Kreis 1

Where Zurich Began

Kreis 1 is Zurich’s old town – and the place where the city began two thousand years ago. On the Lindenhof, today a quiet viewing terrace with chess players and a boules court, stood the Roman customs fort Turicum and later an imperial palace. From here you look out over the rooftops, the Limmat and across to the Grossmünster – the finest free panorama in the city. All around, lanes such as the colourful Augustinergasse wind through a district that packs history, high culture and urban life into the smallest of spaces.

From the Lindenhof the view sweeps across the old-town rooftops to the Grossmünster.

Grossmünster, Fraumünster and St. Peter

Three churches define the skyline of Kreis 1. It was from the Grossmünster with its distinctive twin towers that Huldrych Zwingli launched the German-Swiss Reformation in 1519. Opposite, on the left bank, the Fraumünster glows with its five world-famous Chagall windows and the Giacometti window. And St. Peter bears the largest church clock face in Europe, more than 8.6 metres across. In between lie the Münsterhof square, the guild houses along the Limmatquai and the town hall, which has stood directly over the river since 1698.

The Niederdorf: Old Town by Day and Night

On the right bank of the Limmat lies the Niederdorf, affectionately called the “Dörfli” (little village) by locals: a car-free web of lanes, squares and courtyards. By day it invites you to browse between small shops, bookstores and cafés; by night it belongs to the restaurants, bars and stages. Lenin once lived on the Spiegelgasse, and in the Cabaret Voltaire Dadaism was born in 1916 – Zurich’s contribution to world art history. If you prefer it quieter, you’ll find winding, almost village-like corners around the Neumarkt.

The Niederdorfstrasse – car-free old-town lanes for strolling and lingering.

Bahnhofstrasse, Culture and Short Distances

From the main station down to the lake runs the Bahnhofstrasse, one of the world’s most exclusive shopping streets – and it begins right at the district’s western edge. For culture, the Kunsthaus Zürich on Heimplatz is just a few steps away, and the University and ETH sit along the upper edge of the district. Best of all: in Kreis 1 you don’t need a car. The main station is within walking distance, the airport around a quarter of an hour away, and trams and buses run from practically every corner.

Living in Kreis 1

An apartment in the old town means living right where it all happens. A croissant from the bakery around the corner in the morning, a stroll along the Limmatquai in the evening – restaurants, theatres and museums are never more than a few minutes’ walk away. Old-town apartments are rare and full of character; with us you’ll find furnished apartments, temporary housing and short-term rentals across Zurich – ideal for settling into the city centrally and car-free.

Perfect for: Anyone who wants to experience Zurich on foot – short stays, central, right in the middle of it all.

Character

• Atmosphere: Urban, historic, vibrant
• Restaurants: From Michelin-starred dining to cosy local taverns
• Shopping: Bahnhofstrasse, boutiques and shops in the Niederdorf
• Nightlife: Bars, clubs and stages in the Niederdorf
• Quietness: Lively, especially at weekends – calmer around the Neumarkt

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Image credits: Grossmünster and the Limmat – Jakub Hałun, CC BY 4.0 · View from the Lindenhof – Jakub Hałun, CC BY 4.0 · Niederdorfstrasse – Leonhard Lenz, CC0, all via Wikimedia Commons.