Getting Around Zurich: An Overview
Zurich is famous for its highly efficient, clean and safe public transport system, managed by the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund (ZVV), which covers the entire canton of Zurich and extends into nearby regions. The network includes trams, buses, S-Bahn (suburban trains), cable cars, and boats. The size and complexity of the network may be daunting at first, but you will soon realize that there are many ways to get from one place to another, all efficient.
Zurich is also a hub for railways, roads, and air traffic, and both Zurich Airport and Zurich's main railway station are the largest and busiest in the country. That makes it easy to arrive and then move around without a car.
Rail, S-Bahn and Trams
The backbone of local travel is the S-Bahn commuter rail network, complemented by trams that thread through the city streets. Zürich HB (Hauptbahnhof), the main train station, sits in the city centre at the end of Bahnhofstrasse, with easy access to mass transit. It is served by the local S-Bahn commuter trains as well as long-distance connections throughout Switzerland and to neighbouring countries, including Germany's IC and ICE, France's TGV Lyria, Austria's Railjet, and Italy. Some direct connections reach as far as Budapest, and ÖBB Nightjets still link Austria and Germany with Zurich, while non-nightjet sleeper trains run from Prague and Budapest.
Inside the main station, platforms are split between aboveground and underground levels. Platforms 3 to 18 are aboveground. Underground, platforms 41–44 are below ground on the northeastern end of the station (follow signs toward "Landesmuseum"), platforms 31–34 are in the middle of the station (follow signs toward "Löwenstrasse"), and platforms 21–22 (only used by the S4 and S10) are on the southwestern end. An interactive map is available to help you find your way.
Trams are the workhorse for short city hops, and the same ticket covers them along with every other mode of transport within your chosen zones.
Buses, Boats and Other Public Transport
Buses fill in the gaps the rails and trams don't reach, and the ZVV network also includes cable cars and boats. Boats are a genuinely scenic option: it is possible to reach Zurich by boat on the lake from Rapperswil or Horgen, though this is more of a leisure boat and only offers a couple of trips each day. For inter-city coach travel, the bus station at Sihlquai sits two blocks from the main train station, near the confluence of the Sihl and Limmat, and mainly serves international routes by Flixbus and BlaBlaCar. It is essentially a parking lot next to a gas station and is not open 24/7.
Tickets and Passes
The Zurich transit system is divided into numerous fare zones. A ticket for zone 110, which covers the city proper, will suffice for most travelers. The more zones you pass through, the more you'll have to pay for your journey. Each zone has the same price, except Zurich (110) and Winterthur (120), which cost double.
Ticket types include single tickets, punch cards (Mehrfahrtkarten, which provide six rides for the price of five), day cards (designed for round trips and valid for 24 hours), monthly cards, and annual cards. The monthly and annual cards are collectively referred to as the ZVV NetzPass.
- Where to buy: Tickets can be purchased from a ticket vending machine before boarding or from one of the ticket selling kiosks in major train stations. The machines are in German, English, French and Italian and offer almost all regular tickets available (not personal tickets though). Simply enter your destination and pick a ticket.
- Choosing a ticket: The machine may suggest several routes, of which you generally want to pick the cheapest one – never pick the "All zones" option unless you actually intend to pass through eight or more zones.
- Apps: Tickets and timetable information for Switzerland are available on sbb.ch or via the SBB Mobile app (iOS, Android), which requires a working internet connection. Alternatively, use ZVV's own timetable app or purchase tickets with the ZVV-Tickets app. The free Wemlin app (iOS, Android) gives you offline access to timetable information and network maps for the canton of Zurich area without internet connection, ideal for on-the-go use if you don't want to use data roaming.
- Pay-as-you-go: You may want to consider using the EasyRide function of the SBB Mobile app, which allows you to "check-in" to rides and calculates the cheapest ticket charge at the end of the day. Both the ZVV and the SBB app provide a "check-in/check-out" mechanism: check in before you start your trip, check out when you end your trip. The best-priced ticket for your day is computed at the end of the day and charged on the following day. It does require data access and localization, as well as a means of payment (typically credit card) added to the app.
- Important: It is very important to check in before the time of departure of the means of transportation you enter, as fines may be issued otherwise.
Your ticket gives you access to all modes of transport within the selected zones, at any time of day or night. If you're staying for a longer period, consider a monthly ZVV NetzPass.
Taxis and Ride-Hailing
What can be said is that the public transport network is described as efficient, clean and safe, and that driving into the city brings its own headaches: parking is hard to get at affordable rates, so it might be faster and more convenient to travel by public transport. For most visitor trips within the city, the tram, bus and S-Bahn network will cover your needs.
Walkability
Zurich's compact centre is well suited to walking. The main train station sits at the end of Bahnhofstrasse in the heart of the city, with easy access to mass transit, and the inter-city bus station at Sihlquai is just two blocks from the main train station. The train station and its connecting underground mall has shops, restaurants, and a grocery store which locals use when they need to do Sunday shopping, as it is not subject to the closing hours laws otherwise in force in the city. Just to the east of the train station on the Bahnhofbrücke bridge, there is a large Coop supermarket open Monday to Saturday till 22:00. These short, walkable connections between the station, the river, and the shopping streets make the centre easy to explore on foot, with trams and buses available whenever you'd rather ride.
Getting from the Airport into the City
Zurich Airport (ZRH) is Switzerland's largest and busiest airport, located in the community of Kloten. It is a short train ride from the main station, and the train is the most straightforward way into town.
- By train: The airport is 10 minutes by train from the main station. Trains depart about every 10–15 minutes during the day, but less frequently at earlier or later hours. A single ticket to Zürich HB (the Hauptbahnhof, or main station) costs Fr. 6.80.
- By tram: There is also tram 10 from Zurich terminating at the airport. It is a rather slow option, but it might be faster door to door for some destinations in Zurich.
- By bus: Several bus lines connect to the airport and provide access to the Winterthur region near it.
- Hotel shuttles: Almost every large hotel in Zurich provides shuttle buses from the airport to your hotel. The stops for these buses are a short walk to the right from Terminal 1 arrivals.
Most major airlines fly to Zurich, but flag-carrier Swiss is still the biggest player at ZRH and offers the widest range of connections. Zurich Airport has high passenger costs due to several noise reduction and approach restrictions, and most no-frills airlines fly to Basel instead, which is 1 hour away by train; EasyJet offers several flights to Germany, the UK and Southern Europe.
Two practical notes for airport users: Zurich Airport offers free WiFi for all guests for a maximum of two hours, requiring a mobile phone capable of receiving texts in Switzerland – travelers connect to the "ZurichAirport" network and register their cell phone number, then receive the access code by text message, with a five-hour waiting period before the next free hour. And if you are travelling without a Schengen Visa to another destination in Europe via Zurich airport and are not a European citizen, you must not stay in Europe for longer than 90 days, even if your final destination would allow citizens of your country to stay for more than 90 days; failure to do so will lead to very high fines (around €8100) should you try to leave Europe via Zurich airport.
Arriving by Train or Car
Regular trains to and from other Swiss and European cities leave from and arrive at Zürich HB in the city centre. Domestic train tickets within Switzerland are available through the SBB website, though there are few early bird discounts. International tickets can sometimes be bought through the SBB as well, but often you can get better offers through the DB website (Germany), the SNCF website (France), or the websites of ÖBB and Trenitalia for Austria and Italy respectively. All adjacent railways have (sometimes significant) discounts for early booking on international trains, so if you know your plans far in advance, by all means book early. There are some 24-hour lockers in level B1 available for Fr. 6–9 per 24 hr (maximum 3 days).
By car, the region around Zurich has probably the highest density of highways in the country, which makes it very convenient to access. A1 goes past Zurich just north of the city, with two feeders into the city centre; A3 and A4 end just south of the city; and the regional highways A51, A52 and A53 all also lead to Zurich. While this makes it that there are many ways to drive into the city from every direction, it also means that there is a lot of congestion, especially during morning and evening hours. Parking is also hard to get at affordable rates, so it might therefore be faster and more convenient to travel by public transport.