Old town and riverside walks

Click on the pictures above for Walk 1 or Walk 2 to go directly to the walks and maps.

Walk 1:

Walking along the Limmat River toward lake zürich

I have put together one of my favourite walks down the side of the Limmat river, ending at the side of Lake Zurich. The last part is by tram and is an option for the summer months or to continue your walk, tucked up with, a hat, gloves and a warm coat for a brisk walk down the side of Lake Zurich. The walk begins at the Tibits buffet restaurant just off Bahnhofstrasse and continues down narrow paths and alleyways tucked in by the river. You will then walk under the archways of historic buildings and have the possibility to eat on a garden terrace or, in the summer, in a shaded park with a view. The last part of the walk gives you an opportunity to cool off in the Limmat River or Lake Zurich.

Hiltl Restaurant with terraces

My first recommendation is to have a coffee with breakfast or brunch at the cafe-style branch of the famous Hiltl restaurant chain. This light and airy spot is above the PKZ women’s fashion store. There is a side entrance via a couple of glass lifts on Beatengasse, off Bahnhofstrasse. Hiltl is famously considered to be the first vegetarian restaurant in the world. This chain has two types of restaurants – buffet and A La Carte.

Both offer a good selection of warm and cold dishes. I first visited the Hiltl, Tibits branch in Winterthur. My husband took me to Winterthur as an anniversary surprise trip just before we were due to move to the city a month later. We were both hooked from the moment we walked in the door; even though my husband is a firm believer that most meals should have a meat portion. We now frequent the Tibits buffet restaurant in Winterthur often and always walk away full and satisfied with the quality of the food. The slogan for Hiltl is ‘Healthy Indulgence ‘ which I consider a good description of the kind of food you will get here.

walkway along Limmat and the lindenhof Historical viewpoint

After walking down Beatenstrasse, Beatenplatz and Bahnhofquai, the narrow, quiet and very cute Heiristeg walkway starts at the Rudolf-Brun-Brücke (Rudolf-Brun Bridge), between the river and the Schweizer Heimatwerk Gift shop. Note: From the Hiltl restaurant, you could also go via Bahnhofstrasse and Uraniastrasse to reach this point – where you will see the ground floor entrance to the Jules Verne Panorama Bar with views to die for and in a very classy cool setting. Opens early evenings until late on Tuesday-Friday, from 2 pm until late on Saturday and is closed Mondays and Sundays. So, perhaps an early evening or late-night stop for later on…

You will then turn onto Fortunagasse which takes you up to the leafy Lindenhofplatz park and viewpoint. This large park has a rich historic past which includes a Roman Fort and a Royal Palace. Read a bit more about it on the Discover Zurich website.

from Fortunagasse to the Shipfe walkway ending up at Cafe Montmatre – a small Parisian cafe

Frauenbad

Next, you will walk past, or stop at, the Frauenbadi – (Woman’s Bathing area). This elegant historical building has been used as swimming Baths since 1888. Entering here depends on a few things:

Daytime (until 7pm):

• You can only enter if you are a woman.
• If it is a hot day you will want your togs with you (although the tops are optional).
• There is a small cover charge and a possibility for some coffee and cake so you will need your wallet.

Evening, normally from 7.30pm – transformed to a Barefoot Bar with entertainment:

• Open Tuesday to Sunday.
• You can be male or female.
• This is a Barefoot bar with flooring made of natural wooden slats. You can leave your shoes (and socks) at the entrance.
• You are looking for an evening venue to chill out and have a few drinks, perhaps listen to some music.
• No swimming allowed – however, dipping your toes in the water is permitted.

Anytime:

• For Swimming – Open from end of May to mid-September – from 7am to 11am – also, depending on the weather, from 11am until 7pm.
• For Barefoot Bar – Open until end of October – Tuesday to Sunday from 7.30-8pm. Times can differ slightly, depending on the season.
• You will need to check the times on the website or facebook page as they sometimes close in the evenings for private events (at the moment this is Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturday evenings). Apart from that – they have a weekly programme for entertainment. You can find out more information here and here.

Bauschänzli beer garden with bar and grill

The historic Bauschänzli is an artificial island. It is one of the last remains of the Baroque fortifications of Zürich from around 1642. This area is considered a park but is now home to a Restaurant and separate Bar and Grill with beer garden – supposedly the largest outside of the Munich Oktoberfest. The Beer Garden and Grill is open from April to September. In December, this area is home to the Circius Conelli.

My slightly embarrassing visit

I sat here, under the huge trees, enjoying a tarte flambée (or Flammkuchen in German). I remember feeling quite happy with myself; sunglasses on, tapping away on my keyboard, finishing off my morning coffee. Things changed very quickly when I somehow knocked my coffee cup over, the dregs of coffee, that had laid forgotten at the bottom of the cup were now spread across my keyboard. I leapt up, sunglasses falling off my face, phone flying onto the ground while I frantically tipped my keyboard over, tapping it firmly then awkwardly trying to wipe it clean, while still keeping it turned downwards. I then slunk down on my hands and knees grabbed my sunglasses and phone scooped them up and into my bag, gave the keyboard a further wipe with my napkin and then slunk away, under the shadows of the trees, determined to come back another day and try again. I was planning to return a few weeks later, but, with lockdown firmly in place I thought better of it. It is now on my list for next summer. This time, I will make sure my coffee is far away from any keyboard.

Enge Lakeside Swimming Baths (Seebad Enge)

Lake Zürich Photo by 🇨🇭 Claudio Schwarz | @purzlbaum on Unsplash

History / Architecture

The two-part bath was built by Robert Landolt in 1959/60 and is one of Zurich’s youngest outdoor bathing facilities. The concrete construction is styled on the city’s traditional wooden box baths. Once segregated into men’s and women’s areas, nowadays the bath has still retained its women’s section, while the men’s side has given way to a mixed-sex area. The bath floats on the water and is accessed via a 30 meter (100ft) long wooden walkway. Further information can be found here.

In Summer Seebad Enge offers a woman’s only bathing area and a mixed bathing area, both with lake access. The 44-metre (144 ft) long swimming lanes are anchored in the lake and enclosed by wooden planks with a view over Lake Zurich, the lakeside promenade, and the Alps on the horizon. Yoga courses are also offered on Monday and Tuesday evenings. The venue can be booked for private events Wednesdays to Saturdays and on Sunday evenings the sauna is open.

Stand up paddle courses and hire of SUPS: In addition, it is possible to hire stand-up paddling equipment and book SUP courses.

At the kiosk, which houses a barbecue and bar with light lunches, seasonal salads, oven-fresh bakery goods, and – in the evenings – barbecue specialties.

In Winter Seebad Enge operates as a sauna with hot drinks available although you can still swim from the sauna area. This is a bathing-costume-free-zone with different times available for women only, with a chance to take a dip in the lake. Brrrrrrr.

Walk 2:

Walking Tour Centred around the university and Niederdorf

A. This walk starts with a short trip up the lovingly renovated Polybahn – a small funicular.

View from Zurich University Terrace Photo by A. Leggett

B. The impressive Federal Institute of Technology was constructed in 1864. You can enjoy views over Zurich from the Poly Terrace directly in front of the main building. From here it is easy to find a spot on the terrace to sit and eat, drink, read or take photos. There is a students cafe called bQm Kulture with seating on a large terrace. It is directly below the Poly terrace. This is a relaxed buffet style cafe which anyone can visit. The UZH (University of Zurich) building next door is no less impressive.

C. There is a Zoological Museum in the university buildings. The City Campus of the University of Zurich and so also the Zoological Museum were built by the architect Karl Moser (1860-1936) and opened in 1914. About 70 years later, architect Ernst Gisel was asked to make much more space inside without changing the outer appearance of the landmark building. He built a “house within a house”, supported on a reinforced concrete structure with four pillars. Suspended to this frame is a large lecture hall for 400 people, as well as a library and reading rooms that are flooded with natural light. The new Zoological and Paleontological Museum was re-opened on July 4, 1991. This space receives approximately 140,000 visitors a year! So very popular. For opening hours including an restrictions or changes due to the current COVID situation please see the University of Zurich Zoological Museum website.

D: Rechberggarten is a park that is spread over various levels, offering great views of the spires of Zürich’s old town. There are plenty of places to sit and various different garden plots to enjoy. This is a nice diversion to make on your way down to Niederdorf.

E: Once crossing Hirschengraben, you will find yourself on Neumarkt. A quiet pedestrian street at the edge of the old town. This street has gift shops, antique shops, art galleries, a small Italian fruit and veggie diary (which I found to have lovely homemade Bircher Muesli) and some restaurants and cafes. This splits off to Spiegelgasse which has an enclosed leafy park area and more specialty shops. You will end up in a small square with a fountain and some interesting historical buildings.

F: Napfgasse leads to a main pedestrian street called Münstergasse. Turn right and you will get to the more edgy side of Niederdorf, turn left; the more trendy side. Before going onto this street it is a good idea to check out the cafe set back from the street. This is Cafe 1842 im Haus Conditorei Schober. A historical cafe, bakery and gift shop with a fantastical feel about it. I have mentioned it in detail in my cafe and restaurant section.

Conditorei 1842 Schober Photo by A.Leggett

G: From here you can make your way to the foot of Grossmünster and climb the tower for a fantastic view over Lake Zürich and the old town districts. Close to the Grossmünster is Limmatquai, a narrow riverside road used mainly by trams. There are plenty of options from here to catch a tram back to the main station (e.g No. 4) or another part of the city.