Zurich

Zurich is the capital and the largest city in Switzerland. The name is derived from the Celtic dur, which means 'water'. Being the capital of Switzerland, the city is a leading financial center. It has been considered as the global city with the best quality of life anywhere in the world. The city is the country's main commercial and cultural center.

Tourist Attractions: The museums, churches and other attractive places in the city draw the tourists from far and wide.

Transportation: The transportation facility in Zurich is well designed, making it the hub of rail, road and air traffic. Zurich Main Station, Zurich Oerlikon, Zurich Stadelhofen, and Zurich Altstetten are the main railway stations that serve the city. The Cisalpino, InterCity Express and the TGV high-speed trains runs through the city. The major international airport at Kloten helps the tourist to reach the city comfortably. A1, A3 and A4 motorways also pass through the city. The public transportation facilities are the S-Bahn (local trains), trams and buses. The transport network also includes boats, funicular railways and cable car.

Hotels: Zurich offers many world-class hotels and resorts to the tourists who reach the city from other parts of the world.These hotels provide facilities for the guests to relax themselves and enjoy their sumptuous food. Savoy Baur en Ville, Baur au Lac, Dolder, Alden Splugenschloss, Eden au Lac, Park Hyatt Zurich, Widder, Marriott, Ascot and Swissotel are some of the hotels situated in the heart of Zurich from where people can enjoy the charm of the city. In addition to this, the city also offers bars, restaurants, lounges and clubs for nighttime leissure.

Places of Attraction: Churches stand as the landmark of the city. Grossmunster Fraumunster and St. Peter with the largest clock face in Europe are the churches where pilgrims from the entire globe gather with much faith. Zurich is also known for its museums that exhibit the major cultural as well as historical artifacts of the country. Museum Barengasse that displays the history of the city in the 18th century, Kunsthaus Zurich- one of the largest collections in Classic Modern Art in the world, Museum Rietberg, Antique Asian Art, Museum Bellerive, Museum for fashion, architecture and design, Kunsthalle Zurich, Migros Museum, Museum of Design Zurich, Swiss National Museum, The Swiss National Museum, Johann Jacobs Museum that exhibits the history of colonial Fine Food and coffee, Johanna Spyri Museum, Haus Konstruktiv, NONAM North American Native Museum and Museum of the History of Medicine mesmerize the visitors with the wide collection of age-old artifacts. Zoological garden, Botanical Garden of the University of Zurich, Chinese Garden, Zurich Masoala Rainforest Ecosystem, Lake Zurich, uetliberg a mountain in the Swiss plateau an altitude 813 meters above sea level, with Uetlibergturm TV-tower are the other interesting points in the city.

COUNTRY	Switzerland
LOCATION	Situated at the place where the river Limmat leaves Lake Zurich, the city is surrounded by wooded hills including the Zurichberg and the Uetliberg.
GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES	Latitude 47º22' N, Longitude 8º33' E
AREA	91.88 sq. km.
POPULATION	376,815 (2007)

The banks in Zurich are renowned throughout the world for their flawless financial services. Zurich is regarded as a very significant banking center in the world and all the banks in the city meet international standards.

Banking in Zurich
The normal business hours of the banks in Zurich and in Switzerland are 9 AM to 4.30 PM from Monday to Friday. However on Thursday the banks remain open till 6 PM. The banks at the Zurich airport generally remain open daily from 6 AM to 10 PM.

Some of the best banks in Zurich are:

• Swiss National Bank: The 2 head offices of this important bank are located at Zurich and Berne. It functions as an independent central bank of Switzerland. It works in accordance with the country's interests as it is obliged by the national Constitution. The main aim of this bank is to ensure the price stability and create an environment, conducive for the country's economic growth. The bank has a total of 16 agencies, which are operated by various cantonal banks.
• Zurcher Kantonal bank: It has been offering services to various consumers since 15th February, 1870. All the 105 branches of the bank are efficient. Under its private banking section, there are services like e-banking, accounts and payments, loans and mortgages, pensions and insurance and more. For corporate clients there are additional services such as financing and real estate, accounts and cards and others.

The other popular banks of Zurich are Credit Suisse, UBS, Raiffeisen Bank Coop and Bank Leu.

Money matters in Zurich
Tourists can visit the well-known banks in Zurich for currency exchange. Tourists should convert foreign currency into Swiss francs prior to arrival in the city for the sake of convenience. It is a better option to buy goods with Travelers Checks, credit cards and debit cards. The Travelers Checks by American Express are widely accepted. There are countless ATMs of reputed international banks in Zurich. Thus travelers can withdraw money whenever they want.

The different banks in Zurich are located at various important areas of the city and they are trusted by countless consumers.

Zurich emergency numbers are very useful both for travelers as well as locals during the times of crisis. These telephone numbers include all the major departments of the city that deal with the public welfare services like the police, ambulance, hospital, fire brigade and so on.

Important Phone Numbers of Zurich
Among the numerous emergency numbers of Zurich, the police emergency number, fire brigade number and numbers of medical services are the mot important ones. The emergency telephone numbers in Zurich are as follows:

• Emergency police number - Tel. 117
• Emergency fire brigade number - Tel. 118
• Emergency ambulance number - Tel. 114
• Ambulance - Tel.144
• Breakdown assistance - Tel. 140
• Toxic Emergency Center - Tel. +41 44 251 51 51
• Emergency airways telephone number: Rega Air Assistance - Tel. +41 333 333 333
• Kantonsschule Station Timetable - Tel. +41 44 255 11 11
• Stampfenbachplatz Station Timetable - Tel. +41 900 55 35 55

Emergency Medical Assistance:

• Ärztlicher Notfalldienst, SOS Ärzte - Tel. +41 44 360 44 44
• Emergency Vet Service - Tel. +41 44 635 81 14
• SOS Dentists : SOS Zahnärzte - Tel. +41 44 262 11 11
• SOS-Doctors - Tel. 044 360 44 44
• First Aid - Tel. +41 (0)1 3616161

Switzerland's area code is +41 and for Zurich it is (0)1. Most of the public telephones are usable with the help of a telephone card. These cards are commonly known as taxcards and can be purchased in exchange of 10 or 20 Swiss Francs at post offices, train stations or kiosks. However, the emergency numbers of Zurich are toll free from the public telephones.