Zurich

The twin-towered Romanesque church where Zwingli launched the Swiss Reformation in 1519. Climb the Karlsturm for the best view over the Limmat, the old town roofs and the lake beyond.

Marc Chagall's five-window chancel cycle from 1970, plus an earlier Giacometti window. Entry is charged; go on a bright morning, when the south light comes through the glass properly.

Zurich swims in its own river and lake all summer from municipal bathhouses. The Frauenbad on Stadthausquai is women-only by day and a bar in the evening; Oberer Letten is a free stretch of river with a long lawn.

One of the strongest collections in the country, from Fuseli and Hodler through to Giacometti and a large Munch holding, split between the old building and David Chipperfield's 2021 extension across the square.

The city's own mountain, about 25 minutes on the S10 from the Hauptbahnhof and covered by the Zurich Card. Walk the ridge path along the Albis to Felsenegg, then take the cable car down to Adliswil.

Trains leave from beneath the terminal for the main station every few minutes and take 10 to 13 minutes. The Zurich Card, CHF 29 for 24 hours or CHF 56 for 72, covers the transfer in both directions along with the rest of the city network.

Direct SBB trains reach Lucerne in about 45 minutes, Bern in under an hour, Interlaken Ost in around two hours and Geneva in about two hours 45. None of it needs booking ahead; you turn up and get on.

Trams and buses cover everywhere inside the city and parking is priced to discourage you. A car only starts to earn its keep once you head into the Alps, and even there the mountain railways usually beat it.

June to September, for lake swimming, open-air cinema and long evenings on the Limmat.

November and January to March, outside the festive fortnight, when hotel rates fall hardest.

June to August, plus any week with a large trade fair; the Street Parade weekend is the worst of it.

Start at the Lindenhof for the view over the Limmat, then drop down through the Schipfe lanes into the old town before the shops open.

The Chagall windows at the Fraumünster, then across the bridge and up the Grossmünster's Karlsturm.

Eat at the Zeughauskeller or a Niederdorf lunch counter. A plate of food and a beer in central Zurich rarely comes in under CHF 30.

Tram to Bürkliplatz for a boat round the lake basin, or swim from Seebad Enge. If the weather has turned, the Kunsthaus instead.

Dinner in Zurich West under the Viadukt arches, then Frau Gerolds Garten, and the clubs behind Hardbrücke if you are staying up.

The largest waterfall in Europe by volume, under an hour by train to Schloss Laufen or Neuhausen. Boats run out to the rock in the middle of the fall from spring to autumn.

Twenty-odd minutes away, with the Oskar Reinhart collections and the Fotomuseum. On a busy summer weekend it is a better museum day than Zurich itself.