Jutting high above the Aare River, Aarau's walled Old Town makes for a pleasant wander. Its grid of streets is lined with gracious, centuries-old buildings, more than 70 of which have grand roofs hanging out over the streets, with their timber undersides gaily decorated.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
24.61 MILES
Showcasing the works of the adjoining, eponymous high-end furniture manufacturer, Vitra Campus comprises the dazzling Vitra Design Museum (of Guggenheim…
17.95 MILES
About 17km east of Basel, on the Rhine's south bank, Switzerland’s largest Roman ruins are the last remnants of a colony founded in 43 BC, the population…
22.82 MILES
This astounding private-turned-public collection, assembled by former art dealers Hildy and Ernst Beyeler, is housed in a long, low, light-filled, open…
23.85 MILES
Housing the most comprehensive collection of public art in Switzerland, this superb fine arts museum reopened in mid-2016 after updates to the existing…
26.64 MILES
You haven’t really been to Lucerne until you have strolled the creaky 14th-century Kapellbrücke, spanning the Reuss River in the Old Town. The octagonal…
23.39 MILES
This 13th-century church is renowned for its stunning stained-glass windows, designed by the Russian-Jewish master Marc Chagall (1887–1985), who executed…
23.71 MILES
Zürich’s impressive fine-arts gallery boasts a rich collection of largely European art. It stretches from the Middle Ages through a mix of Old Masters to…
26.75 MILES
Lucerne’s blockbuster cultural attraction is the Sammlung Rosengart, occupying a graceful neoclassical pile in the heart of town. It showcases the…
Nearby Northwestern Switzerland attractions
0.2 MILES
To view centuries of Swiss art and regular temporary exhibitions, call by Aargau’s impressive house of fine arts, located about 250m south of the Altstadt…
6.24 MILES
Set amid a working farm with gardens and orchards, Schloss Wildegg crowns a green hilltop about 12km northeast of Aarau. Guests can wander at liberty…
6.64 MILES
Dominating a leafy hilltop above Lenzburg village, 14km east of Aarau, this attractive castle houses three museums inside its tower and one-time dungeon:…
8.05 MILES
This vertical stone fortress, 13km west of Baden, wouldn't be out of place in Arthurian legend or a Monty Python sketch. Schloss Habsburg was built in…
8.52 MILES
About 20km south of Lenzburg is Wasserschloss Hallwyl, a ‘Water Castle’ so named because it's built in the middle of a river – a natural moat. It is, in…
13.45 MILES
Occupying 20 rooms of a former mansion, this hands-on museum with a focus on educating kids about genealogy and generations past is a fun, free-for-all…
13.56 MILES
This beautifully restored medieval tower is one of Switzerland's most impressive. You can only get inside as part of a city tour, conducted by Info Baden…
13.59 MILES
The Old Town is adorned by a fetching covered timber bridge (Holzbrücke), cobbled lanes and an assortment of step-gabled houses.