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Flights to Zurich
Places in Switzerland
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Zurich is Switzerland’s largest city, though contrary to popular belief it is not the capital city; a privilege which falls to Bern.
Situated in the north central part of the country, the city sits on Lake Zurich where the lake meets the Limmat River. Zurich International Airport is the country’s largest and busiest and so is well served for flights from the UK. The national airline is Swiss, who fly from Heathrow and London City airport though you can also choose from British Airways and a selection of other scheduled airlines. In addition, Easyjet has recently resumed their service to Zurich, having had a three year absence, and flies direct from Luton.
City Attractions
Zurich is divided into east and west by the Limmat River. On the east side, which is the more hilly of the two, you will find the older parts of the city, with quaint streets in the Old Town. The west side is the modern heart of Zurich and also home to most of the city’s churches.The old town contains the majority of the sights of interest to visitors. For a wonderful view of the city, climb the tower in Grossmünster, the Romanesque church, or to find out more about Switzerland’s history and culture, visit the Landesmuseum, Zurich’s history museum.
There are many things you can do outdoors, especially in the summer months, such as walk along the Lake Promenade; take the Polybahn, a 19th century funicular, up the hill for great views; hike up, or take a train up Uetilberg, one of the hills overlooking the city which has a viewing tower at the top; or take a trip on one of the old steam ships on the Zürichsee. You can also use the free bicycles which you can get from various locations around Zurich, though the roads can be quite hazardous.
In the winter you can take the ski-train from Zurich. Buying a snow’n’rail ticket is good value as it combines both the train fare and the ski pass. The closest large resort is Flumserberg. It’s not exactly the Matterhorn, but is popular with the locals and has a good range of difficulties!
The Bahnhofstrasse is great for shopping, or perhaps window shopping! It’s renowned as being one of the most expensive and exclusive shopping streets in the world.
The most common purchases, other than fur coats and diamond rings, are chocolate, Swiss watches and Swiss army knives, which are available all over Zurich.
Zurich also has a vibrant night life; you’ll find more clubs per capita here than anywhere else in Europe. The Zurich West quarter is a good place to go for the night life, although there are also many bars, restaurants and café’s located all over the city.
To see the seedier side of Zurich, go to Langstrasse – the red light district. This is a busy street for night-life, though despite being the red light district is still such a clean and safe place to go. Zurich has, after all, been voted the city with the best quality of life in the world on several occasions, and this area is no exception!
When should you visit?
Zurich is a city which is great at any time of the year. In the winter you have skiing nearby, though it is cold. The coldest month is January, when the average low is -11C (13F).From May right through to September the temperatures are very pleasant. July and August are the hottest months with average daytime highs of 29C (84F), though June and August also have the most rainfall.