Stein am Rhien, Switzerland???
 

I'm travelling to Zurich next week and have decided on one side trip to Lucerne, I am now thinking about another one up to Stein an Rhien. I have heard it is a 'quaint' medieval city near the German border. I've only got a couple of hours, so I thought it might be good as another day trip. Is it worth it? or just another tourist type town. Any other quick (90 min or less train trip- from Zurich) suggestions??

Stein-am-Rhein is very recommendable. <BR> <BR>If you've only two hours total for up and back? The train is a few minutes over one hour and it's about 5-10 minutes for the walk into town, so the total trip takes over two hours, even without strolling the street, which only takes 5 minutes if you're in a hurry. <BR> <BR>If you have more time, lunch on fish pulled fresh from the Rhine ... we enjoy the hotel/restaurant right at the bridge. The cloisters are worth a quick tour. <BR> <BR>Note that the city, like Schaffhausen, is on the "wrong" side of the Rhine, the north or German side.

Ed, I meant a couple of hours to spend there, I figured if it was a small town I could do it and be back in Zurich in under 5 hours. Silly question, but is this town in Germany or Switzerland?? Sorry but my geography is a little rusty. Does the Rhine separate the two countries???

PS- is there a tourist center at the rail station? I can't seem to locate a map specifically for this town anywhere here in the states.

Mauld: You might find something about Stein am Rhein at <BR> <BR>www.myswitzerland.com <BR> <BR>It's a lovely small town. Quite touristic in summer. But the weather here is still on the bad side, lot of rain and coldish, so you might be better off in a town with museums and arcades (Bern). <BR> <BR>And don't forget in Basel: Tinguely Museum and Fondation Beyeler. <BR> <BR>If you want info about Swiss towns, it usually works with the name of the town and the ending "ch" which means Confédération Helvétique (but Zurich would be www.zurichtourism.ch). <BR>I do not know whether there is a Tourist Office in St.a.R., but in Zurich at the main station, they have info about all places in Switzerland. <BR>Enjoy your stay!

Mauld: the message above is from me. <BR>Yes, there is an Tourist Center in St.a.R. at Oberstadt 10. <BR>But I think it's much better to get all material you need in Zurich. As itis not really the season for St.a.Rh., there might not even be a person speaking English. So it's probably much better to enquire about all in Zurich.

Well then, you'll have plenty of time. <BR> <BR>No tourist office at the train station. The station is on the south, Swiss, side of the river, a residential (suburb) area. Follow the crowd out of the station. To the end of the street and turn right and you'll stoll to the bridge, over the Rhine and in to town. Can't miss. <BR> <BR>Don't know of a map ... the town is quite small indeed! Basically a one street town ... at least the old part. <BR> <BR>Stein is in Switzerland ... it's just that Germany is normally on the north side of the Rhine, but the border does a bit of meandering in this area for reasons unknown to me.

Mauld: No specific site about St.a.Rhein. <BR>For Lucerne, it's <BR>www.stadt-luzern.ch <BR>Nice site. <BR>PS: For Bern: www.bern.ch <BR>Both with English versions. <BR> <BR>Feel free to e-mail me, if I can out something for you!

Stein is a nice little town, but when I stayed there last October it was pretty well locked up for the tourist season...probably won't be worth going to until May. You'd probably enjoy Bern more. Lucerne, however, is the place to see first. <BR>

stein am rhein blew me away . It's a lot more than 'quaint' -the painted exterior walls on the main street are incredible . I consider steim am rhein under rated -it was the highlight of our trip! <BR> <BR>We went last year , about this time . Most of the town was locked up , but it was no big deal -the sole attraction are the walls anyway . No crowds and no tourist traps (great!). There were a couple restaurants open for lunch and that's all we needed . <BR> <BR>BTW don't dismiss driving up .Believe it or not , car rentals in Zurich aren't outrageous . You can stop off at the Rhine Falls and the castle high up on a hill in the centre of ??? (sorry , name escapes me ) on the way up . <BR> <BR>Can't beat Lucerne and steim if you want two places to go.

We loved Stein-am-Rheim! A gorgeous medieval town, with a fabulous "setting" right on the Rhine. Nearly Rheinfall was fabulous also (we had a car). Another nice day trip from Zurich is Appenzell, where the main streets are lined with the traditional painted houses and shops with vintage signs, full of traditional crafts and naive art (too charming). I thought the shopping here was superior and the prices were lower than anywhere else we went in eastern Switzerland (many of the same items with saw in Zurich at a fraction of the price). And, the people in Appenzell are very friendly, although not much English is spoken.