Anyone who has travelled with young kids knows the airport arrival is where a trip either starts well or starts badly. You’re tired, the kids are tired, there’s a stroller, a couple of suitcases, maybe a car seat, and everyone just wants to get to the hotel and lie down for a bit. Zurich is a genuinely easy city to get around once you’re settled in, but that first stretch from the airport matters more than people expect.
We’ve put together a rundown of the transport options families actually rely on in Zurich, based on what tends to work well and where each option falls short.
Private Airport Transfers
If you ask most parents what they wish they’d booked in advance, it’s usually the Zurich airport transfer. You land, grab your bags, and your driver is already waiting in arrivals with your name on a sign. No queuing for tickets, no working out which platform, no herding a cranky toddler through a train station.
The real advantage is space. You can book a vehicle sized for your family from the start, with enough room for luggage, a pram, and however many people you’re travelling with. Most transfer companies, ours included, will provide child or booster seats if you ask ahead of time, so you’re not stuck buying or renting one at the last minute.
It’s also door to door, which sounds like a small thing until you’re actually doing it with kids. Rather than getting off a train and then needing a taxi or a walk to your hotel, you go straight from the arrivals hall to your accommodation. For families with younger children especially, that’s worth more than whatever you’d save going the cheaper route.
Public Transport (Train, Tram, Bus)
Zurich’s public transport is well run, and if your kids are a bit older or you’re travelling light, it’s a solid choice. The train from the airport into Zurich Hauptbahnhof takes about 10 minutes and runs often throughout the day. From the main station, trams and buses reach nearly every part of the city.
Children under 16 generally travel free with a paying adult when using a Swiss Travel Pass or similar family ticket, and Switzerland tends to be quite generous with family fares overall. If you’re staying centrally and your kids are old enough to manage a bit of walking and waiting, this can end up being the cheapest way to get around and honestly a fairly pleasant one too.
Where it gets tricky is luggage and timing. Stairs and lifts on train platforms aren’t always where you’d want them, and switching between train and tram can mean a walk across the station carrying everything. If you land at a busy time, or you’ve got a stroller and more than one small child in tow, it stops feeling relaxed pretty fast.
Taxis
Taxis are easy enough to find at the airport, right outside arrivals, and they’re a reasonable backup if your plans change at the last minute. The downside for families is that a standard taxi won’t necessarily have a child seat on hand, so you’d need to call ahead and ask, or bring your own. Fares in Zurich also run higher than in a lot of other European cities, and there’s no guarantee you’ll get a car big enough if your group includes a few adults, a couple of kids, and a decent amount of luggage.
Car Rental
If you’re planning day trips outside the city, up into the mountains, over to Lucerne, or around the lake, a rental car is genuinely useful. Switzerland’s roads are in good shape and easy to navigate, so driving here isn’t the headache it can be in some other countries.
That said, driving within Zurich itself usually isn’t worth the trouble. Parking is limited and pricey, plenty of streets prioritise trams and pedestrians, and honestly the city is easier to explore on foot or by tram once you’re there. Most families who go this route pick the car up after they’ve settled into their hotel, and use it specifically for trips outside Zurich rather than getting around day to day.
The Zurich Card
This one isn’t exactly, but it’s worth knowing about. The Zurich Card includes unlimited use of public transport along with free or discounted entry to museums, the zoo, and other attractions. If you’re planning several days of sightseeing with the kids, it can work out cheaper than buying individual tickets, and it means one less thing to think about once you’re out and about.
What Actually Makes Sense
For most families, it’s a mix rather than one option covering everything. A private transfer for the airport leg takes the pressure off the day you land, when nobody has the energy to deal with tickets or platform changes. Once you’re in the city, public transport handles daily movement well and won’t cost much. If day trips are part of your plans, renting a car locally covers that without complicating the arrival.
The one part worth sorting before you fly is the airport transfer in Zurich. It’s the piece with the least flexibility. Flight delays, tired kids, and a pile of luggage don’t go well with figuring things out on the spot. Everything after that, Zurich tends to make easy on its own.