Jaw-Dropping Misbehavior Unveiled: Discover the Unforgettable Delights of River and Lake Swimming in Zürich!

This article is part of a guide to Zürich from FT Globetrotter

Zürich, 330km from the sea, is one of the world’s great urban swimming paradises.

Sure, other cities have their famous coastlines or sweeping sandy beaches — Rio, say, or Sydney — but how easy is it to actually strip off and take a dip in these without some serious forethought or travel?

In compact Zürich, by contrast, from May to October — year round, if you have the mettle — some of the cleanest, clearest urban water is never more than a few minutes’ walk away. Downtown residents padding the streets in their Speedos, or carrying huge, colourful inflatables past offices and shops, don’t get a second look in the summer months.

It was in my second year living in Zürich that I discovered the joys of the waterproof bag: a must-have accessory for any serious resident. Commuting in Zürich is painless by most standards, but drifting down the warm waters of the Limmat one evening, borne homeward by the current after a meeting in town, my work clothes rolled up in the clever satchel tethered to my ankle, was revelatory. How unfair that — being a homeworker — I couldn’t commute every day, I thought.

Zürich’s Badi-Kultur (bathing culture), as I have come to appreciate, is one of the city’s most delightful open secrets. There’s even an elegant coffee-table book on the subject. A Bad (Badi is the plural in Swiss German) simply means bath. As you would expect in Switzerland, the Badi of Zürich come with a range of facilities, but all are efficiently run, clean and easy to use.

While you can dive into the lake or river more or less anywhere you care to (except in the very centre of town, where boats make it too hazardous — though otherwise the Swiss attitude towards personal safety is thrillingly non-existent), the city is dotted with public-bathing facilities, the official Badi, which offer changing facilities, showers, refreshments and lockers, many free of charge.

The Badi are open to all — the official season starts in mid May and runs until October — and no membership or bookings are required. Most operate from around 8am or 9am until 7 or 8 in the evening.

The city of Zürich provides a handy webpage, updated daily, of water temperatures and busy-ness. (The water temperature by May is usually in the mid to high teens, and rises through the summer).

The Badi vary in style, facilities and kid-friendliness. Some are better for serious swimmers, others for heliophiles and others for spritz-o-philes.

Here are just a few of the best, which give any visitor — even those planning only a day or two in the city — no excuse not to have a swim. (Opening times given here are standardised, but may vary depending on weather conditions and time of year in the afternoons and evenings. Check the website links to confirm if in doubt.)

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Frauenbad am Stadthausquai

Stadthausquai 12, 8001 Zürich

• Good for: Taking a dip right in the heart of the city in refined surroundings

• Not so good for: Men

• Entrance: Adults (women only), SFr8 (about $9/£7); under 16s, SFr4 (about $4.50/£3.50)

• Open: Daily, 7am–7.30pm

• FYI: On Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings, the Frauenbad transforms into a giant floating bar, Barfussbar (Barefoot Bar), which is open to men as well. It’s one of the most delightful spots to sit on a hot summer evening for a drink in the city, with a rotating cast of live-music acts and DJs

• Website; Directions

The Frauenbad began life in 1837, when Zürich lifted a ban on the public bathing of women. Since it was inconceivable that women should bathe near men, a separate facility had to be constructed. The current baths — an elegant Belle Époque platform that floats on the Limmat, right in the heart of town — were built in 1888. The facility remains for women only.

There are two 30m pools, one for swimmers and one for bathing. There are shaded decks and places to stretch out in the sun. Wooden galleries shield the whole facility. There are showers and individual changing cubicles, set back from the decks behind cabana stripe curtains. A small kiosk serves drinks and snacks. Bring a book and a parasol and indulge your under-explored Merchant Ivory swimming fantasies.

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Männerbad Schanzengraben

Badweg 10, 8044 Zürich

• Good for: A calm quick dip

• Not so good for: Sunning yourself

• Entrance: Free

• Open: Daily, 11am–6.30pm

• FYI: Turns into the Rimini Bar — a waterside bar, open to all — every evening in the summer, weather permitting.

• Website; Directions

The compact men’s pool — open daytimes for men only — is set in the city moat, on the western side of the old town. The water flows continuously in from the lake, but is dammed here so the current is almost non-existent. This is a cool, sylvan spot that feels very hidden. It’s an ideal place to refresh oneself when the weather gets too sultry, as it often does in Zürich during the high summer. Zürich’s main business district — centred around Paradeplatz — is barely five minutes’ walk away.

(For more serious swimmers, right next door is Hallenbad City, an indoor chlorinated pool set in a spectacular Art Deco building.)

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Seebad Utoquai

Utoquai 50, 8008 Zürich

• Good for: Catching the evening sun, being chic

• Not so good for: Bringing your own vibe — the feel is more formal than the Letten Badi. Children are allowed, but may get bored

• Entrance: Adults, SFr8 (about $9/£7); under 16s, SFr4 (about $4.50/£3.50)

• Open: Daily, 9am–7pm

• FYI: There’s a small but well-equipped sauna facility open year round (members only), as well as massage therapists (booking essential)

• Website; Directions

Utoquai was built as a “Moorish-style” swimming pavilion in 1890 on the shore of the lake, just past the Opera House. Not much of the original aesthetic remains: the domes and mock minarets were removed in the 1940s, but other Art Nouveau flourishes endure, making this a sophisticated-feeling spot for a swim.

There are two small pools enclosed by decks — one for women and one for men (changing areas are also segregated), and steps and diving boards straight into the lake. There are two floating platforms moored 30m out in the lake itself, which swimmers can use to lounge on. There is also a mixed sauna (nudity is mandatory) and raised sun terraces to dry off on. An on-site café serves wine and snacks, with tables on the deck to drink, work or chat at in the sunshine.

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Flussbad Oberer Letten

Lettensteg 10, 8037 Zürich

• Good for: Socialising and carousing

• Not so good for: Solitude or actual exercise

• Entrance: Free

• Open: Daily, 9am–8pm

• FYI: Mixed bathing. The Letten channel can be swum in whenever you want, though facilities abide by daylight hours. The current can be very strong, making the Letten sometimes unsuitable for young children

• Website; Directions

If there is a single spot in the summer that will confound most people’s preconceptions about Zürich, this is probably it. On warm days the banks of the Letten Oberwasserkanal — the name given to the deeper channel that runs parallel to the stony Limmat river itself (it splits at a weir just after the National Museum, as it flows out of the lake) — are packed out with a sea of young sunbathers and water-lovers. By the evenings it’s a giant party. The northern bank of the channel has a number of bars along it and is generally the busier side. The southern bank of the channel (a strip of land with the actual Limmat river on its other side, which is too shallow to swim in) is dominated by the beautiful 1950s Oberer Letten pavilion, which has showers, changing facilities and mobile-phone sized lockers for valuables, all free of charge. The entrance to this is from the Lettensteg footbridge, a little downstream.

When it comes to swimming, the trick is to walk upstream as far as one can — generally towards the weir at Dynamo — and jump in, letting the current sweep you back to the spot you put down your towel. There are diving boards from the pavilion, though adventurous bathers also jump in off the bridges.

There are lifeguards during the daytime, but the overall approach to safety is refreshingly Swiss: take responsibility for yourself. The channel terminates in a small, working hydroelectric power plant. There’s nothing to stop you drifting into its intake except a single sign on the riverbank of a man twirling down the spout of a whirlpool. This sounds more dangerous than in is — there are plenty of places to get out. Just make sure you do before you go under the Kornhausbrücke, the high road bridge that spans the whole channel (and is popular with daredevil local teenagers as a jumping spot).

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Flussbad Unterer Letten

Wasserwerkstrasse 141, 8037 Zürich

• Good for: A quick refreshing dip first thing in the morning, when no one is around

• Not so good for: Lounging around on deck. The long rectangular pool — a fenced-off portion of the river — is good for swimming, but only if you’re comfortable with a (sometimes strong) current

• Entrance: Free

• Open: Daily, 9am–8pm

• FYI: Being shallower, the water here is usually warmer than in other outdoor Badi. Every July, the baths transform in the evenings into an atmospheric outdoor cinema, with the audience on the deck on one side of the channel and the screen on the other

• Website; Directions

Zürich’s oldest riverside Schwimmbad. A charming wooden deck raised relatively high above the fast-flowing Letten, right at the point where it rejoins the Limmat (a bit further downstream — the other side of the hydro plant, in fact, from Oberer Letten), this is a great place to stop for a dip if you’ve gone for a stroll down the river from town, or as a place to finish a run or a jog. Drinks and food are available from a kiosk.

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Strandbad Mythenquai and Strandbad Tiefenbrunnen

Mythenquai 95, 8002 Zürich, and Bellerivestrasse 200, 8008 Zürich

• Good for: Families

• Not so good for: Serious swimmers

• Entrance (at both): Adults, SFr8 (about $9/£7); under 16s, SFr4 (about $4.50/£3.50)

• Open: Both daily. Mythenquai, 7am–8pm; Tiefenbrunnen, 9am–8pm

• FYI: Both Badi have automated paddle-board vending machines (SFr30 an hour – about $33/£26)

• Mythenquai: Website; Directions

• Tiefenbrunnen: Website; Directions

These two “beach” Badi, one on each side of the lake, are both an equidistant short tram ride (or a walk) from the city centre. They are ideal family spots.

At Mythenquai, on the western side of the lake, a 250m-long beach gently slopes into the water, with a large park area behind, where visitors can barbecue, picnic and play games. There’s a diving platform (with 1m, 3m and 5m boards). Hiltl, Zürich’s cult vegetarian restaurant, has a small concession here.

There’s a similar set-up at Tiefenbrunnen, with the addition of a 62m water slide, and a range of wellness activities: yoga, Pilates classes and massages are bookable. A large paddling pool is perfect for toddlers and babies. There are two single-sex nudist terraces.

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Seebad Enge

Mythenquai 9, 8002 Zürich

• Good for: Serious swimmers, sipping rosé at sunset, winter saunas

• Not so good for: Kids

• Entrance: SFr8 (about $9/£7)

• Open: 8am–8pm (reduced opening hours in bad weather)

• FYI: Enge hosts a series of super-hip parties, music concerts and events throughout the summer

• Website; Directions

Enge is small but has the full range of Badi facilities on offer. It’s the newest, and arguably most dynamic of the city’s baths. The facility is divided into two floating platforms: one is reserved for the exclusive use of women.

For more serious swimmers, there are two 44m lanes that stretch out into the lake (closed, like most of the Badi, in the winter due to freezing temperatures). Swimming lessons and coaching for all levels are available to book. A rotating cast of masseuses and masseurs through the week offer a range of different bookable therapies, from shiatsu to acupuncture.

A small on-site restaurant serves barbecue food and light meals. Tables on the decks can be reserved and groups can book catering packages — ideal for small parties. And after the summer, the women’s platform is converted into a Finnish-style sauna experience, where visitors can work up a sweat and then plunge into the gelid waters of the lake.

On a clear day, all this is set against the spectacular backdrop of the Alps in the distance.

Tell us where you like to go open-air swimming in Zürich in the comments below

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