Walking tour of Zurich? How about a free 2 hour walking tour of Zurich? Now you're talking…read more Met at 11am on a Monday when all the museums were closed, at the Credit Suisse in the Paradeplatz, one of the world's most expensive and exclusive shopping areas. Must have been at least 100 people there. Fortunately about 20 peeled off for the Spanish speaking tour. Julian was our guide, a great story teller with an abundance of jokes. At the Fraumünster church, we discovered tiny hieroglyphics carved into the stones. This was to keep track of which artisan packed which stones into the structure, for pay purposes. We stop by a statue of a burgermeister, condemned to death not for killing dogs, but for raising taxes! We wander through St Peter Church - one of the four main churches in Zurich whose clock face is the largest in all of Europe; We check out the restaurant where famous painters as Picasso, Chagall, Giacometti paid for their food with their own paintings. The restaurant owners sold the paintings right away, instead of keeping them until they appreciated in value. Next, we check out the house where Lenin was living before returning to Russia, leading the 1917 revolution. We go along the Limmatquai with many buildings dating from the days of the rich Guilds that governed Zurich. We wander through the Lindenhof and Roman Baths - the historical site of a Roman castle situated on a hillside, with great views of Old Town. Did you know that Albert Einstein and 20 Nobel Prize winners were students at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology? At the end of the 2 hour free tour Julian poses with a group for Facebook picture under "Free walk Zurich", passes out postcards with the logo, and collects tips, once again at the Paradeplatz. With 100 people, and an average of CHF3 per tip per person, Julian is a walking piggy bank, and takes no chances with his travel bag, now heavy with CHF bills. He walks only a few steps to make an in person deposit at the nearest bank! Or does he keep part of the stash hidden from the authorities?

This was our first experience with a walking tour and we loved it! It was such a great way to see…read moreand learn about the city. We only had 1 full day in Zurich so we wanted to get the most out of it. We actually ended up doing 2 Free Walking Tours Zurich. The old Zurich tour and the Zurich West tour. We had such a blast getting to know more about such a beautiful city. The Old Zurich tour was much more crowded. Our guide was amazing. Explained a lot and told us great stories about the city. She even recommended a place for lunch which was delicious. The Zurich West tour was good, but not as great as the morning tour. Our guide was knowledgeable but we didn't feel like we learned as much. I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone traveling to Zurich

Got us from point A to B (Rapperswil) and back - on time. Nice ride, great service, great…read morebartenders!

We opted for the 7 1/2-hour upper lake round trip (1st Class, CHF 42.50 each), from Zurich to…read moreSchmerikon and return. We sailed on the Paddle Wheel Steamer Stadt Rapperswil, which had just celebrated her 101st birthday. The cruise was smooth and comfortable, and the crew could not have been nicer. We choose 1st Class because of the large number of groups already lining up, and we felt it would be quieter and more relaxing I recommend it whole heartedly. Five Stars.

This is a great way to explore the city, especially if you're short on time or traveling Lucerne…read morefor the first time. The route covers many of Lucerne's main highlights, and it's a relaxing way to get oriented without a lot of walking. The train itself is clean and comfortable, and the ride feels smooth and well-organized. The audio commentary is informative and gives helpful background about the city's history and landmarks, making it more than just a sightseeing ride. Audio recording is available in many languages. Staff were friendly and efficient.

This little train tour is a cute way to see the town of Lucerne pretty quickly (about 45 minutes),…read morebut it does have its drawbacks too. The little blue and white train arrives to pick up the passengers, and you will all get packed in quite tightly. Each row is a two person seat, so if you're with a friend or significant other, just squeeze in together. But I could see it being uncomfortable for two strangers to sit by each other so close. The train car itself is quite low to the ground, so you also sort of feel like you're in a kids' ride at the fair. Aside from the tightness and uncomfortable seating situation, it's actually quite a nice ride around Lucerne in a quick snapshot. You will pass the iconic Chapel Bridge, see lots of cute shops and sights, and ride along the gorgeous Lake Lucerne. There are headphones that give you the facts about what you're seeing as you pass by each spot. The fact that it's an open air, slower rolling train gives you more of a chance to get some good photos. For an affordable price (about 12 CHF), and a good amount of time on the train that you get for that amount, I think it is definitely worth it, even with the few drawbacks I mentioned.

We arrived a few days early for our July 2019 Collette 9 day tour of Alpine lakes and Scenic…read moreTrains, spending the time self touring Zurich, Switzerland. Much of the time at various museums, but found time to walk to Lake Zurich. Big vast blue mountain lake on the edge of one of the most expensive cities in Europe. Snow covered peaks of the Alps in the background. Fancy promenade for walking around the parks full of gardens that line the Lake. Water fountain in one area, spewing a geyser of water high in the sky. Bridges and wooden towers line the river full of ducks quaking for a handout. On the opposite side is a lake shore walkway. They have a high dive tower in the summer, where dare devils jump off the 30 foot tower into the deep cold waters of the Lake below. A local band is playing. When they see that I'm recording a few seconds of music, one of the performers stops me afterward, asking if I would like to buy a CD of their music. Trying to get hustled again. Not many Asians in Zurich, and no way for me to hide that I was a tourist. As our tour leader, Marion Roy said, this was the first time she had seen a senior Chinese tourist in shorts and sandals. But she had never been to California in the summer nor Hawaii.

Loved it here. Spent a Sunday afternoon just reading my book on one of the benches. Water is really…read moreclean, which makes the whole setting really nice. Beautiful view of everything.

Gray Line offers several tours, with some combination of trolly tour, lift, and / or boat tours…read more The tour we chose was the 2 hour trolly only tour, called the Zurich Trolly Experience City Tour, for CHF 34 per person. There were two stops, ten-minutes at Hafen Enge Kiosk, on Lake Zurich, and 15-minutes at the Fraumunster Church, which gave plenty of time to see the Marc Chagall windows. I enjoyed the tour. Tour narration is available in eight languages, including English -- each person using a personal headset -- and audio worked flawlessly. The bus -- built to resemble a trolly car -- was comfortable and clean, the windows were spotless, and were open wide because it was a warm day. Our driver, Walter, did a good job operating the audio and driving the bus, but was flat otherwise. To be fair to Walter, it is hard to have flair when the bus is filled with strangers, speaking several different languages, as well as contending with Zurich Old Town traffic. The ticket booth is located at, and all tours depart from, the SihlquaiI Bus Terminal, located 200 meters behind the Zurich main train station. Five Stars.