Zurich · With kids

Zurich with kids: things to do

By Ramya ChinnaduraiPublished 13 October 2026Updated 13 October 2026

Take tram 6 from the Hauptbahnhof and treat the zoo clock as the whole day. Zoo Zurich is open 365 days, March to October 09:00 to 18:00 (Masoala 10:00 to 18:00), November to February 09:00 to 17:00 (Masoala 10:00 to 17:00), and on 24 December it closes at 16:00. That is enough outdoor time without stacking a Monday museum you will find shut.

Hours and card prices were taken from operator pages on 13 October 2026. Zoo door prices and National Museum ticket prices were not on the fetched pages, so they are omitted.

Tram 6 and the year-round zoo clock

Zoo Zurich lists about 6000 animals, more than 365 species and 27 hectares. Tram 6 runs from the Hauptbahnhof to the Zoo stop. The Zürich Card gives 10 percent off entry. What you pay at the gate is not printed on that hours page, so it is not printed here. Read the live ticket page the morning you ride.

Masoala opens one hour later than the rest of the park: 10:00 in both seasons. If the rainforest hall is the reason you came, do not arrive at 09:00 and stand in the car park. In winter the whole site closes at 17:00. On 24 December it closes at 16:00. Eat before you go up the hill, or accept a short loop.

The zoo is the long outdoor day. It is not a prelude to a second paid hall. Come back down on tram 6 and stop.

Child tickets until the day before 16

ZVV is precise to two decimal places. Children to 5.99 travel free and need no ticket. From 6 to 15.99 they pay the reduced fare until the day before the 16th birthday. Carry identification for checks. A child who looks older than 15.99 and cannot show a date of birth is the one the inspector will ask about.

The Junior Travelcard is CHF 30 for the year. It lets a child aged 6 to 15 travel free when a parent holds a ticket. The third child and any further children travel free. The Co-Travelcard is also CHF 30 and lets a companion aged 16 or over take a child aged 6 to 15 free. That second card is the one for a grandparent or a friend who is not the parent on the Junior card.

Buggies travel free. Fold them on Limmat boats. On other ZSG boats the maximum buggy width is 80 cm. If your buggy is wider, fold it or pick a tram.

The 24-hour card before 13 December 2026

Zürich Card prices hold until a change on 13 December 2026. Until then, 24 hours is CHF 29 for an adult and CHF 19 for a child aged 6 to 15. Seventy-two hours is CHF 56 and CHF 37. Under 6s travel free and need no card.

The card covers unlimited 2nd-class tram, bus, train, boat, funicular and cable car, including the airport, in zones 110, 111, 121, 140, 150, 154 and 155. That list is why a family landing at the airport and riding tram 6 to the zoo can make the 24-hour card work. A family that already holds a Junior Travelcard and walks the lake may not need it.

Most museums are closed on Mondays. The card does not reopen them. If Monday is your indoor day, it is not.

After 13 December 2026, read the live card page. The figures above stop on that date.

Landesmuseum on a Tuesday

The National Museum Zurich opens Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 to 17:00 and stays closed on Monday. Family Day is on 18 October 2026. On 24 December it opens 10:00 to 14:00. Ticket prices were not on the fetched homepage, so they are omitted. Confirm the till before you promise a free hour that may not exist.

Sit this museum on a Tuesday to Sunday morning, not after the zoo. The building is by the Hauptbahnhof, which is useful when someone wants to go back to the room. It is not useful as a third stop after Masoala.

If you are in the city on 18 October 2026, check what Family Day actually includes that year. The date is published. The programme detail belongs on the museum page that week.

Lake boats, buggies and a first loop

A first visit that respects the clocks:

• Tram 6 to the zoo on any of the 365 days, inside the season hours, Masoala from 10:00, off the hill before 17:00 in winter or 16:00 on 24 December.
• A boat only if the buggy folds (Limmat) or is 80 cm or less (other ZSG boats).
• Landesmuseum on a Tuesday to Sunday, or on Family Day 18 October 2026, and never as a Monday consolation.

ZVV free travel stops at 5.99. The Junior Travelcard and the Co-Travelcard are both CHF 30. The Zürich Card 24-hour adult rate is CHF 29 until 13 December 2026. Add those three products once, then stop buying extras.

Zurich with children is a tram number, a zoo clock and a Monday museum close. It is not a guessed door price and a boat you cannot fit the buggy on.

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