France, Italy, Austria and Germany. I’ve been to all these neighbouring countries of Switzerland so many times and to so many different places, but Switzerland itself … only a few times. (OK, I haven’t ever been Liechtenstein, the fifth neighbouring country either 😀 ). Why is that?
Well. Since I’ve started working for the Swiss-based agency Primus Communications earlier this year, my focus has gradually shifted in favour of further discoveries in Switzerland (beyond my trip to CERN in Geneva and a visit to Disentis Monastery). Through the Instagram account of the Swiss Quality Hotels, I am getting to know more and more special regions and places in Switzerland. And once a year, our Swiss colleagues organise a summer aperitif, a company event for customers and employees. The perfect occasion thus to go to Zurich! So what to do with kid and granddad in tow? Here’s a few ideas.
Great views in Switzerland: the view from Zurich’s local mountain, the Uetliberg (pronounced U-Etliberg;), extends far beyond the city of Zurich and Lake Zurich.
Taking the tram up Uetliberg hill (complete with playground and sequoia tree avenue).
“From this place called ‘meeting point’ at Zurich main station, we can be up Uetliberg hill in less than half an hour”, says fellow Swiss blogger Jérôme, whom I know from a trip to Lignano earlier in the spring. As a dad of three (his youngest, Maurice, is with us that day), he knows where to go with kids, not only in his home town of Zurich, but also in the rest of Switzerland.
The bright red Uetliberg cable car takes us to the summit plateau in what feels like no time at all. We start with some magnificent 360° panoramic views over Zurich and the surrounding region.
Afterwards, there’s an ice cream for the children and an insider tip for us: Hohensteinplatz playground in the forest below the summit as well as the so-called sequoia tree avenue! Both places are located not far from Ringlikon train stop, about 20 minutes’ walk below the Uetliberg summit. Good to know: All paths through the forest are also easily accessible with pushchairs or scooters.
The views from Uetliberg hill are just fantastic …
… the kids love their time at Hohenstein playground there …
… and only a few minutes from there, we are welcomed to a tree alley of a kind …
… thank you so much for sharing this special spot, the sequoia tree path in Zurich with us, dear Jérôme, dear Maurice!
Meininger Hotel Zurich Green City West: A perfect base for our family trip to Zurich.
We chose the family-friendly Meininger Hotel Zurich Green City West after having had a really good experience with “its cousin in Bordeaux”, another hotel belonging to the same group.
Our family room with breakfast, the bright and welcoming common areas and the excellent location of the hotel (just a few stops on the S4 from Zurich main station) were a real bonus to us. We would come back here any time.
Arriving at the Meininger Hotel in Zurich …
… we were treated to a lovely little welcome gift box in our room …
… I really like the hotel group’s motto very much, a successful mix of hotel and hostel …
… here’s a view of what’s for breakfast in the morning …
… and the common spaces, sharing the “circular economy concept” of the entire Zurich Greencity district: Sustainable urban development with a focus on renewable energies.
Zurich Zoo: Perfect escape from a hot, summery downtown Zurich.
Other friends of mine, Barbara and Peter Ackermann (I know Barbara from a language study trip to Salerno in Italy!) have agreed to get on the train from Uzweil to Zurich only to spend the day with us at Zurich Zoo – yay! On the hot summer day of our visit at the end of August, it was the perfect suggestion – much better than spending the day in the hot city centre. The zoo is located above the city on the Zürichberg, at the end of tram line 6, making it a direct connection from the main railway station.
It really deserves an all-day visit, such is the size of its grounds and the extensive enclosures for almost 400 different animal species. We were there for less than six hours and still didn’t see everything. What with all the exotic animals, several bistros organised according to different world regions and the many playgrounds on offer, the day passed in a flash.
Welcome to Zurich Zoo: Thank you so much for coming out to see and the spend the day with us, dear Barbara, dear Peter!
Liam and I particularly enjoyed the spacious monkey enclosure with the extremely funny animals scampering around …
… as well as the mighty elephants passing us by.
Refreshments are up on offer in the African savanna …
… and right next to one of the many playgrounds …
… Liam even gets to steer his own digger!
Zurich by night: Down by the lake and up high in the streets.
Thanks to my dad taking care of young Liam, I have some time to spare getting to know Zurich by night with my colleagues and friends in town. Here are two restaurant tips at lofty heights for you:
- Trattoria Pizzeria Da Michele near Binz tram stop: authentic Italian, beautiful terrace high above the rooftops of the city, great view of the Uetliberg hill and Zurich itself.
- Hiltl Dachterrasse vegetarian restaurant near the main railway station: located on the fifth floor of a shopping centre, the food is excellent – also for kids. Highly recommend.
From the Hiltl Dachterrasse restaurant, we are drawn directly to the lake for a final round of beers in the “Bauschänzli” beer garden – not cheap, but worth it for the special occasion of seeing my Bulgarian friends Zlatina and Petko.
Happy company celebration at the Trattoria Pizzeria Da Michele in Zurich …
… with my colleagues from Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
So nice to see you again, dear Zlatina, and to finally meet you, dear Petko, in person 😉 Thanks also for the great tip about the Hiltl restaurant and its roof top terrace!
Zurich by (summer) night … pictured on the left is the Bauschänzli beer garden we’ve been to.
Night train adventure: Booking and travelling tips.
Last but not least, let me explain a little more about how we reached Zurich from Vienna (by night train) and how/if it works well also with kids. One thing I can say is this: It’s good to keep in mind that children under the age of six are not automatically allocated a seat or couchette when booking online, as they travel free of charge at this age! So we had two berths for my dad and me, but Liam (aged five) didn’t have a couchette of his own (I would have had to enter this separately in the booking process). It’s a good thing we’re both small 🙂 and so were able to share a couchette, with both of us sleeping quite well on the train.
On the outward journey to Zurich, we got lucky and caught a new Nightjet generation: the 4-seater couchette compartments were bright, modern and very comfortably furnished; the 6-seater compartment on the return journey was exactly what I remember from 20+ years ago. But again, everything was fine; we slept alright, breakfast was served on time (chocolate milk for Liam every time) and both night train routes were well on time in both Zurich and Vienna.
I can therefore only recommend the night train to you: We would definitely do it again, even or especially with children also!
View into the modern compartment in the couchette coach of the ÖBB Nightjet from Vienna to Zurich (journey time approx. 12 hours).
It’s just so exciting that I get to sleep on the train, he says again and again!
Breakfast is served after we’ve crossed Austria “in our sleep”.
Bye bye Nightjet, Grüezi Zurich!
Disclaimer: We’ve been invited by Meininger Hotels for staying at the Meininger Hotel Zurich Green City West. All opinions are my own.