15 Historical Tours in Switzerland Worth Booking

1.Zürich Historic District Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 206 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $43Our pick

Zurich Old Town on foot with funicular views, medieval churches, underground ruins, and Lenin ties. Small English group, about 2 hours.

“Our tour was fantastic! I’m having a senior moment, because I have forgotten her name. But she was wonderful. We were the only two on the tour, but she did not cancel or reschedule. A huge plus. She took us throughout the Old Town, and even showed us some sites extra because we moved so well. Really a great first day tour to get acclimated to a beautiful city. Highly recommend!”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.1-Hour Historical Tour with Night Watchman

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 122 reviews · 1.5 hours · from $39

90-min Night Watchman tour in Lucerne from Chapel Bridge, mixing medieval law and mercenaries with vivid visuals for about $39.

“Excellent value. Highly recommend. Ralph was awesome. Thank you!”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Basel Historical Old Town Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 99 reviews · 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.) · from $21

A small-group, 90-minute walk through Basel Old Town with a local guide, key landmarks like the Roothus and Opera House, plus Swiss sweets.

“Very informative and fun. We walked most of Basel. Jonas was super. He gave us history and excellent restaurant recommendations”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.City tour historic old town Zurich

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 38 reviews · 2 hours · from $49

2-hour small-group walk through Zurich old town, with Einstein and Lenin stories, baroque gardens, cloisters, fountains, and classic churches.

“The tour visited the significant historical sites of Zurich. The guide pointed out many details and her explanations were good. The tour is strenuous with hills and many steps. Our guide's pace was too fast (several people in our small group complained) and that made the walk more strenuous than necessary. If one stopped to take photos, you had to hurry to catch up because the guide kept going. We joked that she wanted to finish early to go home and, indeed, the "2 hour" tour was 1 3/4 hours. An extra 15 minutes of walking at a slower pace to enjoy the view would have made this tour better.”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Basel Historical Old Town Tour

★★★★★★★★★★3.8 · 27 reviews · 1.5 hours · from $21

Basel Historical Old Town tour covers Basel Münster, the 500-year-old Roothus town hall, Grossbasel streets, and opera house highlights in 1.5 hours.

“I had a really nice and interesting tour in Basel. The city is beautiful, and the tour made it even better. The guide, Gina, was super nice, explained everything really well, and made the experience fun and engaging. She was super cool and easy to listen to. Definitely recommend this tour if you want to learn more about Basel in a relaxed and enjoyable way!”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Highlights of Geneva: Dark History Quest Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 16 reviews · 2 hours 15 minutes to 2 hours 45 minutes (approx.) · from $6Best value

Play a phone game through Geneva’s dark-history landmarks, from Cathédrale Saint-Pierre to an air-raid shelter, for $6.01 per person.

“So we bailed part way through and didn't finish. It was interesting to get to the first few sites and read the history we wouldn't get otherwise, but it wouldn't advance if it didn't detect you were at the next location. GPS was bouncing around and we got hung up. I also didn't like that it didn't tell you the next location (where Google maps might have helped) since it was trying to be mysterious. Just too glitchy in the end.”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.Chocolate, Art, and History walking tour of Zurich

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 15 reviews · 2 hours · from $96

Zurich Chocolate, Art, and History walking tour with 10+ tastings at Läderach, Teuscher, Sprüngli, and more. 2 hours, English guide.

“Our guide, Michail, was a great conversationalist! He was very informative and took us to amazing chocolate places that are rich in history. He also recommended some restaurants and activities for our time in Zurich as well. We cannot wait to come back!”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Schwyz: Museum-Ticket Forum of Swiss History Schwyz

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 11 reviews · 1 day · from $17

A family-friendly day in Schwyz at the Forum of Swiss History, with interactive medieval exhibits, dress-up fun, and a ticket that extends to Zurich.

Check availability →Read our full review

9.Lucerne Small-Group Walking Tour: History, Culture & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 11 reviews · 2 hours 15 minutes (approx.) · from $79

A 2.25-hour Lucerne small-group walk with St. Leodegar, Lion Monument, Chapel Bridge, and local food tips, led in English.

“We had a great tour! it was a small group which we absolutely loved! everything was organized and the tour guide was very friendly and informative, she also shared some good tips with us for our trip to Como.”

Check availability →Read our full review

10.Chur old town tour: discover 11,000 years of history

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 9 reviews · 2 hours · from $26

2-hour Chur old town walk with a German guide, from St. Martin to Ochsenplatz city wall, $26 per person.

“Guide weiss shr viel. Koordination der Erklärungen an den Standorten könnte harmonischer sein.”

Check availability →Read our full review

11.Private Mystic Zermatt Tour: Peaks, History & Culture

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 6 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $499

A private 2-hour walk in Zermatt mixing church calm, Matterhorn context, and memorial reflection, ending at the Gornergrat Railway.

“Elizabeth was a refreshing, calm, warm, friendly, and engaging tour guide! She was extremely knowledgeable about the history of Zermatt, the alpinists that created Zermatt and the people of the area. We enjoyed the tour immensely!”

Check availability →Read our full review

12.Cultural and Historical Guided Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 3 hours · from $97

Walk Lausanne’s Cathedral, Louve, squares, bridges, and grand viewpoints with an English guide in 3 hours for $97.

“Ilona is such an accommodating and amiable tour guide. She delivered excellently on her promise in showing the secrets of Lausanne by taking us to the unique spots in the city that not even all locals know. Her appreciation with history, art, and culture as a whole is admirable and contagious! Overall, her passion in what she does is really apparent in how she educates her tour group. I really recommend taking a tour with Ilona!”

Check availability →Read our full review

13.Historic Lausanne: Exclusive Private Tour with a Local Expert

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 5 reviews · from $211

2-hour private walk through Lausanne’s historic core, from Bessières Bridge to the Cathedral and Palais de Rumine, ending at Musée de l’Elysée.

“guide wasa 'no show' and I can't provide more of a review and this form seems to require more words so after taking the train to the designated station and the the street arriving 30 mins early I waited and no one showed up at the time indicated”

Check availability →Read our full review

14.Private Exclusive History Tour with a Local

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4 reviews · 2 - 3 hours · from $175

Private 2 to 3 hour Lucerne history tour with a local, from Torbogen Luzern to Chapel Bridge, plus tailored tips for your stay.

“Manuela was exceptional. Punctual, very respectful of what we wanted to see and learn, great pace, highly professional and extremely friendly and welcoming. I recommend her as highly as I possibly can. She was perfect.”

Check availability →Read our full review

15.Gruyere Village Historic Full Day Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $212

Full-day Gruyères and chocolate tour from Geneva with castle views, cheese production at La Maison du Gruyère, and a Maison Cailler tasting.

“The trip was very enjoyable and informational as well. If you’re a chocolate and cheese lover, this trip is definitely for you. If not, you will still learn something from this trip. My tour driver John was very friendly and engaging as he shared a good history of the places we visited. He made the entire trip interesting so there was not a boring moment.”

Check availability →Read our full review