After our first day in Zurich, Dimple and I wanted a slower day by the lake, so we took the train to Rapperswil, the little town on Lake Zurich that people call the Rose Town.
Getting there from Zurich HB
We started near the Opernhaus, then walked past a fountain under bright autumn trees on our way to the train. We left from Zurich HB (Hauptbahnhof). The platform was packed, but the ride itself was easy, and we found seats and settled in by the window. It’s a short trip, and the lake starts showing up before you know it.
Arriving in Rapperswil
The old station building, with its red doors and the Rapperswil sign, is the first thing you see when you step off. It was a grey, cool autumn day, the kind where a beanie and a puffer jacket make perfect sense.
The lakefront
The lake is right by the station, so that’s where we went first. There’s a wide cobbled promenade with benches facing the water and the hills across the lake. It was calm and quiet, a nice change from the city.
The old town
From the lake we wandered into the old town. The main square has a big fountain, flags on the buildings, and rows of old houses with green and red shutters. Above it all is the castle’s clock tower, peeking over the rooftops.
The castle stairs
At the end of the square, a wide stone staircase leads up toward Rapperswil Castle, with the year 1894 carved into the stonework and the clock tower right above. We stopped at the bottom for a photo before heading up.
Why Rapperswil?
Rapperswil sits at the upper end of Lake Zurich, in the canton of St. Gallen, and is officially part of the town of Rapperswil-Jona. It’s known as the Rose Town. Two roses appear on the town’s coat of arms, and its public gardens hold more than 15,000 rose bushes in over 600 varieties. One of the gardens is planted with especially fragrant roses for visitors who are blind or partially sighted.
Above the old town stands Rapperswil Castle, built in the 13th century. Inside is the Polish Museum, which tells the story of Poland and Switzerland and has been there since the 1870s. Fallow deer have lived in the park on the castle hill since 1871. Across the water, an 841-metre wooden footbridge links Rapperswil to Hurden. It’s the longest wooden bridge in Switzerland, and it’s part of the old St. James pilgrim route.
Why we didn’t see the roses in Rapperswil
The gardens bloom from about June to October, and we came at the very end of the season, when the roses were mostly finished. The castle, the old town and the lake are worth the trip any time of year, but if you want to see the roses at their best, plan your visit for summer.
More from Zurich: our Old Town walking tour and Lake Zurich cruise
More from our day in Rapperswil coming soon.