A couple of hours in Zurich

Zurich HB is the center of the city. There isn't much of an old town-just a lot of high end shopping and some museums. I would grab an Egg McMuffin at the station's MacDonalds and take the first available train to Lucerne. Your time is better spent there.

But...but... that just seems so sad that my only memory of Zurich will be eating the American food I don't like to eat in America. :)

Point taken, though - maybe I'll just pass through and pretend I was never in Zurich.

They sell croissants too:)
Had I said Starbucks would you have had the same reaction?

Hi, How about the Swiss National Museum. It is across the street from the train station. We also thought that we wouldn't want to spend much time in Zurich. We arrived late in the afternoon and flew home the next morning. We left thinking that we should have planned more time for Zurich.

Switzerland has absolutely stunning scenery, and Zurich has a very nice lakefront and and mountains in the distance. Personally I like the city, but if you are visiting Switzerland for just a few days then I agree to just grab a snack in the train station and be on your way to Lucerne. The train ride is quite short and you will see some nice vistas during your train ride. I try to avoid all Americanized fast food joints while in Europe as much as possible because I enjoying trying all kinds of local food.

I think the best ever quick breakfast in a train station was in Munich where we bought a fresh baked pretzel that had been split in half and filled with cream cheese and chives! Much better than an Egg McMuffin.

Joel - We were in Zurich this past March, cold, wet, windy and I thought it was great! It was our first time in Zurich and we too had only a few hours. The HB (this is the train station, right?) was a wonderful structure in itself and we did a few hours touring right around this area. We walked to the lakefront and yes, the shopping areas. It was Easter Sunday so the shops were closed but I thought the area was very nice for a stroll and it makes me want to go back there sometime in the future. There were great coffee houses/ice cream shops & also we had sausage with hard rolls and hot mustard & beer. So my suggestion is definitly get out, get a city map, and walk around for a few hours!

and be on your way to Lucerne. The train ride is quite short and you will see some nice vistas during your train ride....

Agree 100%. The train ride to Lucerne is beautiful and short. But the waterfront in Zurich is pretty too. We took a boat ride because we had a few hours to burn. The ride was subsidized because we had the Swiss Rail Pass.

Zurich is a great city and can easily be covered in a few hours. The Bahnhofstrasse is the most popular shopping street in town. It is across from the train station through the main entrance. There are several coffee shops along the street, but I would recommend having breakfast at Sprungli. It is in Paradaplatz (you can also take one of the trams down the Bahnhofstrasse there). You can eat outside if it is nice or upstairs. If you still had time I would recommend either continuing down the Bahnhofstrasse to the lake, go see the Fraumunster and Grossmunster churches, or just walk around the area. The street Augustinergasse off the Bahnhofstrasse is a very cute street and there are some little shops around that area. The Lindenhof is also near the Bahnhofstrasse and has great views of the city. The map in Rick's Switzerland book is decent or you could get one from the TI in the station. If you decide to skip Zurich be sure to at least stop at the Sprungli in the train station to try the Truffel of the day or the Luxembourgi. Both are amazing.

Joel,

I always tell people that Zurich is a very functional city. Definitely a shoppers heaven - that is the "tourist pull". You probably are not going to be wowed great art/history/nature etc. As you said if you have a couple of hours it would be nice to see another place. Grab some chocolates off the bahnhofstrasse have a peek.

The one thing I found unique and really cool was the stained glass done by Marc Chagall in the Fraumunster church. After spending a lot of time in the UK seeing the stained glass in the Gothic churches it was interesting to see a modern take.

I agree with all of the positives about Zurich. If I remember correctly, Rick Steves has a self-guided tour. If you are fortunate enough to have a clear day, the alps are a great back-drop.

Skip McDonalds; if you are going to go for fast food, at least do something more characteristic of Switzerland--perhaps grab a pretzel sandwich at the train station or one of the Bretzel Koenig stands around the city!

So for those keeping score: When traveling to Europe it's okay to wear the same clothes you wear at home (ie shorts), but not eat the same types foods (McDonalds):) While I certainly wouldn't advocate eating all your meals and at a fast food chain on the road, having the occasional Big Mac, or Egg McMuffin is harmless. I still maintain that given the chance to spend time in Zurich or Luzern, I'll take the latter. Don't get me wrong, there is a good reason Zurich is listed as one of the top five livable cities in the world; but when divvying up limited vacation time Zurich just falls flat comapred to other areas Switzerland has to offer.