Layover in Zurich

Posted by Bob (Reading, PA, USA) on 03/17/19 01:14 AM

I early July my wife and I will have a nine hour layover (8:10 am to 5:20 pm) on our way home at the Zurich Airport. (We saved $1000 on our plane fares by taking this flight.) I checked and it is only about a 15 minute tram ride to downtown Zurich. There should be sufficient time to take a walk around and get lunch.

Is there something we should specifically look to visit/see other than just a walk around the Old Town? I did check out the walking tour but the English version is not until 3:00 pm which is too late for us. I looked at Trip Adviser Things to Do but nothing jumped out at me.

Does anyone have a suggestion for a place for lunch? A moderate priced place would be nice and, yes, I know Switzerland is expensive.

Posted by Kathy

Kansas City

03/17/19 02:17 PM

265 posts

The RS Switzerland guide includes a nice walking tour of Zürich. We plan to take it when we are there in May. There are numerous places listed that might interest you for lunch. You can probably get the book at the library, if you don’t want to buy it.

Posted by Bob OP

Reading, PA, USA

03/17/19 07:44 PM

1588 posts

I was planning on looking for the book at BnN to see what was in it. It is not worthwhile to buy it for a 9 hour layover.

Posted by Sam

Green Bay

03/17/19 08:32 PM

20067 posts

The tram takes a lot longer than 15 minutes, the trains to the Hbf take 9 to 13 minutes, and they go an average of every 6 minutes, although there can be gaps of up to 13 minutes. Buy a day ticket, which is the price of a round trip and will include tram rides in the city center for the rest of the day.

The Swiss National Museum is across the street for the Hbf. If you are interested in Swiss history, from pre-history to the present, it is worth a couple of hours.

There is a very good Zurich Tourist office in the Hbf that can slso give you plenty of ideas. A boat ride on the Zurichersee is nice in good weather.

Places like department store cafeterias usually have reasonable prices. Manora is a short walk from Hbf and gets good reviews.

Posted by Michael Schneider

New Paltz, NY

03/17/19 09:04 PM

9099 posts

Another option is to take the train from Zurich airport to Luzern; 1 hour away.
I find Luzern to be much more scenic than Zurich.

Posted by Bob OP

Reading, PA, USA

03/17/19 09:15 PM

1588 posts

I will be coming in from Russia, so I believe I will have to go through immigration if I want to leave the terminal and go into town. That coupled with having to be back to the airport 2-3 hours before the continuation flight it would not be comfortable going farther than just into Zurich.

Posted by JoAnn

St Louis, MO, USA

03/17/19 11:58 PM

28 posts

You will love Zurich. The airport and train station are beautiful. Zurich is a lovely city for walking and enjoying the scenery and people. Don't plan ahead, relax, as you walk from the station I promise you will find interesting things to see and good food to eat. Who knows, it may turn out to be a day you remember forever. After all, it's the end of your trip and you may want to sit at a cafe and reminisce over coffee and a pastry. Enjoy!