Rhine Falls | Perfect Day Trip from Zurich

The Rhine Falls are located maybe 30-45 minutes north of Zurich just next to the Swiss city called Schaffhausen. The German name is Rheinfall. They are the biggest waterfalls in all of Europe. Although it’s not the highest one, it’s certainly is a very impressive day trip.

What are the Rhine Fall like?

There are two sides of the river and therefore two different experiences. On the northern or western side you can visit the falls for free. The other side, east or south depending on how you look at it, is subject to an entry fee.

Now what’s the difference?

On the free side there you can access tourist boats, restaurants and in general you get a really good view of the falls. However you are a bit at a distance.
On the side that has an entry fee, you are super close to the falls. There you have got a platform where you can walk onto and just be over the water flowing underneath. It’s a very very cool experience, so if you have time, visit the two sides of the river.

If you like you can book the boat to go onto the rock that’s standing in the middle of the falls. That’s the closest you can get and worth the experience!

The falls are usually not that very busy, so definitely something worth doing, while you’re in the area of Zurich. Parking is also not very expensive. It starts from CHF 5 for one hour. You can also make this day trip by train to Schaffhausen or by bus tour from Zurich.

Although you can visit it in half a day, I recommend you make it a full day and go have a look at the area as well.

From Zurich, you can obviously take the highway but I would recommend you just go a little bit on the side roads. Why? You know the city of Zurich but you have to see the Canton of Zurich (county) as well, it’s something very cool to see. Probably not what you will be thinking of, what it will look like. You will be surprised 🙂

____

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you click on the link and purchase the item, I may receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products and services that I personally use and/ or believe will add value to travelers to Switzerland. Thank you for your support!