Sights: Things worth seeing in Basel
“Worth seeing” is more of an individual opinion than an objective selection criteria when it comes to choosing a city to visit. That’s why our selection of Basel’s sights is also purely subjective. But well worth seeing!
Overview by city district
Central Grossbasel
The heart of the city of Basel is located between the SBB railway station and the river Rhine. The old town of Grossbasel features numerous alleyways and mediaeval buildings, the marketplace, Basel Minster and the “Freie Strasse” shopping street.
Central Kleinbasel
Kleinbasel, an attractive, multicultural district of the city, can be accessed from Grossbasel via the “Mittlere Bruecke” (central bridge), or by one of the ferries over the Rhine. Here visitors can find alternative bars and clubs, interesting new shops and Basel’s Badischer Bahnhof (BBB) railway station.
Birsfelden, Breite
Basel Birsfelden and Basel Breite offer great walks along the banks of the Rhine, or alternatively visitors can plunge into the cooling waters of the Rhine Baths. The hydroelectric power plant in Birsfelden is an impressive and striking building.
Rosental, Wettstein
A highlight of this part of Basel is the tower (Messeturm) at the Basel Exhibition Centre. In contrast, artistic highlights can be found in the Tinguely Museum or at the LISTE art fair, an art exhibition offering an alternative to ART Basel.
St. Johann
St. Johann is the quarter for architects and designers, characterised by office buildings and a wide variety of gastronomic outlets.
St. Alban, Bruderholz
Situated between Birsfelden and Grossbasel, these two districts, with their banks and offices, are Basel’s centres for upscale living.
Architecture
The Basel architects, Herzog & de Meuron, have helped to shape the skyline of Basel in impressive fashion: private homes, galleries, industrial buildings such as the SBB’s railway control centre (see picture) and FC Basel’s football stadium were all built to their designs.
Other architectural highlights in Basel:
- Basel Exhibition Centre tower (Messeturm): at 105 metres, the tallest structure in Switzerland (after the Alps, of course!)
- The curvaceous building by Mario Botta that houses the Tinguely Museum.
- Forum 3 on the Novartis Campus with its many-layered coloured glass elements.
- The Border Triangle sculpture.
Views
Tall buildings are a rarity in Basel, and so the Messeturm is an outstanding exception.
The two towers of Basel Minster also offer wonderful views of the city (the 200+ steps are worth it!) as does the silo tower in the Rhine port.
The Rhine
The river Rhine plays a central role in the lives of Basel’s inhabitants. It is the source of the pleasantly mild climate, a magnificent landscape and dreamy cityscape as well as a flourishing economy.
Every visitor to the city should make time for a walk along the Rhine. Or alternatively jump straight into the cool waters – the Rhine is also paradise for swimmers and bathers (a highlight is the traditional Rhine Swim in August).
The Rhine Ferries
The Rhine ferries are Basel’s environmentally friendly public transport. The Rhine itself is their engine.
- St. Alban Ferry “Wilde Maa”
- Minster Ferry “Leu”
- Klingental Ferry “Vogel Gryff”
- St. Johann Ferry “Ueli”
The Rhine Bridges
Six bridges link Grossbasel and Kleinbasel. The most beautiful and best known bridge is the “Mittlere Bruecke”, which originally was a narrow wooden structure dating from 1225, but today is a stone bridge.
Other bridges over the Rhine include the Johanniterbruecke, the Wettsteinbruecke, the Dreirosenbruecke, the Schwarzwaldbruecke and the Eisenbahnbruecke (railway bridge).
Museums – Art & Design
Basel is a major artistic centre. The city on the Rhine is host to the annual ART Basel exhibition and a number of smaller alternative art fairs. And Basel’s museums are definitely worth seeing.
- Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein (see picture)
- Museum Tinguely, Basel
- Beyeler Foundation
- Basel Paper Mill
- Caricature + Cartoon Museum Basel
- Basel Museum of Art: The largest collection of works by Holbein, plus works by artists such as Braque and Picasso.
- Kunsthalle Basel
- : Contemporary art that works with electronic media.
- S AM Swiss Museum of Architecture
- Skulpturhalle Basel
- Dolls’ House Museum
- Schaulager (exhibition warehouse) A museum or a modern warehouse? The best thing to do is see for yourself.
If you want to visit the comprehensive range of museums in the border triangle area (Switzerland, Germany & France), we recommend that you purchase a Museum Pass. The pass is valid for one year and costs EUR 71.00 for 1 person (and 5 children under 18 years of age – your own or other people’s) or EUR 123 for 2 people. A short-term pass for 48 hours costs EUR 26. >> Museum Pass
Gates
The three remaining gates of the original seven that surrounded the city of Basel are:
- Spalentor: one of Switzerland’s most beautiful city gates.
- St. Johanns-Tor
- St. Alban-Tor
Religious Buildings
- Minster
- St. Antonius’ Church Modern, contentious building dating from 1927
- Church of St. Clara
- Church of St. Elisabeth
- Church of the Holy Spirit (Heiliggeistkirche)
- Carthusian Church
- Church of St. Leonhard
- Church of St. Mary
- Church of St. Peter: one of Basel’s most beautiful churches.
- Synagogue
Parks & Fountains
Fountains
- Fastnachtbrunnen (Carnival Fountain; Tinguely Fountain)
- Fish Market Fountain (Fischmarktbrunnen)
- Urban Fountain
- Spalenberg Fountain
- Basilisk Fountain
Parks
- Kannenfeld Park
- Margarethen Park
- Petersplatz
- Rosenfeld Park
- St. Johann’s Park
More Sights, Curiosities & Hidden Gems
- Hammering Man: a 13.4 metre tall statue made of steel and aluminium on Aeschenplatz, which strikes 3 or 4 hammer blows per minute.
- Allgemeine Lesegesellschaft (General Reading Society): for bibliophiles and bookworms
- Gellertgut: an enchanting park.
- Märchenpfad (Fairytale Path): a fantastic walk for young and old alike.
City Tours
City tours…
- ... on foot www.basel.com
- ... by Segway www.basel.com
- ... by classic tram www.bvb.ch
- ... by London bus www.london-bus.ch
- ... by carriage www.hochzeitskutschen.ch
Check Availability
caratbeds & caratbreakfast
Our beds are a reason to enjoy a lie in, whilst our breakfast gives you a reason to get up!
It is very important to us that our guests get a good night’s sleep. Experience our 5-star bed:
Make sure that your day gets off to a perfect start with our 5-star breakfast:
Food intolerances and travel - no problem! Lactose-free and gluten-free products are, of course, available as part of our 5-star breakfast buffet. >> more
Tips & highlights
Day Room - Hotel Room for a day
Travel to or through Basel and need to freshen up or to take a rest? Our day room offer: Check-in from 9 am, check-out till 3 pm, from EUR 69,- per room.
Park, Sleep & Fly
Start your holiday in an even more relaxed frame of mind! Get yourself in the mood for a refreshing break and forget the high parking charges at the airport.
For travel agencies
Our GDS Codes for your reservation:
- SABRE: WV 37869
- APOLLO/GALILEO: WV 42383
- WORLDSPAN: WV BSLHA
- AMADEUS: WV BSLSHA
- PEGASUS: WV 37869