Swiss National Museum – an 1898 castle in Zürich and Illuminarium in Christmas
An 1898 castle beside Zurich main station
About this experience
Last updated: 10 October 2026
Overview
The Swiss National Museum occupies a Gustav Gull building of 1898, directly beside Zurich main station. Gull worked in articulated Historicism, so the turrets and gables borrow from every corner of the young federal state. In 2016, Christ & Gantenbein added a concrete wing that closes the circuit. Before it, visitors walked into dead ends and turned back. The permanent exhibition covers the history of Switzerland from prehistory to the present. Meanwhile, Simply Zurich handles the city alone, and costs nothing to enter.
We came in from the station, which takes two minutes and crosses no road. Inside the old wing, the rooms keep their dark timber and painted ceilings. Afterwards, the 2016 extension changes the temperature entirely. Polished concrete floors carry aggregate set into the surface, echoing the old terrazzo. Windows frame Platzspitz park at angles that feel deliberate. Meanwhile, the collection moves from Bronze Age gold to Reformation panels to the twentieth century. Temporary shows fill the lower level, and they change four or five times a year.
Practical Information
The Swiss National Museum charges CHF 13 for adults and CHF 10 for concessions. Children up to 16 enter free. Simply Zurich costs nothing for anyone. An annual pass covering every Swiss National Museum site costs CHF 35. Swiss Museum Pass and Zurich Card holders enter free on presentation. Opening hours are 10:00 to 17:00 Tuesday to Sunday, with Thursday extended to 19:00. The museum closes on Mondays. Allow two hours for the permanent exhibition, and three if a temporary show interests you.
The entrance stands opposite Zurich Hauptbahnhof, across Museumstrasse. Every mainline train and most trams reach the station, so you need no separate journey. Drivers should use the station car parks rather than look for space nearby. Buy tickets at the desk or online at landesmuseum.ch, since general admission needs no timed slot. Platzspitz park lies behind the museum and gives somewhere to sit between wings. The address is Museumstrasse 2, 8001 Zurich, and the museum answers on +41 44 218 65 11.
Also called Musée national Zurich in French, Landesmuseum Zürich in German and Museo nazionale Zurigo in Italian.
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