Parties In Your Hood

The «Quartierfestivals» really have a special place in my heart and for a city as small as Zurich there sure is a lot of them. As the different neighbourhoods compete to provide us with the ultimate summer experience it give me an excuse to visit some places that i haven’t been to in a while or if you are new to the city, discover some interesting corners of the city. But where are they all? I’ve put together a handy overview of the square, neighbourhood and city festivals.

The quartierfest in Europaallee is taking place for the second time and heralds the start of the neighbourhood and city festival season. There are two stages, a disco mobile, food trucks, workshops and lots of good music, including, for example, the dynamic Zurich duo, Johnny Nabu and DJ Verycozi.

Summerfäscht im Viadukt 9th-10th June
The Viadukt is officially welcoming in summer with open arms, food, drinks, music and a party. On both Friday and Saturday there will be a concert with various musical acts. On Saturday you can take part in some fun activities throughout the day.

Josefswiesenfest 17th June

Hunziker Fest 23rd-24th June
Open-air cinema, concerts and tours are on offer at the neighbourhood festival in the Hunziker area. If you've never visited the cooperative, this is the perfect opportunity to see what contemporary urban living might feel like.

I love how close Seefeld is to the lake and it has some great gastronomic offerings. Hell, i even celebrated a wild Ron Orp party in the Razzia Club but in spite of this i don’t visit so much any more. The summer fest at GZ Riesbach is the perfect reason to get reacquainted. 

Bezirksecho 1st July 
If you move to Albisrieden, you get a voucher for a bratwurst at the cattle show, because yes, they have a cattle show in Albisrieden. But this is about the newer neighbourhood festival Bezirksecho, which takes place for the second time this year at GZ Bachwiesen with live music into the evening.

Züri Fäscht 7th-9th July 
Due to the pandemic, Züri Fäscht is taking place after a four-year hiatus. Around 2.5 million visitors make their way to the city to plunder the food stalls at the Seebecken and watch the fireworks.

Between the Sihlfeld cemetery and the Heiligfeld meadow, the neighbourhood festival starts with a flea market, followed by a table tennis tournament, live music and completed by heading inside at 11pm for a dance.

Idaplatz is one of my favourite locations in Zurich and, of course, i love their festival. Eat, drink, play games and dance like there is no tomorrow because Idaplatzfest is only one day long this year. 

Dörflifäscht, Röntgenplatzfest & Brupbacherplatzfest 25th–27th August
On this weekend there are two square festivals (Sat-Sun) - and then also the Dörflifäscht (Fri-Sun). I would suggest having a quick look at the Dörfli first and then flit capriciously back and fourth between Röntgenplatzfest and Brupbacherplatzfest until you get comfortable.

Schwamendinger Chilbi 2nd-3rd September
Have you been to Schwamedingen yet? It’s a nice little part of the city and their «Chilbi» gives you a perfect excuse to visit. It’s been going since 1972 and not much has changed since then. 

This very strange sounding, (Boys shooting???) has been going on for years but all you need to know is this. We have half a day off, you won’t see any shooting, that «Chilbi» means fun fair and it’s all about the «Chilbi».

Lindenplatzfest 16th September 
I’ve been predicting for years that Altstetten will awaken like a sleeping dragon and whadayouknow….poof.. the first neighbourhood festival pops into existence with concerts, food and of course, bars.