Winterthur
Winterthur is a cultural city with many different museums, among them the Oskar Reinhart Museum am Römerholz exhibiting modern art, the Technorama science centre and the Fotostiftung Schweiz showing Swiss and European photography. It is Switzerland's 6th biggest city, with a population of 112,000 in 2018.
Understand
In the late 19th and early 20th century, local companies such as Rieter and Sulzer turned the formally quiet little town into a booming industrial city with an incredible wealth and ever-growing workforce. Diesel engines built in Winterthur powered large ships on all seven seas, while Winterthur-built textile appliances were in service worldwide.
Starting in the 1970s and 80s, blue collar jobs started to be outsourced to countries with lower wages and unemployment rose in Winterthur. Factories were standing still and entire neighborhoods turned into "ghost towns".
However, the IT and Telco boom, and smart decisions by the local authorities have helped to redevelop those areas into new economy and urban lifestyle areas with many offices, restaurants, schools and a go-kart racing track.
- Tourist Information, House of Winterthur (in thevtrain station (Hauptbahnhof)), ☏ +41 52 208 01 01, touristinfo@houseofwinterthur.ch. M-F 09:30-18:30, Sa 09:30-16:00.
Get in
By train
There are direct trains to 1 Winterthur train station - from Zurich, Zurich Airport, Berne, Geneva, St. Gallen, Schaffhausen, Basel and Munich. Winterthur is only 20 minutes away from Zurich or 15 minutes from the Zurich Airport.
Timetables
- Swiss Federal Railway[dead link] for national and international trains.
- Public transportation company of the Canton Zurich (local buses, boats on the lake of Zurich, trains)
By car
Use the highway from Zurich, St.Gallen, Kreuzlingen or Schaffhausen.
Get around
Public transport
Public Transport in the canton of Zurich has useful information on getting around and what to do in the canton of Zurich. Use the Swiss Federal Railway Site for Public transport and its fares in Switzerland.
Local car rentals
- There is Mietauto AG in Töss, take Bus 5 to the station "Schwimmbad". The car rental is on the other side of the bridge.
- Künzli Autovermietung AG at the railway station in Oberwinterthur
- Hertz is right in the city centre at the Kasernengarage.
- Miet-Transporter in Winterthur Hegi next by the MediaMarkt Shop (Hintermühlenstrasse 4, 8409 Winterthur
See
There are 17 museums in Winterthur. Here [dead link] you can find more.
- 1 Technorama - Swiss Science Centre. 10:00-17:00. A good place to spend a rainy day with kids. Lots of hands-on experiments. It offers an experimental environment to improve visitors' knowledge about natural phenomena in a self-directed way. There are over 500 exhibits respectively "experiment stations" and wide-ranging "laboratory facilities". Technorama claims to be "one of the largest – and on account of its quality and its exemplary informal educational function – most renowned science centres in the world".
- 2 The Oskar Reinhart Collection (Am Römerholz). Comprises around 200 works by European artists spanning the period from late Gothic to the threshold of modern art, with particular emphasis on 19th-century French painting.
- 3 Castle Kyburg. A castle first mentioned in 1024 now showing how people lived there around said epoch.
Do
- Lake Zurich. Boat trips on this nearby lake are enjoyable.
- CityStroll. 3 hours. English speaking tour through Winterthur including two bar stops. Fr. 25.
- Football: FC Winterthur play soccer in Swiss Super League, the country's top tier. Their home ground Stadion Schützenwiese (capacity 8550) is just west of town centre.
Learn
The most famous school of Winterthur is the ZHAW - Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften, which offers mostly technical courses. They also offer some limited language courses. Contact them on their website, if you're interested in studying in Winterthur.
Eat
Budget
Try the Migros Restaurant (nice Wintergarden) at the Neuwiesencenter or the Coop Restaurant in the Manor Shopping Center on the 2nd floor. Both are self-service and close to the railway station.
For Take-Away food, you can also go for Migros (same place as Restaurant) and have some salad or noodles, usually around Fr. 6. They have a small coffee there, in which you're welcome to enjoy the food. They also offer pizza, sandwiches and other food, like the famous Swiss "Wähe" (pie) with all kinds of taste, from sweet over salty to spicy. Give it a try, if you like some Swiss food, and not international fast-food.
McDonald's, on the other side of the bus station right at the train station, offers you the usual food you're used to everywhere. Keep in mind that a menu costs you somewhere between Fr. 11 to 14, so a visit in Migros Restaurant is usually cheaper.
Different kebab take-away places, giving you a large variety of mostly Turkish specialities. For a regular "Döner Kebap", you will pay somewhere between Fr. 7 and 8. If you like hot sandwiches, consider Papaya and Sandwiches Kandil, where you get a big, hand crafted one with your chosen ingredients for Fr. 10.
Mid-range
In the ancient part of the city, there are several good restaurants: Trübli, Rössli, Akazie, National, Strauss (all with international kitchen). Swiss specialities are available in Walliser Kanne (Fondue, Raclette) and Sonne (Roesti).
- Restaurant Tandoor, Schützenstrasse 43. Best Indian food at very affordable price. Don't forget to order Tandoori chicken.
Splurge
Schloss Wülflingen, Taggenberg
Drink
- plan b, Zuercherstrasse 7, 8400 Winterthur, ☏ +41 522032800. Stylish bar close to the mainstation.
- Fahrenheit, Steinberggasse 65, 8400 Winterthur, ☏ +41 52 202 20 00. Modern bar. Best cocktails in town. Try their whisky sour! Food at lunchtime, good vegetarian meals. Very good tea. Come early at weekends.
- Archbar (Archstrasse 2 8400 Winterthur).
Sleep
Budget
- 1 Depot 195, Lagerplatz 4, ☏ +41 52 203 13 63, info@depot195.ch. Check-out: 10:00. Hostel with both dorm and rooms. From Fr. 36 for dorm..
Mid-range
- Hotel Ibis (From central station take bus Nr. 1 Töss-bound till "Loki")
- 2 Park Hotel, Stadthausstrasse 4, fax: +41 52 265 02 75, welcome@phwin.ch. The four-star hotel enjoys a unique location in the heart of the idyllic city park, only a few steps away from Winterthur's charming old town. Also bookable online on www.SwissQualityHotels.com
Splurge
Connect
As of June 2022, Winterthur has 5G from all Swiss carriers. Wifi is widely available in public places.
Go next
- Zürich is the big city 20 km southwest.
- Schaffhausen stands in a salient of Switzerland north of the Rhine. The Rhine Falls are the big attraction.
- Konstanz is the pleasant lakeside city northeast.