Zurich thermal baths – where you can unwind

I don’t know about you, but sometimes you can really use a relaxing evening in the middle of the week. It was precisely for this purpose that I visited the Thermalbad & Spa in the Hürlimann area in Zurich for the first time this week. The former site of the Hürlimann brewery is located near the Zurich Enge train station and can also be reached from the main station by tram no. 13 in 10 minutes.

In the underground vaulted beams, where beer used to be stored and brewed, a true masterpiece has been achieved in recent years. Althammer Hochuli Architects, in collaboration with interior designer Ushi Tamborriello, have transformed this ancient vault into a modern and incredibly stylish thermal bath. The most spectacular is probably the 35° warm pool on the roof of the complex, from where you can enjoy a panoramic view over the whole of Zurich.

Zurich Thermal Baths

When we arrived on Tuesday evening, we immediately realized that it makes much more sense to visit the thermal bath during the week than on weekends. We weren’t exactly the only ones, but the crowd was limited, you didn’t have to queue and there was enough space everywhere. A normal day ticket costs 36 CHF. But we treated ourselves to an Irish-Roman spa ritual and paid 60 CHF for it (no time limit). The following is included:

Entrance to the thermal baths / bathrobe / peeling / tea and water

The Irish-Roman area is also not a nude zone (which you don’t necessarily know otherwise) and Tuesday is also women’s night.

The whole passage includes various herbal steam saunas, where you sweat a lot, and then there are relaxation areas and bubble baths. In my opinion, the area is very stylishly decorated. I found it particularly nice that you could still see the old vault structures everywhere and that the modern elements were symbiotically integrated into them.

After the Irish-Roman passage, we all felt totally relaxed and then enjoyed the wonderful view from the roof pool of the illuminated Zurich at the end. I think you could spend hours up there.

I don’t know about you, but I’m always really hungry after bathing. Just across the street from the Hürlimann Spa there is a great Spanish tapas bar (Juan Costa). We ended the evening with delicious Spanish appetizers and were able to start the next working day totally relaxed.

Since I was there to relax, I didn’t take my camera with me and my mobile phone camera unfortunately didn’t like the dim (very great and suitable) light. Next time, however, the camera will definitely come along, because the view from the roof into brightly lit Zurich is simply pricelessly beautiful and must be captured.

Update 2018: As a note – photography is prohibited in the premises of the thermal bath.