What to do in Basel ?

Denise Mcguire

We will be departing our trip in Basel and will be there for two days. Any ideas of fun things to do with an 11 year...? Chocolate tours and hiking, a good possibility if possible.. Open to other ideas as well.. Thanks

Claudia Sails

Honestly, there isn't alot in Basel. It's really more of a business convention sort of town. We spent a couple of days there following a Rhine cruise. The Tinguely-Brunnen park has some amazing kinetic sculptures (free). The red Rathaus (town hall currently in use) which has some lovely artwork painted inside and out. I wished we'd had a guided tour of that just to explain the art. Supposedly there is a english language pamphlet. If you are staying in a nice hotel, ask the concierge for recommendations, maps, directions, etc. Also I believe it's standard if you are staying in a Basel hotel that you have a free pass to ride the trams and buses. Again, the concierge can help.

You might also just google "top things to do in Basel with children" and see if anything sparks your interests.

Enjoy.

CalKat

We just ended our May Rhine cruise in Basel, but decided to use Bern as our base for 3 additional nights in Switzerland instead of Basel. There's a lot to do there, and it's the gateway to the Bernese Alps. Bern is only an hour train ride from Basel. Look on TripAdvisor for things to do with children in both cities. We went to Thun from Bern and had a lovely afternoon riding the ferry around the lake. We also went to Fribourg. Plus lots to do in Bern.

Ken from Vegas

I agree that there isn't a lot in Basel. However, Switzerland is a small country and there are lots of places to visit on a reasonable day trip.

Bern and Zurich within reach, as are Thun and Interlaken. You can ride the ferry across Lake Thun (some ferries are historic steamships). If you get an early start, you can go to Interlaken and take the trains and cable cars to the top of the Jungfrau (expensive and only worth it if the weather is clear).

Get Rick Steve's Switzerland guide book for ideas. The Swiss Rail Travel Pass is reasonablly priced (last time I bought one)and gets you onto the Lake Thun ferries and into many museums for free.

Denise Mcguire

thanks, Claudia, Ken and CalKat, for broadening my vistas. I have spent the last few hours doing some internet research, and am now looking forward to having some hiking adventures in Beautiful Switzerland, perhaps in Lauterbrunnen. Will definitely get Rick Steve's book.