From Glaciers to Galleries: Your Swiss Ski Trip’s Unexpected Last Stop

One of the biggest advantages of a stopover in Zurich is how easy it is. Major carriers, like Delta, United and Swiss, offer direct flights from New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles and San Francisco. 

Once you land, the train from the airport to Zurich HB, the main train station, takes about 10 minutes. From the resorts, it's an easy, scenic ride:

• Zermatt is about 3 hours, with a change in Visp
• Crans Montana is about 3 hours, through Sierre
• St. Moritz is about 3.5 hours, through Chur
• Engelberg is about 2 hours, through Lucerne
• Interlaken is about 2 hours, direct or with a change in Bern

Switzerland’s most iconic resorts are all nearby, and with a handful of options, you’re sure to find one that fits your style, ability, and village vibe. 

Skiing is the part of the trip people dream about, and it should be. But by day five or six, I’m ready to switch it up and head to the city. 

After a week in the mountains, Zurich feels like a welcome change of pace with its city energy. It’s compact, walkable and built for slowing down, with a lake at its center and the Alps on the horizon. When you book two or more nights in Zurich through Ski.com, you get a free 72-hour Zurich Card. It covers trams, trains, boats and your airport transfer, plus free or discounted entry to many of the city’s museums.

Expert tip: The trams are easy, even when you venture outside the town center.  I used the Zurich Card for discounted or free entry into the Fraumünster, the Grossmünster, and the tram up to Uetliberg, where a short walk took us to the Uto Kulm Hotel and Restaurant, with stunning views of the city. It’s a great option for New Year’s fireworks.

Zurich has one of Europe’s best art and museum scenes, and you can cover a lot of ground in just a few days. 

Kunsthaus Zürich is the largest art museum in Switzerland. The David Chipperfield extension opened in 2021, and the collection runs from Monet and Munch to the biggest Giacometti collection anywhere. I could spend a full afternoon there, and I usually do.

The Swiss National Museum sits right next to the main station in a fairy-tale castle from 1898, all towers and courtyards. Inside are suits of armor, medieval altars and centuries of Swiss history. It’s a great first stop when you step off the train from the mountains.

The Fraumünster is a short walk across the river. Its choir windows were designed by Marc Chagall, and on a bright winter morning, the blues are something else. It takes 20 minutes and stays with you for the rest of the trip.

ETH – Institute of Technology is where Einstein was a student and then a professor – you can visit Einstein’s locker there, and it’s an easy funicular ride from Old Town.

For a night out, catch a performance at the neo-baroque Opernhaus (possibly the most beautiful building in Zurich) or hear the Tonhalle-Orchester in its gilded 1895 concert hall on the water.

Expert tip: If contemporary art is more your speed, head to Zurich West. Löwenbräukunst, a former brewery turned gallery complex, is a short tram ride from the center.

Here’s the part my clients thank me for. Hürlimannbad & Spa Zürich sits inside the stone vaults of the old Hürlimann brewery, and the rooftop thermal pool looks out over the city to the hills beyond. After a week of skiing, an hour in warm mineral water with a view of the rooftops is the best après I know. 

For something more traditional, Stadtbad Zürich in the Volkshaus has a hammam and spa that feels like a secret hideaway. If you’re feeling bold, try a lakeside sauna. Sweating it out, then plunging into Lake Zurich in January, is a very Swiss way to reset your legs.

Those two spas just scratch the surface of what Zurich has to offer. There’s grand hotels with spas to match their glamour and wellness centers sprinkled across the entire city.

Zurich is one of Europe’s best food cities, and it ranges from Michelin-starred tasting menus to cozy fondue cellars and century-old brasseries.

Kronenhalle is a Zurich institution with original Picassos, Mirós and Chagalls on the walls, and the Zürcher Geschnetzeltes with rösti is the move. I can help you snag a reservation ahead of time.

For fondue, I send clients to Le Dézaley in the Niederdorf, a warm, wood-paneled spot that’s been serving Swiss classics for generations. For a splurge, Maison Manesse is one of the city’s Michelin-starred standouts.

Spend mornings exploring Zurich’s rich café scene. Locals and visitors alike appreciate a cup of coffee in the morning, so carve out time for slow mornings of coffee-shop hopping. 

And of course there’s the chocolate. Stop at Sprüngli on Paradeplatz for a box of Luxemburgerli to bring home. Or take a short trip to the Lindt Home of Chocolate in Kilchberg, where a 30-foot chocolate fountain greets you at the door.

Expert tip: For a casual lunch, head to the Im Viadukt market hall under the old railway arches in Zurich West. Local cheese, bread and wine are all under one roof.

Zurich rewards wandering. Walk the narrow lanes of the Niederdorf on the east side of the river. Climb up to Lindenhof for a view over the Limmat and the Old Town. Then walk the lakefront in the late afternoon, when the light goes gold over the water and, on a clear day, the Alps line the horizon.

For the big view, take the train up the Uetliberg, Zurich’s local mountain, which is about 20 minutes from the main station. From the top, the whole city, the lake and the snowy peaks beyond are laid out in front of you. Or hop on a boat for a winter cruise on Lake Zurich, with a hot drink in hand and the mountains in the distance.

That lakefront view gets me every time. You can stand by Lake Zurich and see the mountains you just skied.

The activities, restaurants and experiences above only scratch the surface of what Zurich offers (we didn’t even cover shopping. The Bahnhofstrasse, for instance, is a pedestrian-friendly street with some of the most well-known designer shops, from chocolates to Chanel.) Luckily, you don’t have to do any internet sleuthing to figure out what fits for your trip or your group. I’m happy to create a dream ski vacation with a Zurich layover based on your preferences and vacation goals, all for free.