Where in Zurich to stay for one night in late May?

We stayed in Zurich last year at Hotel Bristol which is very close to the train station. Unfortunately I can NOT recommend it. There is no A.C., and only a small inadequate table fan. The room was spartan and not very welcoming. The towels were thin, and their idea of a breakfast selection on the buffet was canned fruit cocktail. Even though it was a recommended hotel in Ricks guidebook, I would never encourage anyone to stay there. There is another hotel with A.C. on the same street (Stampfenbachstrasse) that is also a Rick Steve recommended hotel that we walked by every day that looked very nice. I cannot remember it's name, but you can do a search about hotels on this street.

Why not stay another night in Luzern? Trains connect Luzern directly to the Zurich airport and take 70 minutes to get there. Departures every half-hour.

Barb, You are probably thinking of the Hotel Arlette. We are staying there for one night in early May. It is at Stampfenbachstrasse 26. It is also recommended by Rick.

I would not recommend the Bristol either, unless you need a family room.

Of the places we have stayed in Zurich, we liked the Adler in the Altstadt pedestrian zone. Nice modern room, friendly staff. One thing to note is that their in-house restaurant is popular for fondue, and the cheesy odor reaches beyond the restaurant.

I stayed at the Pension St Josef twice, but it was many years ago. It was a close walk from the train station and I saw a bunch of places to eat nearby. It was still a convent the first time I stayed there. A bit austere because of that, perhaps.

We decided to spend a night in Zurich because our flight is very early around 8am so we would have had to leave Lucerne by train in the middle of the night versus staying in Zurich and getting up early and taking a taxi to get to the airport.

We are flying into Zurich in September. Although many people recommend going right on to your real destination, I felt like we should give Zurich a try for at least that first night. We then go onto Lucerne and then Murren. We found Hotel Limmatblick for 157 CHF.. It got a "Very Good" 8.0 rating on Booking.com. I really don't know what to expect, but it's just one night, and close to the station.

Plus, it's freakin' Zurich!! There must be a few good restaurants in the banking capital of the world!!! Right????

caldbunch: There's nothing wrong with Zurich, and yes there are many good restaurants. However, most people come to see the beautiful Swiss towns like Lucerne and the stunningly beautiful areas like Lauterbrunnen, Murren, Wengen. You are absolutely allowed to spend your vacation time as you see best. Just know that Zurich is good - Lucerne is Great and Murren is STUNNING!

Thank you for the tips!!

We decided to spend a night in Zurich because our flight is very early
around 8am

Makes sense to me!

Why not stay out by the airport? The loudest neighborhood I have ever stayed in was in Zurich at the Hotel Alexander. The street noise and partying never stopped and in the morning the entire neighborhood was trashed with litter. Some party types might feel this made it an ideal location, but I just wanted to sleep....

for a very early flight, I agree you should stay at the airport. There's a Blu practically inside the terminal, or a Hilton a short shuttle bus away. You can train from downtown Zurich to the airport hotel whenever you're ready to call it a night.

Rick's suggested walking tour of Zurich, down one riverbank and up the other, is a great way to see the city.

For a night you can stay anywhere but I suggest you to stay near the airport as it would be easy for you to catch flight. I suggest you Hotel Allegra as they also give free shuttle service to the airport.

The Radisson Blu Hotel Zurich Airport is a very good place to stay before a morning flight. It has direct walking access to the airport terminal and its many restaurants, and it is easy to take the train from the airport into Zurich. We arrived around noon and the Radisson gave us an early check in, so we could drop off our bags and enjoy the day in Zurich.

We stayed at the Marriott about a 7 minute walk from Zurich HB. It is right along the Limat river and is about a 15 minute walk to the old town , where you can get a good Swiss meal.