Traveling with kids: A family guide to Zürich

26.11.2024 - 19:19 / lonelyplanet.com / Lake Zürich

Nov 25, 2024 • 5 min read

Zürich ticks all the family-travel boxes when it comes to order, cleanliness and safety. It has efficient, reliable transport systems and ubiquitous amenities such as baby-changing facilities and parks with play areas.

Many hotels have dedicated family or interconnecting rooms, and it’s usually no problem squeezing in a cot or an extra bed at guesthouses and self-catering accommodations.

But there’s no glossing over the fact that Zürich can be expensive. The single best savings tip is to invest in a Zürich Card available online or from tourist offices. The card, which is valid for either 24 or 72 hours, covers second-class public transport across the city, short cruises on the lake and the Limmat River, as well as free admission to some museums and discounts at others.

You can also use it to get a discount on guided city tours, cinema tickets, and some cafés and restaurants.

With over 150 playgrounds dotted across the city, you won’t have to go too far to find a green space for your toddlers to blow off some steam. A favorite of local parents is the Blatterwiese playground in Zürichhorn, the leafy park on the eastern shore of the Zürichsee. It offers a big sand pit, four different-sized slides and plenty of swings. There’s also a splash pool in the summer.

Over in trendy Zürich-West, adjacent to the Im Viadukt food market and shopping area, is Josefwiese, a park that offers soccer, pétanque, table tennis and beach volleyball. It’s also a great spot to people-watch while having a picnic or sunbathing. Kids will love the playground and the chance to splash around in the water fountains.

There are few more relaxing ways to spend time in Zürich than on a cruise across the lake. The city’s navigation company ZSG runs many regular and themed cruises throughout the year, some including meals. A great one to consider is sailing to Uffenau Island, in the upper part of Lake Zurich near Rapperswil-Jona.

Home to the 10th-century Einsiedeln Monastery and 12th-century Church of St Peter and Paul, the island is a nature reserve with a stroller-accessible trail. Fun fact for the kids: it’s Switzerland’s largest island.

You won’t get many arguments when suggesting a visit to Lindt Home of Chocolate. The star of the show at this impressively designed facility is the 9.3m-tall (30.5 ft) chocolate fountain. Go behind the scenes to learn how chocolate is made and make some yourself in a range of courses. It’s educational, too, with an interactive tour that explains how cocoa made it across the Atlantic to Europe many centuries ago.

Fans of the beautiful game will be thrilled to know that Zürich is home to the official FIFA World Football Museum. The exhibitions here cover the game’s origins in the UK to