Lake Zurich Promenades, Bürkliplatz & Boat Cruises

Extending southeast from the city of Zurich across the cantons of Zurich, St. Gallen, and Schwyz, Lake Zurich (Zürichsee) is a glacial lake carved by the Rhine-Linth glacier and fed by the Linth River, which rises in the Glarus Alps around the 3,614-metre peak of the Tödi. Divided at the Hurden peninsula and the Seedamm causeway into the Lower Lake (unterer Zürichsee) and Upper Lake (Obersee), its waters exit at the northwestern tip beneath the Quaibrücke in central Zurich to become the 35-kilometre Limmat River. For visitors, the lakefront basin forms an open-air living room where historic parks, boat piers, and wooden swimming bathhouses meet the Altstadt.

Bürkliplatz and the 1881 to 1887 Lakeshore Promenades

Immediately west of the Quaibrücke, at the southern foot of Bahnhofstrasse, lies Bürkliplatz. Named after engineer Arnold Bürkli, the square and the adjoining lakeshore promenades (Quaianlagen, spanning Utoquai on the east shore and General-Guisan-Quai and Mythenquai on the west shore) were constructed between 1881 and 1887 by reclaiming land along the shallow shoreline. On the lakefront Bürkliterrasse, inaugurated in 1887 and shaded by ball maples, stands Hermann Hubacher's 1952 sculpture Abduction from Olympus (depicting Zeus as an eagle with Ganymede), while the monumental Geiserbrunnen fountain sculpted by Jakob Brüllmann was inaugurated on 20 October 1911 through a 40,000-franc bequest from former city architect Arnold Geiser.

Behind the pier, the tree-lined Stadthausanlage square hosts a popular weekly market on Fridays and a flea market (Flohmärt) on Saturdays, with the historic Music Pavilion and the bastioned island terrace of Bauschänzli nearby. Built in the seventeenth century as part of the baroque river fortifications, the tree-shaded Bauschänzli island sits at the head of the Limmat just north of the bridge and hosts open-air beer gardens and seasonal gatherings surrounded by water on all sides. From the stone balustrade at Bürkliplatz, sightlines stretch down the full length of the lower lake basin toward the snow-capped peaks of the Glarus Alps on clear days.

ZSG Lake Cruises and Limmat River Boats

Bürkliplatz is the primary landing stage for the Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft (ZSG), the Lake Zurich navigation company, and connects directly with VBZ tram lines 2, 5, 8, 9, and 11 as well as regional buses 161 and 165. From the Bürkliplatz piers, passenger vessels, including historic paddle steamers such as the Stadt Zürich, sail southeast past Kilchberg (for the Lindt Home of Chocolate), the Au peninsula between Wädenswil and Horgen, and the islands of Ufenau and Lützelau to Rapperswil and Schmerikon.

Because low medieval bridges cross the Limmat through the old town, ZSG also operates low-profile motor boats (Limmatschiffe) on a scenic loop between the Swiss National Museum, Limmatquai, Bürkliplatz, and Zürichhorn. Standard ZVV zonal tickets are valid on both the river boats and lake cruises within the corresponding tariff zones. Travellers short on time can choose a short circular cruise around the lower basin, while half-day passengers can sail all the way to the medieval rose gardens of Rapperswil and return to the city by S-Bahn train along the shore. On board the larger lake vessels, upper sun decks and dining saloons allow passengers to watch lakeside vineyards, church steeples, and wooded hills glide past.

West Shore: Arboretum, Mythenquai, and Enge

Walking southwest from Bürkliplatz along General-Guisan-Quai brings you past the floral clock at the Schanzengraben moat outflow into the Arboretum Zürich, an English-style lakeside parkland laid out between 1881 and 1887 that houses botanical tree collections, geological erratic boulders, a bird sanctuary, and an aviary. Further along Mythenquai in the Enge district, green sunbathing lawns, weeping willows, and sandy beach areas look across the water toward the eastern hills, passing the lakeside bathhouse at Strandbad Mythenquai, quiet yacht harbours, and historic villas before reaching the Enge residential quarter. Along the shoreline path, wooden benches, swimming ladders, and pedal-boat rental piers invite visitors to linger by the clear water throughout the afternoon, while a lakeside succession garden displays marsh and water plants native to the pre-alpine basin.

East Shore: Seebad Utoquai and Zürichhorn

Across the Quaibrücke past Sechseläutenplatz and the 1891 Opernhaus Zürich, the eastern promenade of Utoquai leads through the Seefeld quarter to Seebad Utoquai, a historic wooden bathing pavilion floating on the lake where locals swim and sunbathe throughout the warm summer months. Continuing south along the water leads to the leafy delta park of Zürichhorn, home to lakeside kinetic sculptures by Jean Tinguely, a serene Chinese Garden gifted by Zurich's partner city Kunming, outdoor garden restaurants, and the final stop of the Limmat river boats. Near the Zürichhorn pier, architectural enthusiasts can also view the brightly enamelled steel and glass pavilion designed by Le Corbusier, which serves as a public museum dedicated to his work. Walking the full crescent from Mythenquai across the Quaibrücke to Zürichhorn is one of the finest level strolls in the city, linking boat piers, public art, botanical lawns, and quiet swimming coves along a continuous traffic-free shoreline. Even in cooler seasons, when crisp mountain air clears the southern horizon, the lakeside paths remain a favourite route for morning joggers, photographers, and families watching swans and diving ducks along the water's edge. Sunset brings warm reflections across the western shore while the lights of the opera house and old-town spires begin to glow behind the bridge.

When you choose a brief river boat loop beneath the old-town bridges or a longer steamer voyage toward the upper lake, the water offers a calm vantage point on the city and its surrounding hills. From the deck, the twin towers of the Grossmünster, the green spire of the Fraumünster, and the wooded crest of the Uetliberg align in clear succession behind the Quaibrücke. Back on shore, the level gravel paths and lakeside lawns linking Mythenquai, Bürkliplatz, Utoquai, and Zürichhorn provide an inviting setting for an unhurried afternoon walk in any season, with plenty of kiosks and benches along the water.

Before boarding a steamer at Bürkliplatz, check the departure indicator boards at the pier to see which services are operated by historic paddle ships versus modern motor vessels, as both accept the same zonal tickets and follow the scenic shoreline past lakeside parks and vineyards.