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Zurich, Switzerland: the essential city guide

Switzerland’s largest city and financial hub is exchanging its conservative attitudes for pride in its diversity and an increasingly dynamic social scene. Elspeth Callender gives you all you need to know in our essential Zurich city guide.

Known for

Swiss banks, art galleries and lakeside chic.

Eat streets

In a small urban park, Kleine Freiheit serves Middle Eastern-style food from a converted shipping container to people sprawled on deckchairs, benches and sofas under colourful umbrellas.

Watch the swans float by from Quai 61. The menu has an international flavour, and its ‘hangover breakfast’ complete with Bloody Mary is a popular Sunday brunch option.

Kronenhalle, adorned with original works by Picasso and Kandinsky, proudly serves “plain traditional fare" to all comers.

Out & about

Once you have ticked off the atmospheric Old Town and the city’s many excellent museums, take the time to discover Zurich-West, which locals call ‘Little Berlin’.

Frau Gerolds Garten has flourished into a summer beer and kitchen garden with shops, art and events. See Freitag’s shipping container tower, and the nearby café-bar-restaurant-deli-grocer Les Halles.

There are independent stores within Im Viadukt’s repurposed arches and Schiffbau, where boats were once built, is now a theatre, club, restaurant and bar space.

Insider’s secret

After dark many of Zurich’s glorious old swimming baths morph into open-air badi-bars. Local favourites include Seebad Enge, Rimini and Barfussbar. Read more on Zurich’s secret bars here.

Retail reconnaissance

Bahnhofstrasse is lined with mainstream stores while locally owned boutiques can be found closer to the river.

For consumables, there’s Chäslaube for cheese and Sprüngli for chocolate and macarons. Department stores Jelmoli and Globus, both have sumptuous food halls.

The ultimate experience

When you arrive in town, get your bearings over a summery spread or winter fondue picnic on the roof terrace of Hotel Ambassador à l’Opéra.

From atop this charming neo-Baroque building behind the Opera House you get elevated views in all directions.

Caffeine hits

Red-boothed Schwarzenbach often flings open the window next to its coffee roaster so the aromas waft out into the Old Town alleyways.

If it’s packed, cross the road to multi-storey Schober for hot chocolate and marble cake.

Weekly travel news, experiences
insider tips, offers, and more.

Stay & play

Affordable

The cheapish and cheerful 25hours Hotel Zurich West has complimentary wi-fi, as well as bike hire and sauna use.

Moderate

Ambassador à l’Opéra is a boutique hotel on the edge of the Old Town, close to trains and to Lake Zurich.

Luxe

The recently renovated Atlantis by Giardino is a 95-room urban retreat promising “cosmopolitan nonchalance" mixed with “Mediterranean-style hospitality".

 

 

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What the European heatwave means for your summer travel plans

    Rachael Thompson Rachael Thompson
    Continue
    Temperatures are soaring this summer, breaking records across Europe and the UK. 

    Euro summer is a feeling like no other. But when a heatwave hits? The dream trip quickly turns into a sweaty mess. Extreme heat is sweeping Europe and the UK this week, with record-high temperatures impacting travel plans across the continent.

    And while Australian summers are typically hotter in absolute temperature, many European cities aren’t equipped for high temperatures, resulting in unbearable weather.

    Why is it so hot in Europe?

    Signs of a hot summer loomed in May, when the mercury hit unprecedented spring highs. Now, extreme high temperature warning alerts have been issued in countries such as Spain, Italy, France, England, the Netherlands and Germany.

    France saw its hottest day on record on Wednesday, with an average temperature of 30°C across the day and night. This surpasses the average temperature for June, which is 15°C to 25°C. Dozens of people have died, including 40 from drowning.

    In Spain, 212 deaths have been linked to the heatwave.

    The UK recorded its hottest June day ever on Wednesday with temperatures soaring to 36.1°C. In an article published by the Met Office – the UK’s national meteorological service – Professor Stephen Belcher CBE, Met Office Chief Scientist, shared his concerns about June’s heat. “To see temperatures like this in the UK in June is sobering. Events like this bring home the implications of climate change, with very high temperatures and humidity bringing significant health implications from heat stress, as well as impacts to a range of sectors such as transport, energy and water supply,” he said.

    Heatwaves are becoming increasingly common in Europe and the UK, neither of which is prepared for such extremes. The World Meteorological Organization reported that in 2025, at least 95% of Europe experienced above-average annual temperatures and that the continent was heating up twice as fast as the global average.

    How travel is impacted

    A pharmacy sign displaying 40 degrees Celcius
    A pharmacy broadcasting local weather data. (Credit: Getty/Dragoncello)

    During a heatwave, power grids, water systems and transport networks can be affected, resulting in disrupted itineraries for travellers. In France, power outages have left thousands without electricity and early closures have been implemented for two of Paris’s biggest attractions, the Eiffel Tower (early afternoon rather than late at night) and the Louvre (two hours early). Eurostar cancelled its London to Paris and Paris to London services from the 22nd to the 25th, and major UK rail companies have been advising travellers to avoid using trains where possible, or to travel during early hours.

    If a heatwave is predicted, being flexible with your itinerary and having fully refundable/changeable tickets is key, as extreme heat can force the cancellation of outdoor activities, impact rail and flight services and change the opening hours of sites and eateries.

    Why does summer in Europe often feel hotter than summer in Australia?

    people swimming in the Canal Saint-Martin in Paris
    People swimming in the Canal Saint-Martin in Paris to cool off. (Credit: Rachael Thompson)

    With some of the highest UV levels in the world, Australians are no strangers to the heat, adapting well to intense weather. But our infrastructure is largely equipped to withstand soaring temperatures with climate-responsive passive design, refrigerated air conditioning or evaporative coolers, as well as swimming spots aplenty.

    Buildings in Northern and Western Europe and the UK, however, are constructed to retain heat and handle frosty winters. The lack of universal air conditioning means it generally feels hotter even though the temperature on your app might not look it. During a heatwave, it can feel like you’re in a sauna as cities act like heat traps.

    How to stay cool and prepare for another heatwave

    Relief is expected across Europe and the UK later this week, but more heatwaves are still possible in the coming months. Summer heat typically peaks in July and August.

    Public transport often doesn’t have air conditioning, and buses in particular can be swelteringly hot. If you’re heading outside or your accommodation has no air conditioning, it’s worth buying a spray bottle and a handheld fan from a pharmacy or tourist stand. Check ahead of time if restaurants and cafes have air conditioning and make a booking in advance. The highest temperatures typically hit between 3pm and 6pm, so aim to head outdoors outside of these hours.

    Rising temperatures invite travellers to enter a more intentional era of seeing the world. Now more than ever is the time to embrace lower-impact “coolcations” and off-season getaways.