Basel Travel Guide

  The Rhein
by lifeisatrip
 
  • The Rhein
      The Rhein
    by lifeisatrip
  • The Rhine River in Basel
      The Rhine River in Basel
    by Nemorino
  • Fasnacht
      Fasnacht
    by Kathrin_E
  • Marktplatz and Rathaus, Basel
      Marktplatz and Rathaus, Basel
    by SWFC_Fan
  •   Basel
    by Mikivoyageur
 

Pro

Myndo profile photo

  very good public transportation, theatres, museums, ... 


Con

Zorra80 profile photo

  expensive, mountains too far away 


In a nutshell

angiebabe profile photo

  I liked it a lot! especially as a base to fly into and travel off to elsewhere. 

 

Explore Basel

Things to Do  

Museum Tinguely

Museum Tinguely, Basel

 Nemorino Says:  Photos:1. Museum Tinguely2. Park by the Tinguely Museum3. Museum Tinguely from across the Rhine RiverJean Tinguely (1925-1991) was an artist who grew up in Basel and later belonged to the Parisian avant-garde in the 1950s and 60s. He is well known in Basel for his machine... 

St Alban

St Alban, Basel

 Nemorino Says:  Photos:1. St Alban2. Signpost for pedestrian routes in the St Alban ValleySt Alban is an attractive and evidently prosperous section of Basel on the left bank of the Rhine River. Traditionally this was where the old, established families of Basel used to live.There is a... 

Hotels  

Les Trois Rois

 1 Review and 92 Opinions  I didn't stay at Les Trois Rois (The Three Kings) hotel in Basel, but I passed by during my walks... 

Schweizerhof Hotel

 2 Reviews and 101 Opinions  The hotel is very well located just opposite the main railway station, convenient to many city trams... 

See all 75 Hotels in Basel

Restaurants  

Der Rollerhof: Münster this

Der Rollerhof: Münster this, Basel

 dutchboycalledjan Says:  We've eaten twice in this typical restaurant. This old 'hof am Münsterplatz' has been transformed in a classical restaurant with a modern touch. The menu has mainly Italian dishes which have been prepared with excellent fish, meat and vegetable. The wine cart also features... 

Neptun: Fine authentic Mediterranean cuisine

Neptun: Fine authentic Mediterranean cuisine, Basel

 gurkpeter Says:  The Npetun is an Italian Restaurant, located close to the river Rhein in Kleinbasel.It is a very good and fairly priced Restaurant. I like to go there with my family or when we have guests.The Restaurant has two parts, a bar and the restaurant itself. The bar in itself has... 

Nightlife  

Open Air Cinema: Open air cinema on the Münster place (in summer)

Open Air Cinema: Open air cinema on the Münster place (in summer), Basel

 Myndo Says:  As several other cities in Switzerland, also Basel features in late summer an Open Air Cinema. It is nicely located in the middle of the city on the Munsterplatz.In the evening they will errect the big screen so you can view the films here.The dates and films you can find on... 

Transportation  

St Alban Ferry

St Alban Ferry, Basel

 Nemorino Says:  Photos:1. The St Alban Ferry2. European Union flag on the St Alban FerryThis is one of four passenger ferries that cross the Rhine between "Kleinbasel" (Small Basel) on the right bank and "Grossbasel" (Big Basel or just plain Basel) on the left.All four of these ferry boats... 

Ferry 'cross the Rhine

Ferry 'cross the Rhine, Basel

 850prc Says:  There are a series of four ferries that make up the Faehri-Verein system of Basel. The ferry names are "Wilde Maa" @ St. Alban, "Leu" @ Münster, "Ueli" @ St. Johann and "Vogel Gryff" @ Klingental. These ferries have basically been plying the Rhein for over 150 years, and the... 

Shopping  

Condomeria: Condomeria

Condomeria: Condomeria, Basel

 Nemorino Says:  Basel is the second Swiss city, after Zürich, to have a specialty shop devoted entirely to condoms. Well, not entirely, since they also sell other contraceptive devices such as diaphragms, the pill and spirals.Their website includes a lot of good advice (unfortunately only... 

Bärentreff: For Jelly bear lovers

Bärentreff: For Jelly bear lovers, Basel

 Myndo Says:  Ok, I confess, I am a junky for jelly bears or "Gummibärchen" as they are called in german. This is the shop where I get my "fix". The shop has everything in jelly, not only bears. It has fruit shaped, animal shaped, phantasy shaped ones. It has variations with natural fruit... 

several Restaurants: Local Beers: Ueli Bier and Unser Bier

several Restaurants: Local Beers: Ueli Bier and Unser Bier, Basel

 Myndo Says:  Basel has two good local beers.One is the "Ueli Bier", made by the Brewerie Fischerstube at the Rheingasse in the smaller BaselThe other is the "Unser Bier" (translated: our beer) made in the bigger Basel at the Laufenstrasse.Both are going more for quality than quantity.... 

GLOBUS, MANOR, MIGROS, EPA, ETC...: Shopping in Basel

GLOBUS, MANOR, MIGROS, EPA, ETC...: Shopping in Basel, Basel

 nygaston Says:  Located as it is at the heart of a geographically compact region - albeit divided by frontiers - Basel offers a wealth of shops of every kind. Daily needs are mainly catered for by two major distributors which cover the whole area. One is Migros, the other is Coop the latter... 

Local Customs  

Fasnacht - Basel's So Special Carnival

Fasnacht - Basel's So Special Carnival, Basel

 Kathrin_E Says:  I am astonished to see that VT's opulent Basel travel guide does not, so far, contain much about Basel's so special carnival. The Fasnacht is the most famous event in the city. Basel locals, please forgive an outsider, who has never really been 'in' it, the description... 

Vogel Gryff

Vogel Gryff, Basel

 Myndo Says:  the "Bird Griffin" - Vogel Gryff seems to be yet another of the dragons in Basel. It is one of the three Signs of the three "Ehrengesellschaften" of Basel. Guilds would be the english word (thank you JTF). They come from the old Zuenfte, where the Workers of Basel were put... 

Warnings Or Dangers  

TRAMS and EMERGENCY NUMBERS = 112

TRAMS and EMERGENCY NUMBERS = 112, Basel

 nygaston Says:  Watch the trams and the cars when you cross the streets.Telephone Numbers in Switzerland:112 - SOS, Distress Call117 - HELP, Police118 - FIRE143 - Need144 - Ambulance, DOCTOR, Medical Emergency147 - Child HelplineYou need a doctor 24/7 :061 261 1515Air Rescue = 1414IWB... 

Off The Beaten Path  

St. Johann Vorstadt

St. Johann Vorstadt, Basel

 german_eagle Says:  St. Johann Vorstadt is another district of Basel worth to see. It is sort of the pendant to St. Alban, albeit not as picturesque and of totally different ambience.St. Johann also has a city gate, one of the three remaining. This one was built 1370-80 and looks pretty similar... 

Botanical Garden

Botanical Garden, Basel

 german_eagle Says:  The Botanical garden operated by the Basel University is a very nice green and peaceful oasis in the bustling city. It is located next to Petersplatz and Spalentor city gate. Access from each side. The garden is open daily.Founded in 1589 (at a different location, though) it... 

Sports & Outdoors  

Swiss Indoors

Swiss Indoors, Basel

 german_eagle Says:  Are you a tennis fan? If so, then Basel in Oct/Nov is a *must* for you. The Davidoff Swiss Indoors is one of the biggest (indoor) events on the ATP tour. You get to see many of the famous tennis players like Roger Federer, Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic etc.I saw the opening... 

FC Basel

FC Basel, Basel

 german_eagle Says:  FC Basel is Switzerland's leading football (soccer) team in our days. They also scored some points in the European leagues (like Champions League), so they are really pretty good. If they play during your visit you might want to see the match at the St. Jakob Park stadium.... 

Favorites  

Excursions: Riehen

Excursions: Riehen, Basel

 german_eagle Says:  When (if!) you have enough of bustling city life it is just a quick train ride to Riehen, a "suburb" of Basel in the north of the city. Riehen is located on the right bank of the Rhine river at the foot of the Black Forest mountains. Until the early 20th century it had been... 

Excursions: Mariastein

Excursions: Mariastein, Basel

 german_eagle Says:  First mentioned in 1434 Mariastein is nowadays the second largest pilgrimage site in Switzerland. As the name "Mariastein" indicates, people go on pilgrimage to "Maria" in the "stone", meaning a grotto in the rock formations high above a valley where the actual chapel with a... 

The Place

Plan a Basel vacation with reviews, tips and photos posted by real travelers and Basel locals

Experience Basel
  •   655 Tips and Reviews
  •  1,323 Photos
  •  7 Videos
  Share your Travels  
Map of Basel
 

The People

153 Members Live Here
 
Advice from the Locals
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 My Basel - I am born in Basel itself, but living outside of it. I am working in Basel and Basel is the place I go, when I want to go out. Although I love travelling, Basel is a home for me, where I am always... 

153 members live in Basel

 

Questions and Answers

alexplypin profile photo

Q:  I have tried to find out about a train trip from Basel to Freiburg, but the fare structure on the website is ridiculous on the... 

leics profile photo

A: I'm not sure what you mean by 'the website'...'on the Virgin'? Have you looked at the Swiss railway website in... 

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Top Basel Writers

1

Basel - Switzerland's Gate to the world

german_eagle profile photo

 Basel, pop. about 170'000, is the second largest city in Switzerland. Together with Riehen and Bettingen it forms the half-canton Basel-Stadt (BS). Bordering to Germany and France and located right on... 

2

My Basel

Myndo profile photo

 I am born in Basel itself, but living outside of it. I am working in Basel and Basel is the place I go, when I want to go out. Although I love travelling, Basel is a home for me, where I am always...... 

3

Cycling and recycling in Basel

Nemorino profile photo

 Before the old Basel Theater was torn down in 1975, parts of the old stage machinery were salvaged and given to the artist Jean Tinguely, who spent two years recycling this old machinery and making it... 

4

Basel

littlesam1 profile photo

 We used Bern as our central location and did most of our traveling from here. Basel was only a two hour train ride from Bern. Basel really left me with mixed impressions. In my honest opinion it had... 

5

BASEL CITY and RHEIN RIVER - SWITZERLAND

nygaston profile photo

 I was in Lugano, then I moved to Basel... Lugano is so beautiful that I did not want to leave it. But now, I love Basel. The city is nearly located on the 3 countries : Switzerland, France and... 

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