Travels in Switzerland: Zurich, Lugano, Basel

Dating back to prehistoric times, present day Zürich is Switzerland’s largest and most cosmopolitan city and is a global banking and finance center. The city lies at the north end of Lake Zürich in northern Switzerland. In addition to its busy international airport, Zürich is a great railway transportation hub with trains leading to all points within the country and throughout Europe.

Zurich

We walked from the train station to the Marriott Zürich Hotel, our home for the night. It was early afternoon and we were leaving the next morning for Italy, so with little time we kept our touring to the old town and the lake … all within an easy walk from the hotel.

At the time we were there a lot of construction and digging up of roads was taking place, making our walk to the Altstadt (Old Town) a little more difficult. Once there we found picturesque, pre-medieval lanes running along the Limmat River. We wandered around, admiring the shops and old buildings, then settled along the pretty riverfront for a bite to eat and a glass of wine.

Refreshed, we headed off to Lake Zürich for an hour and a half boat tour around the lake. Not quite as dramatic as the scenery around Lake Lucerne, it was still a pretty and pleasant way to spend a late afternoon.

Lugano's Bustling Piazza della Riforma

We didn’t have the time to spend in modern Zürich, but we enjoyed the old town and the lake area and were glad we decided to spend a night there. Our trip to Switzerland came to an end the next morning as we headed to Lake Como via the Zürich to Milan train line.

On a previous visit to Lake Como we took a side trip to Lugano, Switzerland by bus from the town of Menaggio. Lugano sits on a glacial lake of the same name, surrounded by mountains, in southern Switzerland’s Italian-speaking Ticino region.

The lake itself resides part in Switzerland and part in Italy. The Swiss-Mediterranean culture is evident in the architecture, culture and cuisine of Lugano and the region of Ticino.

Lake Lugano

Having been to many of the charming towns of the Italian lakes of Como, Garda, Maggiore, and Iseo; I was expecting Lugano to be similar. It is, in fact, quite different as it is a larger city filled with offices, banks and high-end stores. The old town, bordering the lake, is the nicest part of the city.

The main hub of activity, Piazza della Riforma, is ringed with geranium-covered, pastel, neoclassical buildings, including the municipio (city hall). The square is lined with busy outdoor cafés and plays host to the local market and a variety of festivals throughout the year.

A short stroll down Via Canova takes visitors to the manicured city park and lake shore promenade. The park is lush with trees from around the world, colorful flower beds, and art sculptures. The lovely promenade is perfect for a pleasant long walk along the water’s edge, passing by boat docks, graceful floating swans, and a whale of a tail sculpture.

Abundance of Flowers Along Lake Lugano

We stopped for lunch at La Tinera, a cozy restaurant located in an old wine cellar. Full of atmosphere with its red tiled floor, walls laden with wine bottles, and heavy wooden tables and chairs; we found the service to be attentive and our meals enjoyable. I thought that the mushroom risotto was particularly good … creamy and delicious. Portions were generous and the prices were fair.

On another side trip, this time from Colmar, France, we visited the Swiss town of Basel. Basel is Switzerland’s third largest city and sits on the Rhine River in northwest Switzerland bordering both France and Germany. It is an easy trip from other points within Switzerland as well as towns in eastern France and southwest Germany.

Usually a sunny part of the country, we hit a wet spring day for our walk around town, making everything appear to be a bit drab. Basel’s setting isn’t as dramatic as some other Swiss towns … no showy mountain peaks or alpine lakes. Cut by the river and hilly in places, it feels a little like the capital city of Bern.

 Rhine River in Basel

For lovers of culture and fine art, the city offers a vast selection of some 40 museums to enjoy. Twenty kilometers east along the river sits the Roman settlement of Augusta Raurica, an archaeological site and open-air museum.

The center of the medieval old town is the busy Marktplatz, which is dominated by the 16th-century, red-sandstone Town Hall. At its base, market stalls appear with vendors selling their fresh fruits, vegetables, and flowers to their loyal patrons.

The original Basel cathedral was destroyed by an earthquake in 1356 and was rebuilt in the Romanesque and Gothic styles. Typical of Swiss Cathedrals, it turned protestant during the reformation.

Town Hall and Markets in Basel's Markplatz

For the kids, the city has a nice zoo with a wide variety of animals and a children’s zoo.

Switzerland is indeed an incredibly beautiful country offering something for everyone, especially sports enthusiasts who love mountain and water sports. Everything is tidy, clean and efficient; like a Swiss knife or watch.

As pretty as the country is … and as nice as the towns are … there seems to be something missing. I loved our visit and was happy to see so much in a relatively short period of time, but I think, for me, what it lacks is a little of the ‘joie de vivre’ that its neighbors in Italy and France enjoy. Maybe I’m into the more rustic charm with a little grittiness thrown in for good measure, I don’t know, but the Mediterranean countries beckon more to my spirit.