Synopsis
Play Date in Zurich: No finalized plans, but strongly considering an interactive chocolate tour at the Lindt factory in Kilchberg just outside of Zurich. As I write this, no other ideas as we may be too exhausted to do anything but sitting in a coffee shop looking at pictures.
Commentary
Chocolate Museum
Was there any doubt?
Lindt’s web site warns of high demand so we purchased tickets online when in Zermatt, and on Tuesday morning we made our way to Kilchberg where both Lindt’s factory and museum. Google Maps and the slight scent of chocolate confirmed our heading until, somewhat suddenly, you are standing in front of the factory. The museum is behind the main factory (office?) building, with signs to direct you.
Watch the chocolate, ignore the screaming child. This is the tallest chocolate mixer in the world, melted chocolate is pumped from below to the whisk, over 9m/30ft high. The chocolate then flows down the middle before returning to its below-ground source. To avoid any Augustus Gloop incidents, the chocolate is kept out of reach of human hands: the “candy” in the center and its surrounding “chocolate” are plastic. Damn hygiene regulations.
The museum starts showing cocoa bean growing and then harvested, air dried turn the cocoa pulp into raw chocolate. Next is the history of chocolate and Swiss innovativeness (both chocolate and non-chocolate). The chocolate history is not exclusively Lindt and referes to other manufacturers/competitors, some active and some inactive. The museum displays their large collection of chocobilia (my made-up word for chocolate memorabillia): tools, molds, advertising, wrappers, etc., organized by decade. The display cases are packed.
The next room allows you to sample different types of chocolate bars and liquid chocolate. To sample the liquid chocolate, a nozzle drops a dollop of liquid chocolate onto your spoon. White chocolate was my favorite, perhaps because it was my mom’s favorite.
Before exiting the sampling area, you see bowls holding each type of Lindt’s round chocolates pieces and you are welcomed to take one of each (completely filling my hands with no pockets).
Outside the formal museum is a working production line with actual manufacturing machinery to produce chocolates. Explanations of the machines and the manufacturing process are projected on the windows. Unfortunately, the line was not running as it was being cleaned and prepped for its next run. Our last stop was the (kind of) steam-punk display which delivered a wrapped chocolate square to each visitor. Very entertaining.
Though niche for some, it’s a well-curated museum and the many free samples are (almost) worth the price of admission. The museum felt a little cramped, especially at the beginning,; however, a local told us the museum overflows with the substantially-larger summer crowds. The suggested visit time is 90 minutes; it took us 60 minutes.
Zürichsee Boat Ride
Zürichsee, or Lake Zürich, is large, narrow river on which public transport boats run various routes up and down the lake. We walked to the Kilchberg ZH dock from the museum and caught the boat to Zürich Bürkliplatz. The non-stop ride took approximately20 minutes, providing plenty of time to enjoy the views and take plenty of pictures (which my wife did and I did not).
Wandering Around and Fraumünster
We had no agenda upon arriving at Bürkliplatz (actually, we had no agenda after the chocolate museum), so we just walked in whatever direction looked interesting: a light lunch; window shopping for grandchildren winter hats; considered a random tram ride. Our only objective was arriving at the train station to take a train to the airport and an Uber to our hotel.
Our final stop was Fraumünster, a church built on the remains of an 853 abbey named after Münsterhof, the main square and marketplace of the medieval city. Near the church exit are stairs which led to the crypt and an exhibit about the of the remains of the old church and monastery discovered during renovations. The exhibit focuses on the history of the monastery, church, abbey, etc., and is an interesting read, if time permits.
Probably the most interesting/beautiful area of the church are the five windows designed by Marc Chagall and installed in 1970. Unfortunately, their position is far above the floor, making it difficult to appreciate and to take decent pictures.
Entrance to Fraumünster is 5CHF per adult.
Returning to the hotel
After arriving at the train station and before boarding a train to the airport, we stopped at a cafe for coffee, tea and treats. While there, we wrote out the postcards for the grandchildren and dropped them into Swiss Post dropbox . Then off to the airport and our hotel, ending our day exploring Zürich.
Image Credits
- Synopsis picture courtesy of Lindt Chocolate Museum.
- All other photos © 2025 Scott C Sosna, all rights reserved
