Zurich layover for 10 hours

There are lots of lockers by the train station at the airport. You need cash to pay.
Zurich has a great Tourist info website where you can get some ideas
https://www.zuerich.com/en

Susan and Monte - Zurich Airport operates its own locker service and has lockers in small, medium and large sizes and that can be used for up to 72 hours.

https://www.travelerswifi.com/blog/all-you-need-to-know-about-luggage-lockers-in-switzerland/

I would skip a tour of Zurich and head to Lucerne. It's a wonderful Swiss city. There are trains that leave directly from Zurich airport every 30 minutes to Lucerne. The ride is an hour. The train station is located below Terminal B. There is plenty to see in Lucerne to explore.

https://blog.eurail.com/how-to-spend-24-hours-in-lucerne/

http://www.thoughtfultraveling.com/2018/06/20/24-hours-in-lucerne-switzerland/

If you land 10:20, assuming on time you will out of the airport by 11:20.
Dump bags (as above), and take a train into Zürich (Zürich HB station). 10-12 minute run, train every 5-10 minutes.
Price CHF 6.80 per person each way, from the ticket machine or manned ticket window. Both take CHF and EUR.

Then just folow your nose around Zürich. Or google for suggested places to see.

No passport checks Switzerland to France. As long as you've got your boarding pass, getting back to the airport 1 hour before is OK. Trains at 19:16, 19:35, 19:39, 19:44 etc.

Chris F. has the details, but since I just used the airport and the train, I will add that it is an easy airport to navigate. We easily found the airport train station and in maybe 20 minutes we were at the Zurich main train station. EASY and fast. That said, I would stick to Zurich and not leave town. While Zurich is not at the top of people's lists of favorite Swiss cities, its more because all of Switzerland is beautiful and there are many lovely Swiss cities. I would go to your local library (or purchase if you have additional use for it) the Eyewitness Guide for Switzerland. There is about 10 pages on Zurich highlighting some sights. I wouldn't do a tour, I can't speak specifically to Zurich, but everyone Swiss town I've been to has wonderful local transportation. I did happen to notice that the Zurich main train station did have a tourist office. Grab a map and see if they can suggest any self guided walking tours.

A round trip ticket from the airport into the city and back also doubles as a day pass on all Zurich local public transportation (excluding boats, if memory serves). Zurich is relatively compact for a big city, but it's still a big city, so take the opportunity to ride trams around town instead of walking everywhere - your legs, if they're at all like mine, will thank you.

The RS Switzerland guide includes a nice walking tour of Zurich. We used it when we were there in May. You can probably get it at the library.

Thank you for all the suggestions! And, thanks for all the info! As much as I’d love to see Lucern, it makes me nervous to go further. Plus, we will be running on empty. So, going into the city sounds great.

Can we use the airport ATM to get cash needed for lockers for luggage? Or do we need coins?

https://www.zurich-airport.com/passengers-and-visitors/airport-services-en/baggage-service

The lockers are available 24/7 and can only be operated using CHF or
EUR coins. The maximum deposit time is 72 hours.

And if you're really tired -- some great airport lounges at ZRH. We have Priority Pass and once spent about 4 hours snacking and resting on a layover.

Thank you all for your help!

I have euros. I can give you some to get you started, then just return that amount to me when you get back. Easy Peasy.

Thanks Andrea!

I don't know what you like to do, but if I found myself in this situation, I'd just head toward the old town and hang out for the day. People at this site tend to diss Zurich, but I think it's a lovely city, and often makes "best cities" lists for a reason. I would love to spend a day there stopping for a coffee, wandering the streets, stopping for lunch, wandering some more . . .

Enjoy!

If you enjoy boat rides, take a ride out onto Lake Zurich. From the train station, walk south, you'll pass through the best part of central Zurich, and when you end up at a lake, look for wharves where you can get tickets for a short boat ride out into the beautiful lake.

Sounds like great ideas! I think that is what we will do, old town and lake boat ride!

I talked to someone yesterday who told me they would get a hotel room and sleep! Yikes! I hope we don't feel like doing that, but I'm sure we will be very tired.

A one-day pass for Zürich including airport (3 zones) also includes lake boat rides and no extra payment has been required since 2017.

Thanks Andre!

I think a boat ride would be nice.

I recently asked a friend who travels a lot what he would do if he had a long layover in Zurich. His reply was, "Get a hotel"!

I sure hope we can make it an asset! When I think back to other trips we are zombies after a few hours off the plane. So, I'm hoping we can hang with it and enjoy the day!