If you buy something through a link here, we may earn a commission. See our disclosure policy. Note that p rices and opening times may change without notice. Rapperswil is a cute historic town on the south end of Lake Zurich. It has a picturesque castle, small old town center, a nice lakeside promenade with lots of cafes, and a big playground with grassy fields below the castle. The walking tour through town is short, but interesting with beautiful views from the castle terrace above the town.
We love that there are lots of play things scattered about to entertain the kids. Most of it is pedestrians-only, so kids can roam free. To get there, we took the ferry from Zurich, about a 2 hour ride, which made for a beautiful full day outing. If you need extra entertainment, the Rapperswil Kinderzoo is a short walk from the lake, a fun outing for little kids. First a little video of our ferry ride.
Rapperswil is located on the southeast end of Lake Zurich. It is easily accessible by car, train or ferry boat. We prefer public transportation because car traffic can be quite bad on busy weekends. For a full day outing, we like to take the ferry there from Zurich and return by train.
More info about how to get there and the end of this post. Here is a map of Rapperswil. The center of Rapperswil is pedestrians-only. This ends at a great playground below the castle. There is another small playground from the castle terrace up on the hill. The Knies Kinderzoo is a short walk from the center of town.
I recommend stopping by the Tourist Info office near ferry dock for a free brochure with a map. The town offers a free digital scavenger hunt, which is accessible with the RappiTrail app. This includes a walking tour with a around the city. There are cafes lining the boardwalk along the lake near the ferry dock. From the playground, walk up the stairs on the castle walls to reach the castle on the hill. Walk past the castle reach a beautiful terrace with views of the lake, alps and town below.
