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SWITZERLAND
Art Museum Winterthur
Destination Zurich
Nestling amidst hills and lakes, the Zurich region offers
a unique combination of lifestyle, indulgence, beautiful
natural surroundings, and the arts.
Museums and festivals
Zurich is the home of the Swiss National Museum, which
focuses on Switzerland’s long history, and the topnotch
local universities have their own popular museums. The
art scene in Zurich is also well developed and includes
the Löwenbräu Complex and the Kunsthaus (Museum
of Fine Arts), where the largest collection of fine art in
Switzerland is held.
Zürifäscht, a triennial public festival featuring music,
fireworks, and other attractions, is the largest public
festival in Switzerland and will be held this year July 2-4.
Zurich’s Street Parade each August is a summer highlight
and has become one of Switzerland’s premier carnivals.
Other festivals include Sechseläuten, the spring festival
of the guilds and burning of the Böögg; Zürcher Theatre
Spektakel, an international theatre festival; and Kunst
Zürich, an international contemporary art fair.
Zurich offers a tempting collection of fashionable
boutiques and art galleries, and with its multicultural population,
the city also has fine restaurants featuring cuisines
from all over the world. For music and theatre lovers, the
Zurich Opera House (Zürcher Opernhaus) is one of the
principal opera houses in Europe, and the Schauspielhaus
Zürich is the city’s main theatre complex.
Thanks to its exceptional infrastructure, the city of Zurich
makes an excellent base for touring nearby attractions as
well as Switzerland’s other cities; Berne, Basel and Lucerne
are all easily reached by train or car from Zurich.
Popular day trips
Popular destinations for day trips include touring local
vineyards and visiting picturesque towns like Uetliberg and
Winterthur. Uetliberg is only 20 minutes from Zurich’s city
centre by train (line S10), which runs twice every hour.
One of Uetliberg’s attractions is the Planetary Path (Planetenweg),
a series of free outdoor exhibits on the solar
system. The path runs along a mountain ridge and offers
spectacular views across Lake Zurich.
Winterthur, less than 30 minutes by car northeast of
Zurich’s city centre, is famous for both its financial services
and its art galleries. Many tourists come here from Zurich
to view the collection of paintings at the Sammlung Oskar
Reinhart am Römerholz on the Haldenstrasse, which
includes works by Monet, Rembrandt, Renoir, Rubens and
Van Gogh. Historic landmarks in this picturesque small
city include St. Laurenz Church, built in the middle of the
13th century. The River Eulach flows through the heart of
Winterthur.
The colourful city of Baden is also nearby; it offers Fitnesspark
Hamam Baden, where visitors can pamper
themselves with Oriental spa treatments. All around Lake
Zurich (Zürichsee) visitors will find charming villages, restaurants,
hiking trails and water sports facilities.
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