Water is never far away for Zurich kids. This list covers the places where they can get wet: paddling pools and fountains in city parks, outdoor pools, lake and river baths for hot days, and indoor pools for the colder months. Opening seasons vary a lot between them, so check each page for dates, hours and prices before you go.
Seebad Utoquai is a historic wooden lake bath, built in 1890, on the promenade between Bellevue and Zürichhorn. Kids can jump from a diving board and swim to the floats anchored about 30 meters out. Two small pools suit non-swimmers, one for men and one for women, and the sun terraces are partly separated by gender.
Seebad Enge is a wooden lake bath on Lake Zurich with a mixed area and a women-only area, both with direct lake access. Swim lanes 44 meters long are set into the lake, and the decks look out to the Alps. There is a kiosk with a grill and stand-up paddle boards to rent. In winter it runs as a sauna.
Locals call it the Bäcki: a 1.4-hectare neighborhood park near Langstrasse, framed by Stauffacherstrasse, Feldstrasse and Hohlstrasse. Kids head for the playground and the shallow wading pool, where splashing has been allowed since the 1939 redesign.
The Quartierzentrum Aussersihl community center stands in the park, with the Restaurant Bäckeranlage inside. On summer days the lawns fill with young families from the surrounding streets.
Josefwiese is a 1920s people's park beside the Viadukt arches in Zürich-West, laid out for play and sport rather than strolling. Kids get climbing frames and a paddling pool with water play.
The big lawn is for picnics, football and sunbathing, plus pétanque, table tennis, a beach volleyball court and a barbecue spot. A kiosk sells salads, grilled food and drinks.
Oerliker Park opened in 2001 on former factory land in Oerlikon. Its landmark is a blue lookout tower: a steel staircase spirals up through the treetops to a platform 35 meters up, with views toward the city center and the Uetliberg.
The park also has a large climbing frame, play equipment for small kids, a wooden deck and a long turquoise fountain with water play.
Fritschiwiese began as a cemetery in the late 19th century and became a public park in 1921, laid out together with local residents. Today it has a large play lawn, playgrounds, benches and a hilly landscape first designed as an adventure playground.
The paddling pool draws crowds on hot days, and neighbors use the open grass for picnics, games and small workouts.
Irchelpark is a naturalistic park of about 32 hectares wrapped around the University of Zurich's Irchel campus. Paths loop past a lake with fish, ducks and herons, two streams, wildflower meadows and Monte Diggelmann, a small viewpoint hill.
Kids can play in the sand and boulder playground by the lake and follow the Irchel Nature Trail, whose 20 boards cover birds, frogs, bees and dragonflies.
Blatterwiese, which locals call Chinawiese after the Chinese Garden next door, is a wide lawn on the shore of Lake Zurich. Its fenced playground has a large sand area, a climbing wall, swings and water fountains for hot days.
Around it, families picnic, use the public grills nearby, kick a ball or swim in the lake, and a kiosk sells ice cream and cold drinks.
Sihlwald is a beech forest along the Sihl river that has been left unmanaged since 2000, and at 970 hectares it is the largest natural forest reserve on the Swiss Central Plateau.
By the visitor center, a wilderness playground has branch nests, rope bridges, a hollow fir trunk to crawl into and a water play fountain. Fire pits and a 2.6 km forest adventure trail start there.
Werdinsel is an island of about eight hectares in the Limmat, between the river and a power-station canal. Once a parking lot and a car scrapyard, it is now open lawns with a playground, a soccer field, public grill spots, a restaurant and an accessible toilet.
The Flussbad Au-Höngg river bath sits here, using the old Strickler spinning mill from 1817 as its changing rooms.
Dolder Wellenbad is an open-air pool at the top of the Dolderbahn, by the edge of the woods. Next to the 50-meter pool are a paddling pool, a separate shaded children's pool, a slide tower and a play area. The wave pool runs again from 2027.
Around the water there is room for table tennis, volleyball and football, and the Dolder Minigolf course sits next door.
A city-run outdoor pool near Frankental with a 50-meter pool, a non-swimmer pool, a learner pool and 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards. Small children get a paddling pool under a sun sail with a little slide and water play, plus a sandpit, bouncy cushion and playground.
Older kids find a beach volleyball court, table tennis and a lawn for games, and families can use the grill spot.
A family pool run by the City of Zurich. There's a seven-lane 50-meter pool, a separate non-swimmer pool, 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards and a 75-meter water slide. Little ones get a paddling pool with a Schifflibach, a small boat stream.
Between swims there are barbecue spots, table tennis, beach volleyball, a basketball court, a Pestalozzi library book box, and a restaurant and kiosk with hot food all day.
Freibad Heuried is a city-run outdoor family pool near Triemli. It has a 50-meter pool, a separate non-swimmer pool, 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards, and a 132-meter water slide.
Toddlers get a paddling pool with water play under a sun sail and a wide wave slide. Between swims, kids can play table tennis, soccer or pickleball on the grounds.
Freibad Allenmoos is a city-run family pool set in park-like lawns, designed by the architects Haefeli and Moser. There is a 50-meter swimming pool, a large non-swimmer pool with play equipment, 1- and 3-meter diving boards and a 72-meter slide.
Toddlers get two paddling pools under sunshades and a big playground with a sandpit. Beach volleyball courts, table tennis, garden chess and grill spots fill the rest.
Freibad Letzigraben is a city outdoor pool designed by writer and architect Max Frisch in the late 1940s, set in park-like gardens beside Letzigrund stadium. Older kids swim the 50-meter pool, ride the wave pool and jump from a diving tower up to 10 meters. Younger ones get a current channel, water play, a small slide, a shaded paddling pool and a playground.
A city-run river bath on the Limmat, open since 1909. Strong swimmers ride the current down a 100-meter channel beside the old wooden bathhouse and climb out at a catch rail at the end.
Kids who can't swim stay on the lawn side: a non-swimmer pool, a round paddling pool with a small slide, a playground and a kiosk with food.
Seebad Katzensee is a city-run lake bath on the Katzensee, set inside a nature reserve in Affoltern. It has a large sunbathing lawn, barbecue spots, a kiosk, and a children's area with water play.
Swimming is allowed only inside the bath, since the lake and shore outside it are a protected zone. Air mattresses, rubber boats and paddleboards are banned on the whole lake.
Strandbad Wollishofen is a family lido on Lake Zurich with a non-swimmer area in the lake, two swimming rafts and a diving tower with 1 m and 3 m boards.
On land there is a lawn for lying out, a terrace with a wooden deck, a water play area and Blasio play equipment. Table tennis, foosball, sand football and a restaurant round out the day.
A city-run lake lido on the Zürichsee with a big lawn, a 62-meter slide and diving boards at 1, 3 and 5 meters. Younger kids get a shaded paddling pool, water play, a playground and a roped non-swimmer ring 22 meters across, out in the lake.
Away from the water there are grill spots, table tennis, volleyball, a basketball hoop, small soccer goals, garden chess and stand-up paddleboards.
A city-run lido on Lake Zurich with a sandy beach, rafts to swim out to, a non-swimmer area in the lake and a diving tower with 1, 3 and 5 meter boards. Younger kids get a paddling pool with sun umbrellas and water play, plus a playground.
A big lawn, barbecue spots, table tennis, slacklines, stand-up paddleboarding and food from Hiltl am Strand fill the rest.
Hallenbad Bläsi is a small, city-run indoor pool with a family feel. The 25-meter pool has five lanes, water at 29 °C, and a movable floor that sets the depth.
Kids get a play afternoon, when the 1-meter diving board opens. Outside there is a terrace for lying in the sun between swims, and the city runs water sports courses here.
Hallenbad City is the city's 1940s indoor pool by the Schanzengraben canal, built in the Landistil style under a tall glass roof. Its 50-meter pool, five lanes kept at 28 °C, was the first in Switzerland.
Kids who can't swim yet get a warmer non-swimmer pool at 31 °C, and a vario pool with a movable floor hosts swim courses. It is a sports pool, so lanes come before play.
One of the largest public pools in Switzerland, run by the city of Uster. It has a 50 m Olympic pool, a 25 m sports pool, and a 25 m fun pool kept free of lanes for open swimming.
Kids head for the 55 m water slide and the 1 m diving board, while toddlers get a 32°C splash area with free water toys.
A family-friendly indoor pool run by the City of Zurich. There is a 25-meter lap pool with five lanes kept at 29°C, a separate paddling pool at 31°C and a 1-meter diving board.
On sunny, warm days the rooftop terrace opens as a water playground. The building also has a Finnish sauna, a bio sauna and a steam room.
Hallenbad Oerlikon is a city-run indoor pool by the Hallenstadion and the open-air velodrome. An eight-lane, 50-meter pool sits next to a diving pool with boards at 1, 3, 5, 7.5 and 10 meters.
Younger kids get a learner pool and a paddling pool with water toys, both kept at 30°C, plus an outdoor paddling pool in summer. On dry land there's a playground, a foosball table and a lawn.
An indoor pool hall with a 25-meter lap pool, a learner pool up to 1.5 meters deep, and a 4-meter-deep diving pool with boards at 1, 3 and 5 meters. The 110-meter tube slide is the longest in any indoor pool in the canton of Zurich.
Outside, a big lawn has a wading pool and a grill area for warm days. Private swim schools run children's classes here.
Milandia is a sports and leisure park beside a nature reserve near the old town of Greifensee. Kids get two playgrounds, one with a big tower and four slides, an 18-hole minigolf course, and a chemical-free natural pool with a paddling area.
A fitness club, climbing center, padel courts and football pitches share the site, and staff in the Kinderparadies mind small children while parents stay on site.
Water is never far away for Zurich kids. This list covers the places where they can get wet: paddling pools and fountains in city parks, outdoor pools, lake and river baths for hot days, and indoor pools for the colder months. Opening seasons vary a lot between them, so check each page for dates, hours and prices before you go.
Seebad Utoquai is a historic wooden lake bath, built in 1890, on the promenade between Bellevue and Zürichhorn. Kids can jump from a diving board and swim to the floats anchored about 30 meters out. Two small pools suit non-swimmers, one for men and one for women, and the sun terraces are partly separated by gender.
Seebad Enge is a wooden lake bath on Lake Zurich with a mixed area and a women-only area, both with direct lake access. Swim lanes 44 meters long are set into the lake, and the decks look out to the Alps. There is a kiosk with a grill and stand-up paddle boards to rent. In winter it runs as a sauna.
Locals call it the Bäcki: a 1.4-hectare neighborhood park near Langstrasse, framed by Stauffacherstrasse, Feldstrasse and Hohlstrasse. Kids head for the playground and the shallow wading pool, where splashing has been allowed since the 1939 redesign.
The Quartierzentrum Aussersihl community center stands in the park, with the Restaurant Bäckeranlage inside. On summer days the lawns fill with young families from the surrounding streets.
Josefwiese is a 1920s people's park beside the Viadukt arches in Zürich-West, laid out for play and sport rather than strolling. Kids get climbing frames and a paddling pool with water play.
The big lawn is for picnics, football and sunbathing, plus pétanque, table tennis, a beach volleyball court and a barbecue spot. A kiosk sells salads, grilled food and drinks.
Oerliker Park opened in 2001 on former factory land in Oerlikon. Its landmark is a blue lookout tower: a steel staircase spirals up through the treetops to a platform 35 meters up, with views toward the city center and the Uetliberg.
The park also has a large climbing frame, play equipment for small kids, a wooden deck and a long turquoise fountain with water play.
Fritschiwiese began as a cemetery in the late 19th century and became a public park in 1921, laid out together with local residents. Today it has a large play lawn, playgrounds, benches and a hilly landscape first designed as an adventure playground.
The paddling pool draws crowds on hot days, and neighbors use the open grass for picnics, games and small workouts.
Irchelpark is a naturalistic park of about 32 hectares wrapped around the University of Zurich's Irchel campus. Paths loop past a lake with fish, ducks and herons, two streams, wildflower meadows and Monte Diggelmann, a small viewpoint hill.
Kids can play in the sand and boulder playground by the lake and follow the Irchel Nature Trail, whose 20 boards cover birds, frogs, bees and dragonflies.
Blatterwiese, which locals call Chinawiese after the Chinese Garden next door, is a wide lawn on the shore of Lake Zurich. Its fenced playground has a large sand area, a climbing wall, swings and water fountains for hot days.
Around it, families picnic, use the public grills nearby, kick a ball or swim in the lake, and a kiosk sells ice cream and cold drinks.
Sihlwald is a beech forest along the Sihl river that has been left unmanaged since 2000, and at 970 hectares it is the largest natural forest reserve on the Swiss Central Plateau.
By the visitor center, a wilderness playground has branch nests, rope bridges, a hollow fir trunk to crawl into and a water play fountain. Fire pits and a 2.6 km forest adventure trail start there.
Werdinsel is an island of about eight hectares in the Limmat, between the river and a power-station canal. Once a parking lot and a car scrapyard, it is now open lawns with a playground, a soccer field, public grill spots, a restaurant and an accessible toilet.
The Flussbad Au-Höngg river bath sits here, using the old Strickler spinning mill from 1817 as its changing rooms.
Dolder Wellenbad is an open-air pool at the top of the Dolderbahn, by the edge of the woods. Next to the 50-meter pool are a paddling pool, a separate shaded children's pool, a slide tower and a play area. The wave pool runs again from 2027.
Around the water there is room for table tennis, volleyball and football, and the Dolder Minigolf course sits next door.
A city-run outdoor pool near Frankental with a 50-meter pool, a non-swimmer pool, a learner pool and 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards. Small children get a paddling pool under a sun sail with a little slide and water play, plus a sandpit, bouncy cushion and playground.
Older kids find a beach volleyball court, table tennis and a lawn for games, and families can use the grill spot.
A family pool run by the City of Zurich. There's a seven-lane 50-meter pool, a separate non-swimmer pool, 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards and a 75-meter water slide. Little ones get a paddling pool with a Schifflibach, a small boat stream.
Between swims there are barbecue spots, table tennis, beach volleyball, a basketball court, a Pestalozzi library book box, and a restaurant and kiosk with hot food all day.
Freibad Heuried is a city-run outdoor family pool near Triemli. It has a 50-meter pool, a separate non-swimmer pool, 1-meter and 3-meter diving boards, and a 132-meter water slide.
Toddlers get a paddling pool with water play under a sun sail and a wide wave slide. Between swims, kids can play table tennis, soccer or pickleball on the grounds.
Freibad Allenmoos is a city-run family pool set in park-like lawns, designed by the architects Haefeli and Moser. There is a 50-meter swimming pool, a large non-swimmer pool with play equipment, 1- and 3-meter diving boards and a 72-meter slide.
Toddlers get two paddling pools under sunshades and a big playground with a sandpit. Beach volleyball courts, table tennis, garden chess and grill spots fill the rest.
Freibad Letzigraben is a city outdoor pool designed by writer and architect Max Frisch in the late 1940s, set in park-like gardens beside Letzigrund stadium. Older kids swim the 50-meter pool, ride the wave pool and jump from a diving tower up to 10 meters. Younger ones get a current channel, water play, a small slide, a shaded paddling pool and a playground.
A city-run river bath on the Limmat, open since 1909. Strong swimmers ride the current down a 100-meter channel beside the old wooden bathhouse and climb out at a catch rail at the end.
Kids who can't swim stay on the lawn side: a non-swimmer pool, a round paddling pool with a small slide, a playground and a kiosk with food.
Seebad Katzensee is a city-run lake bath on the Katzensee, set inside a nature reserve in Affoltern. It has a large sunbathing lawn, barbecue spots, a kiosk, and a children's area with water play.
Swimming is allowed only inside the bath, since the lake and shore outside it are a protected zone. Air mattresses, rubber boats and paddleboards are banned on the whole lake.
Strandbad Wollishofen is a family lido on Lake Zurich with a non-swimmer area in the lake, two swimming rafts and a diving tower with 1 m and 3 m boards.
On land there is a lawn for lying out, a terrace with a wooden deck, a water play area and Blasio play equipment. Table tennis, foosball, sand football and a restaurant round out the day.
A city-run lake lido on the Zürichsee with a big lawn, a 62-meter slide and diving boards at 1, 3 and 5 meters. Younger kids get a shaded paddling pool, water play, a playground and a roped non-swimmer ring 22 meters across, out in the lake.
Away from the water there are grill spots, table tennis, volleyball, a basketball hoop, small soccer goals, garden chess and stand-up paddleboards.
A city-run lido on Lake Zurich with a sandy beach, rafts to swim out to, a non-swimmer area in the lake and a diving tower with 1, 3 and 5 meter boards. Younger kids get a paddling pool with sun umbrellas and water play, plus a playground.
A big lawn, barbecue spots, table tennis, slacklines, stand-up paddleboarding and food from Hiltl am Strand fill the rest.
Hallenbad Bläsi is a small, city-run indoor pool with a family feel. The 25-meter pool has five lanes, water at 29 °C, and a movable floor that sets the depth.
Kids get a play afternoon, when the 1-meter diving board opens. Outside there is a terrace for lying in the sun between swims, and the city runs water sports courses here.
Hallenbad City is the city's 1940s indoor pool by the Schanzengraben canal, built in the Landistil style under a tall glass roof. Its 50-meter pool, five lanes kept at 28 °C, was the first in Switzerland.
Kids who can't swim yet get a warmer non-swimmer pool at 31 °C, and a vario pool with a movable floor hosts swim courses. It is a sports pool, so lanes come before play.
One of the largest public pools in Switzerland, run by the city of Uster. It has a 50 m Olympic pool, a 25 m sports pool, and a 25 m fun pool kept free of lanes for open swimming.
Kids head for the 55 m water slide and the 1 m diving board, while toddlers get a 32°C splash area with free water toys.
A family-friendly indoor pool run by the City of Zurich. There is a 25-meter lap pool with five lanes kept at 29°C, a separate paddling pool at 31°C and a 1-meter diving board.
On sunny, warm days the rooftop terrace opens as a water playground. The building also has a Finnish sauna, a bio sauna and a steam room.
Hallenbad Oerlikon is a city-run indoor pool by the Hallenstadion and the open-air velodrome. An eight-lane, 50-meter pool sits next to a diving pool with boards at 1, 3, 5, 7.5 and 10 meters.
Younger kids get a learner pool and a paddling pool with water toys, both kept at 30°C, plus an outdoor paddling pool in summer. On dry land there's a playground, a foosball table and a lawn.
An indoor pool hall with a 25-meter lap pool, a learner pool up to 1.5 meters deep, and a 4-meter-deep diving pool with boards at 1, 3 and 5 meters. The 110-meter tube slide is the longest in any indoor pool in the canton of Zurich.
Outside, a big lawn has a wading pool and a grill area for warm days. Private swim schools run children's classes here.
Milandia is a sports and leisure park beside a nature reserve near the old town of Greifensee. Kids get two playgrounds, one with a big tower and four slides, an 18-hole minigolf course, and a chemical-free natural pool with a paddling area.
A fitness club, climbing center, padel courts and football pitches share the site, and staff in the Kinderparadies mind small children while parents stay on site.
