Lucerne ★ 4.4
Famous for: Lake-side dining, central-Swiss classics
Forty-five minutes south on the IC: the old town, the lake, central-Swiss cooking, and the closest accessible alpine cheese, sausage and wine country.
Food destinations within easy reach of Zurich. worth the train, the rental car or the early start.
Worth the trip
Winterthur ★ 4.2
Famous for: Craft brewery scene, old-town cafes
Twenty-five minutes north: Winterthur old town, museums, the Doppelleu brewery and a quieter cafe scene than Zurich. Easy half-day from Hauptbahnhof.
Rapperswil ★ 4.1
Famous for: Lakeside town, rose gardens, regional cuisine
Forty minutes by S-Bahn along the lake: Rapperswil's medieval old town, castle, rose gardens and easy lakeside restaurants for a half-day's lunch.
Appenzell ★ 4.3
Famous for: Appenzeller cheese and chaeshoernli
Two hours east into the canton of Appenzell: hill-country cheese country, Appenzeller and chaeshoernli, dollhouse village, traditional houses and dairies.
Stein am Rhein ★ 4.3
Famous for: Rhine-side medieval town, painted houses
Sixty minutes north: one of the most preserved medieval old towns in Switzerland on the Rhine, river-side restaurants, painted facades, easy lunch.