Swiss chocolate in Zurich, from Lindt to tasting walks
Chocolate is the easiest Swiss souvenir to carry home, and Zurich gives you plenty of ways to taste your way to a choice. You can ride out to the Lindt Home of Chocolate on the lake shore or walk the Old Town shops with a guide, and one coach day folds Lindt in with a lake cruise. This guide compares what each costs and what it leaves out, starting with the Lindt tree you can see for free in the station.
Chocolate at the Christmas markets
The first chocolate you meet in Zurich at Christmas may be hanging from a tree. The big tree in the main station hall, at the heart of the Polarzauber market, is now decorated by Lindt with Lindor balls, in place of the Swarovski crystal tree of earlier years. The tree costs nothing to see, and Lindt also runs a Christmas train for children in the hall. Our main station guide covers the rest of the market under the roof.
Elsewhere, the Münsterhof market by the Fraumünster gathers Zurich shops and brands, which makes it a good place to browse for local gifts. Swiss chocolate runs through the whole city, though. The tastings below go deeper than any market stall.
Lindt Home of Chocolate in Kilchberg
The Lindt Home of Chocolate, run by a foundation of Lindt & Sprüngli, stands in Kilchberg, on the shore of the lake just south of the city. The first thing you see is a 30-foot (9 m) chocolate fountain in the entrance hall. The exhibition covers the history of cocoa and shows production in a modern pilot plant. Then come the unlimited tastings. The Lindt Home of Chocolate entry ticket, from ~$17, is one we link on GetYourGuide (there is no Viator listing), where it scores 4.6 from 11,576+ reviews. The catch is the location and the crowd. Kilchberg is outside the center, so you need a train or a bus to reach it, and weekend afternoons in December are crowded. A weekday visit, or an early one, gives you more room at the tasting counters.
Lindt on a coach day with a cruise
If you would rather not work out the trip to Kilchberg, Best of Switzerland Tours' city tour with a lake cruise and Lindt, from ~$91, bundles it into a 5.5 to 6.5-hour day. A coach ride through the Zürichberg brings views over the city and the lake toward the Alps, and the route passes sights like the Swiss National Museum before a guided walk in the Old Town. A 30-minute cruise on Lake Zurich follows, then the Lindt Home of Chocolate, entered without waiting in the ticket line and with the same unlimited tasting. A visit to the FIFA museum can be added as an upgrade.
It scores 4.5 from 5,744+ reviews on GetYourGuide and 4.2 from 1,196+ on Viator, where it costs about $93. The catch is the format. This is a big-group coach tour with a short cruise. In December the grey cloud lid over the plateau often hides the Alps from the Zürichberg. Set against the ticket alone, the extra money mostly pays for the coach and the guide, so it suits a first visit more than a return trip.
Lindt without working out the train
A coach takes care of Kilchberg, with an Old Town walk and a 30-minute lake cruise before the unlimited tasting, over 5.5 to 6.5 hours from ~$91. Expect a large group, and add the FIFA museum only if football is on your list.
A chocolate walk through the Old Town
For chocolate in the city itself, Unique Ways' chocolate walking tour, from ~$106, spends 2 to 2.5 hours moving between Old Town chocolate shops with 15 guests at most. Expect 13+ tastings along the way. The GetYourGuide booking also comes with a sweet gift to take home. The route is flexible and service animals are welcome. Bring your own water bottle to refill at the city's fountains between tastings. It scores 5.0 from 141+ reviews on Viator and 4.97 from 35+ on GetYourGuide, where it costs about $110.
The catch is the sugar. Thirteen tastings in two hours is a lot, and nothing on the route is savory, so have a salty snack beforehand and keep the proper meal for later. An afternoon walk pairs well with an evening fondue at the chalet beside the Singing Christmas Tree on Werdmühleplatz, which our fondue guide lists with the other chalets.
The chocolatier stop on the food tour
If you want chocolate as one course among several, Secret Food Tours' Zurich walk, from ~$137, includes chocolates from the city's oldest chocolatier. The morning version also stops for hot chocolate in a grand café, and the afternoon one offers a champagne truffle or a Zurich cocktail in its place. The rest of the 3.5 hours is savory, from sausage to Rösti, which balances the sweetness. The catch is a lot of walking and little time to shop at the stops, so you may need to come back for the chocolates you liked. Our fondue and food guide covers the full menu.
Which chocolate plan suits you
| Option | From | Time | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lindt Home of Chocolate ticket | ~$17 | At your own pace | The fountain and unlimited tastings | Outside the center, crowded weekend afternoons |
| City tour, cruise and Lindt | ~$91 | 5.5 to 6.5 h | A first visit with transport included | Big coach group, short cruise |
| Unique Ways chocolate walk | ~$106 | 2 to 2.5 h | Old Town shops with 13+ tastings | All sweet, no savory food |
| Secret Food Tours walk | ~$137 | 3.5 h | Chocolate as one stop in a full meal | Lots of walking, little time to buy |
| Lindt tree at Zurich HB | Free | A few minutes | A look on the way to a train | Rush-hour crowds in the hall |
Chocolate to take home
Buy your gifts near the end of the trip, so they spend less time in a warm hotel room. Most shops in Switzerland close on Sundays, but the shops in the main station stay open, which makes the HB a useful fallback if you fly out on a Sunday. Families heading to Lindt with children can find ideas in Zurich at Christmas with kids, and on a rainy afternoon Kilchberg makes a good indoor plan, as our December weather guide suggests. If you have a spare day after the tastings, Christmas markets near Zurich lists the towns with markets of their own, most of them reachable by train. Market dates and hours helps you fit the chocolate around the evenings in town.