5 day trip to Switzerland – Suggestions Please!!

<<“21st: Roam around Zurich city only. May be visiting Üetliberg mountain,Zurich lake area and sub rubs. Any suggestions of what we should coverin Zurich ? kinda confused between taking a 110 zone pass ortaking a Zurich 24 hour card. Which one would be more convenient andbudget friendly ?””>>

Which pass depends on where you go.

I recall that Uetliberg is outside zone 110, for example.

The ticket machines can provide a very large and confusing variety of choices, with different zones and “added zones” on top of a single zone ticket. There is also a “9 hour or 9 o’clock” ticket which is valid from 0900 after the morning rush. In Zürich, there is almost always a map showing the zones beside the ticket vending machines. I recall that zone 110 will get you all the way around the lake. It is better to ask.

Once you have some idea where you will go, I would visit the Zürich City Tourist Office in Zürich Main Station.

http://www.zuerich.com/de/bes uchen/tourismus-buero in German

http://www.zuerich.com/en/vis it/tourist-service in English. ​

I think it was just relocated to the lower level of Shopville, in the new section, a hundred meters or so away from the railheads. Tell them where you want to go, and for what period of time, and they’ll recommend the correct ticket/pass.

Check out –

http://www.myswissalps.com/zu rich​

I like to walk around the old city, on the west bank of the Limmat and up to the Lindenhof. The site of a Roman miltary camp, it overlooks the river and the east bank.

I like to eat at Uto Kulm restaurant on top of Uetliberg. Great views on a clear day.

http://www.utokulm.ch/en/

Schaffhausen and the Rheinfalls are nice day trip. Schaffhausen is not a special tourist destination, although the falls are, but a walk up to the Munot ( old fortress) is interesting.

A boat ride to Rapperswil would be great for an afternoon if you were coming in from the USA and had a bad case of jet lag. Since you are in the same time zone, you don’t have that problem, but Rapperswil is an attractive old city by the lake, easily reached by train, and, has been on the route of the Way of St. James for centuries. Lots of history.

http://www.myswitzerland.com/ en-us/rapperswil-jona .html​

Walks along either shore of the lake near Zürich itself are relaxing, and enjoyable. Nice gardens, restaurants.

There a couple of truly outstanding museums in Zürich and in Winterthur. If you are interested, I’ll add details.

An unusual, attractive and impressive site is the grave of James Joyce, the famous Irish author.. The cemetery itself is a garden. Just beyond the end of the #6 tram route on Zürichberg, in the direction of the zoo. Zoo is small, and nice, but, not a major event.

map.geo.admin.ch/?X=24 8909.58&Y=684943.90&zo om=8&lang=en&topic=swi sstopo&bgLayer=ch.swisstopo.pixelkarte-fa rbe​

If you walk from that tram stop (end of route #6) along the Orellistrasse to the northwest, away from the zoo, you will have very nice view over the city and the lake on your left. To your right, in the forest, is the location of the Russian artllery batteries defending against Napoleon’s troops in the Battle of Zürich.

There is a “Batteriestrasse” and, on one path a few meters from the road are battle maps and a short history of the battle. Note “Schlachtendenkmal” on the map.

You can also see Funicular Rigiblick (die Rigiblick Bahn). The tram stop does not show unless you zoom the map in all the way to the highest magnification, but it is close to the altitude indicator “609.”

After you walk about 1 km, you go down the hill just a bit to the Rigiblick Bahn ( a funicular) which connects you with the tramlines in the city. There is a path with steps. Or, you can use paved roads. Look at the map.

Many tourists and city dwellers alike consider a meal at the Zeughauskeller ( on the edge of the old town at Paradeplatz) to be a fun thing to do.

http://www.zeughauskeller.ch/ en/home​

The food is good – Swiss german fare , and the prices are not high by Zürich standards. The atmosphere inside the old armory hall is “gemütlich” as the Germans say. The restaurant fills up in the early evening, but the lines move quickly, and if you get there for lunch, during the afternoon, or before about 1830, there is usually not much of a wait.