day.

Now, if you are looking for parks that are best for visiting and relaxing, take a look at the following parks:

Botanical Garden (Botanischer Garten)

Chinese Garden Zurich

Platzspitz Park

MFO-Park

Werdinsel / Bad Au-Hongg

Old Botanical Garden

Belvoir Park

Irchel Park

Baeckeranlage

Rechberggarten

Pfingstweid Park

Josefswiese

Platzspitz Park

National Parks

There are a lot of city parks in Zurich, but there are not many National parks. There are a few National parks located in other parts of Switzerland, but unfortunately, Zurich doesn’t have any.

Beaches

Zurich not being a coastal city, you won’t find any beach on the banks of a sea or an ocean. However, there is a huge lake in Zurich which has a lot of banks. People visit there in their swimsuits and sit and relax. You will also find a lot of people swimming. If you want to go to these beaches, tourists are very well welcome. Just make sure you do not disturb the locals because it is being considered rude. Here are a few beaches you must visit in Zurich:

Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen

Strandbad Mythenquai

Saffa Insel

eine kleine Insel

Seebad Seeliken

Strandbad Seerose Bollinger & Rihm

Badi beim Bootssteg Kilchberg

Strandbad Hünenberg - Badi Beizli

Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen

Landmarks

A huge part of this city still embraces its history and culture. Hence there are various monuments and places that are very old and yet still intact. This city at the same time is also very modern, making sure that it is in touch with the world of the 21st century as well. As a result, many landmarks in this city vary from old monuments to newer modern landmarks. This city is a joy for Tourists because they will never get bored or run out of places to visit or things to do. Here are a few landmarks which you must visit:

Old Town

Bahnhofstrasse

Hauptbahnhof

Grossmunster

Niederdorf

Fraumunster Church

Limmatquai

Peter’s Church

Bellevue Square

Hallenstadion

Paradeplatz

Le Corbusier House

Seebad Utoquai

Stadion Letzigrund

FIFA Headquarters

Buerkliplatz

Prime Tower

Lake Zurich, Eastern Bank

Uetliberg Aussichtsturm

Platzspitz Park

Schanzengraben Canal

Cabaret Voltaire

Wasserkirche

Liebfrauenkirche

Town Hall (Rathaus)

Sechselautenplatz

Zunfthaus Zur Meisen

Friedhof Fluntern

Ulrich Zwingli Monument

Loorenkopf Aussichtsturm

Bahnhofstrasse

Museums

Zürich is a city, which is a crucial city for Switzerland and Europe. It is considered to be a cultural hub for both Switzerland and Europe. As a result, there are many museums in the city. These Museums have the best art collections in Europe due to which people from all over Europe come to visit these museums. These museums are hugely popular all over the world as well. Hence the following Museums must be visited by every tourist who comes to visit Zurich:

Museum of Art (Kunsthaus Zurich)

Museum Rietberg

Landesmuseum

FIFA World Football Museum

Beyer Clock and Watch Museum

Zoological Museum

Zürcher Spielzeugmuseum

Urania Observatory

Tram-Museum Zürich

Museum fur Gestaltung Zurich: Toni-Areal

Augusto Giacometti Entrance Hall

Zunfthaus Zur Meisen

KULTURAMA Museum des Menschen

ARTBOX.GALLERY

Museum für Gestaltung Zürich: AU60

Schweizer Finanzmuseum

Museum Bellerive

Helmhaus

Haus Zum Rech

Museum Haus Konstruktiv

Focus Terra

Museum Rietberg

Eat

When you visit a new place, you travel to various locations to experience the culture, heritage, and people of the place. But often, we miss the most important factor, which is required to truly know the essence of a place, which is the food. We often, as tourists, do because when we visit a new place, we travel to various locations and breathe in the place but then eat our comfort foods.

Today, almost every city in the world has multicuisine restaurants, which makes sure that we can get different kinds of foods. But if we are not experiencing the native cuisine, how are we experiencing these places' culture? The food which people of a particular region eat helps us understand their culture. So when it comes to Zurich, it is the same. It is a modern city, so sure you will get different types of food, but to truly experience the place, you must try the following foods:

Cheese fondue

Rösti

Raclette

Zurcher Geschnetzeltes

Bircherműesli

Zürcher Eintopf

Zuger Kirschtorte

Bündnerfleisch

Zopf

Bündner Gerstensuppe

Traditional Local Restaurants

When it comes to fully experience a place, having their native cuisine is important. But tourists often don’t know which restaurants are selling the native food of the place. In Zurich, multiple restaurants offer native Swiss cuisine. But as tourists, it can be challenging to know which sells the best native cuisine; hence we have compiled a list of restaurants from which you must eat if you are visiting Zurich. Take a look:

Bund 39 - Taste of Shanghai

La Fonte

Restaurant Weisses Rossli

TREMONDI Restaurant & Bar

Restaurant Nihao

Differente Hotel Krone Unterstrass

Vees Bistro - Thai Food

Haus Zum Rueden

Restaurant Krone

Restaurant O

Restaurant Khujug

Ristorante Da Angela

Vegetarian and Vegan

There are a lot of people in the world who eat vegetarian food. Zurich experiences a lot of tourists over the course of the year. As a result, multiple vegetarian restaurants serve 100% pure vegetarian food. Also, it goes without saying that many locals in the city eat vegetarian food, and Zurich is a modern city, making sure that it caters to people of different food choices. So if you are a vegetarian or if you want to eat vegetarian food, the following restaurants will not disappoint you:

Bund 39 - Taste of Shanghai

La Fonte

Haus Zum Rueden

Differente Hotel Krone Unterstrass

Pizzeria Azzurro

Restaurant Weisses Rossli

Vees Bistro - Thai Food

TREMONDI Restaurant & Bar

Restaurant Krone

Mesa

Marktkuche

Ristorante Da Angela

Didi’s Frieden

Restaurant O

La Pasta

Belvoirpark

Restaurant Zunfthaus zur Waag

Restaurant Nihao

Yamas

Hotel Restaurant Frohsinn

Tamarind Hill Indian Restaurant

Thach Restaurant

The whole world is slowly joining the Vegan Movement. It is an amazing movement that shows us that we don’t need meat or meat products to have a healthy diet. We can get everything we need from plant-based foods as well. Hence there are also many people and restaurants in the city of Zurich who have joined this movement. Hence a lot of vegan restaurants have now opened in Zurich, so let us take a quick look at them:

Tamarind Hill Indian Restaurant

Marktkuche

Hiltl

Restaurant Nihao

Restaurant Khujug

Haus Zum Rueden

Dapur, an Indonesian plant-based restaurant

Thach Restaurant

Tadka Indian Restaurant

La Pasta

Restaurant Weisses Rossli

Tibits

Hiltl Dachterrasse

La Fonte

Differente Hotel Krone Unterstrass

The Artisan Kitchen and Urban Garden

Street Food

We have mentioned before how important is eating the local cuisine of a place when experiencing the place’s culture. But there are many big and small restaurants where you can experience the local cuisine, which one should you choose? Big restaurants are obviously good, but they aren’t often true to the cuisines they are serving. They know that they experience many tourists hence they make changes to their food so that the tourists can easily have them. As a result of which they often lose the essence of their local cuisine. That is exactly where street food comes in. If you eat food from a shop in the streets, you can be sure that that is the place's true local cuisine. The same goes for Zurich as well. Here are a few places where you can get street food in Zurich:

Eisvogel Gelato

O'k Gemusedoner

Dejavu

Delhihouse of Bestcurry Restaurant

OH MY GREEK!

Bagelboys Restaurant

all about crepe

Michelle's Cupcakes

Zum Guten Heinrich

Tremonte & Co.

Spritzwerk

Gran Gusto Gelateria Pasticceria Bar

Marvelous und dr dog

Sonnendeck

Giovanni L Gelato De Luxe

Rex Musenhof Bar & Biergarten

Pause im Foifi

Chez Hugo

Mega Waffel

Fresh Orient

Eatery Provisorium Winterthur

Drink

We as tourists travel the whole day and visit various places, and as a result, it is quite common to be tired at the end of the day. Going to a bar and sitting with a drink, and enjoying the music or other people's company is the best way to relax after a hectic touring day. There are many amazing Bars in Zurich where you can go and have a drink or two. Just make sure that you are carrying age proof and that you are 21 years or older. The age proof you are carrying must be a copy of your passport. Your country’s local identification cards might not work at every restaurant or bar. You mustn't carry your original passport, Because if you lose it, you can be in grave danger.

Let us look at a few bars to visit in Zurich:

Andorra Bar

Café Odeon

Widder Bar

Kronenhalle

Barfly’s

Olé Olé Bar

Jules Verne Panorama Bar

Kaufleuten

Stall 6

Tap-water

Unlike a lot of countries and cities, the tap water of Zurich is absolutely safe to drink. The tap water comes directly from the mountains, which makes it absolutely safe to drink. The water might taste different from packaged drinking water, but that is normal because, unlike mineral water, tap water will lack some nutrients and minerals. If you are hell-bent on not drinking tap water, then there’s nothing to worry about because you will find plenty of packaged drinking water in Zurich. There’s a shop in every corner of the city where you will find packaged drinking water.

Organic Cafés

There are a lot of cafes in Zurich, but sadly there are no Organic cafes.

Breweries

Nothing beats cracking a cold one after a hectic day of traveling around. As a tourist after a long day of touring around the city, we all deserve to have a nice cold beer. If you are looking for the best places in the city to experience the best beers, check the following out:

Beers’n’More

The Alehouse - Palmhof

Fork and Bottle

The International Beer Bar

Intercomestibles, der Laden

BIERlab

Käsers Schloss

Drinks of The World

Poli Bar

The Pie Shop

Andorra Bar

Grain

Restaurant Zeughauskeller

Moby Hicks

Activities

When it comes to a city like Zurich, there are no shortages of activities to do in the city. Here are a few must-do activities:

Hop on a boat at Limmatschifffahrt

Spend an artsy day at Kunsthaus

Take a stroll down the Niederdorf

Explore Zurich West

Go on a bar crawl

Visit the Flussbad Oberer Letten Badi

Walk down Bahnhofstrasse

Ascend the Uetliberg

Rent and ride a bike

Get a first-class view from the Jules Verne Panorama Bar

Gaze at the Limmat river from a tram

Discover burger heaven at Heidi & Tell Co.

Go veggie in style at Hiltl

Party on at Street Parade

Take a dip at Thermalbad & Spa Zurich

Scoff Sunday brunch

People-watch at Zurich Horn

Head up to Lindenhof

Stroll through the Botanischer Garten

Get cultured at Helmhaus Zurich

Get schooled at the Tram Museum

Yoga and Retreats

As a tourist, traveling can get extremely hectic, and it is important to take care of your body and mind. You might hit your hotel’s gym now and then to take care of your body, but what about your mind? You can always meditate, but while traveling, you won’t have the time to go to a gym and meditate at the same time. Hence this is where Yoga comes in. It relaxes both your body and your mind at the same time. So we have listed a few places where you can practice Yoga in Zurich:

Sanapurna Ayurveda & Yoga, Zürich

Yoga & Meditation Retreat Portugal

AyurvedaYoga

ATHAYOGA Zürich

The Yoga Training Zurich

YogaCulture

Spirit Yoga Yoga School Zurich

YOGAHERZ Zürich

Accommodation

When you travel to a place where you live is extremely important. That is because that is not only the place where you unwind and relax, but it is also the place where you keep all your valuables like money and passport. To help you make a better decision, we have researched and compiled the list of best places where you can stay.

Green Hotels

Being a firm believer in clean and sustainable living, Zurich's government has made sure that there are plenty of green hotels available for the people interested in them. A few of them are:

Hotel Schweizerhof Zurich

The Dolder Grand

Hilton Zurich Airport

Radisson Blu Hotel, Zurich Airport

Storchen Zurich - Lifestyle Boutique Hotel

Glockenhof Zurich

Kameha Grand Zurich, Autograph Collection

Hotel Helmhaus

Zurich Marriott Hotel

Movenpick Hotel Zurich-Airport

ibis budget Zurich Airport

Sheraton Zurich Hotel

Hotel Krone Unterstrass

Four Points by Sheraton Sihlcity - Zurich

Engimatt City & Garden Hotel

Apart-Hotel Zurich Airport

Courtyard Zurich North

Novotel Zurich City West

Novotel Zurich Airport Messe

ibis Zurich Adliswil

ibis Zurich City West

ibis budget Zurich City West

ibis Zurich Messe Airport

Hostels and Guest Houses

There are various Hostels available in Zurich where you can share rooms and stay at a very cheap rate. Here is a list of few hostels:

Oldtown Hostel Otter

Green Marmot Capsule Hostel

Zurich Youth Hostel

Hotel Limmathof

Hotel Bristol Zurich

There are also a lot of guest houses available in Zurich for people to live in:

Gasthaus zum Guten Glück

Gasthaus 210

Pension fürDich

Signau House & Garden

Josephine’s Guesthouse (Women Only)

Apartments

In case you want to stay for a long time, renting an apartment is smarter than staying at a hotel. Because it is not only cheaper, but it is much more comfortable as well. Here are a few apartments which can be rented in Zurich:

Zurich Furnished Homes

EMA House Serviced Apartments Superior Downtown

City Stay Furnished Apartments - Lindenstrasse

Le Bijou Lintheschergasse / Zurich HB

City Stay Furnished Apartments - Kieselgasse

EMA House Serviced Apartments Seefeld

EMA House Serviced Apartments Superior Unterstrass

HITrental Wiedikon Apartments

Cosmopolitan Apartments Zürich Seefeld

Luegete 28, Witikon Apartments

Couchsurfing

Couch surfing is based on an online community called couchsurfing.com. On this website, you can meet a lot of people and stay with them. Couch surfing is quite famous in Zurich, so head over to their website and interact with the community.

Camping

Camping on the banks of Lake Zurich is actually something locals, as well as tourists, do. Here are a few campsites which are very famous among locals and tourists:

TCS Camping Flaach am Rhein

Camping am Schützenweiher

Campingplatz Fischer's Fritz

Campingplatz Gütighausen

Camping Saland

ampingplatz RausenbachC

Camping Türlersee

Camping Maurholz

Campingplatz Auslikon

Camping Reussbrücke

Camping Wildberg

Camping Sihlwald

Camping Rässenwies

Naturfreunde Zeltplatz am Greifensee / Aschbach

How to Get There

Zurich is one of Switzerland's most important cities; there is no shortage of ways to get into the city. It has an international airport, train station, bus station and so on. So keep reading to find out about the various ways of entering the city.

Air

Zurich has Switzerland’s biggest and the busiest airport. You can easily fly from any country all over the world and enter Zurich via air. Most major flights have direct flights into the city. Once you reach the city, you will find a train station inside the airport and use it to enter Zurich city. It’s just a 12 min ride.

Zurich Airport

Bus

Most major highways of Switzerland are connected to Zurich. Zurich is Switzerland’s and European union’s most important city; buses from most surrounding European cities travel to Zurich.

Bus in Zurich

Train

Zurich is well connected to various European cities, and hence you can find trains to enter Zurich. If you are in some other European city, check if there are any trains to Zurich and if there is you can travel via that.

Train in Zurich

Hitchhiking

Hitchhiking is possible to enter Zurich, but it isn’t recommended. That is because you will be traveling with a stranger and that person can be bad. Unless you have no other options, it is safer to ignore Hitchhiking.

Others

You can also enter Zurich by boat. Since the city is located at the end of Lake Zurich, you can travel via boat from other cities with a lake like Rapperswil.

Moving Around

Being a modern city, there are countless ways to roam around the city of Zurich.

Walk

Most of the Landmarks and various tourist destinations are easily approachable via foot. So walking is actually an excellent option and is totally possible.

Bicycle

You can easily rent a bicycle or skateboards for free at several places in the city. The timings are usually from 7 AM to 9 PM. So make sure you go early if you want to rent a bike. This mode of transport is quite famous hence all bikes get rented in a concise period of time.

Electronic Vehicles

The people and Government of Zurich believe in a clean and safe mode of transport. Hence most buses inside the city are electric buses. Hence it doesn’t a surprise that there are a huge number of electric cars inside the city. Interestingly, in 2019, it was seen that electric cars sold more than normal cars.

Public Bus

There are various buses available in the city which will take you wherever you want inside the city. Most buses are electric, but there are also a few normal buses. There’s obviously a schedule of when different buses of different routes will cater to you, so do research and travel accordingly.

Tram, Train and Subway

There are tram services available inside the city.

There are train services available as well, which will take you to different cities.

Subway services are also available inside the city.

Sustainable Shopping

The concept of sustainable shopping is quite widespread in Zurich. The locals and the tourists who are in Zurich and who are environmentally conscious can easily shop from such stores. If you are looking for sustainable shops in Zurich, check these out:

Äss-bar

Berg und Tal

Bogen 33

Changemaker

Circle – The Sustainable Shop

Fabrikat

Foifi

Freitag

Maiuki

Markant

Marktlücke

Rrrevolve

Soeder

Veg and the City

Food Markets

There are a lot of food markets in Zurich. All sell different kinds of food and also have different timings. Everything available in these shops is absolutely fresh and are all sold out by the evening. Let us take a quick look at such shops:

Market Gemüsebrücke

Market at Helvetiaplatz

Weekly Market at Bürkliplatz

Tessinerplatz Market

Viaduct Market Hall

Market Oerlikon

Weekly Market in Altstetten

Sihlcity Market

Rapperswil Friday Market

Jucker Farm Seegräben

Lützelhof Farm

Milchmanufaktur

Weekly Market in Baden

Weekly Markets in Winterthur

Weekly Markets in Zug

Flea Markets

There are a few flea markets in the city, which are quite good and famous, like:

Kanzlei Flea Market

Rosenhof Market

Flohmarkt Bullingerwiese

MARTA

Flohstube

Second Hand Stores

Zurich is a city with stores and shops for every need; for example, they also have many second-hand stores, where you can buy pre-owned things for half the price and sometimes even lower. Let us take a quick look at such shops:

Zürcher Brockenhaus
Heilsarmee Brocki
Arche Brockenhaus
Brockito Brockenhaus, Räumungen Und Umzüge
Caritas
Fities Plus
Pico Bello
Fundgrube
Carolina’s Brockenstube

Eco-Fashion

With the concept of eco-friendly products and sustainable living getting really famous in Zurich, multiple local fashion companies have started going the eco-friendly way. They make their clothes while being sustainable and ethical, yet they do not sacrifice style or fashion. The clothes they make are sustainable yet stylish. Let us take a look at such companies:

Avani
Freitag
Urbankissed
Sanikai
Jungle Folk
Calida
AgentSpécial

Recycling

The Zurich government puts in a lot of effort to make sure that the recycling process is given extreme importance, and as a result, Zurich has one of the best recycling programs in the world. The citizens and the tourists are just asked to use the different recycling bins, which are meant for different materials correctly. The rest are handled by the people working in the recycling department.

Waste

Waste management has become increasingly important Nowadays. Evert city in the world today has a top-notch waste management system, which is the same for Zurich.

Work and Study Abroad

There are a lot of opportunities to both study and work abroad in Zurich.

As per your qualifications, when it comes to work, look for jobs and apply; if you are qualified, you will get accepted.

When it comes to studying abroad, there are also a lot of opportunities. All you need to do is, search and see which schools accept students from abroad and then apply!

Exchange Student

The concept of exchange students is very well a thing in Zurich. You need to check if your university and Zurich allow student exchange from each other or not. If they do, you need to apply and wait for confirmation!

Au Pair

The concept of Au Pair is widespread in Zurich. Just search for interested people, and you will be good to go!

Volunteering

Volunteering is a very noble thing to do. If you are looking for Volunteering work in Zurich, you will be happy to know that there are multiple such works available.