A day trip to the top of the Uetliberg Lookout Tower is hard to beat.

You start with a fun ride on the Uetliberg train from Zurich HB and end up high above the top of the Uetliberg with a 360-degree view you won’t believe.

The Uetliberg tower is 72 meters high and can be easily climbed via a number of stairs from the top of the Uetliberg mountain.

Wondering how to get there, what it costs, and whether it’s really worth it.

Keep reading to find out about my recent visit!

Table of Contents

General Information

Location	Top of the Uetliberg by the Hotel Uto Kulm
Height	72 meters / 236 ft
Travel Time	Zurich HB – Uetliberg Station: 25 minutes Uetliberg Station to Uetliberg Lookout Tower: 10 minutes walk
Ticket Prices	CHF 5 per person
Payment Methods	Credit card or coins (CHF 2, CHF 1)
Accessibility	Not Accessible. No lift available.

Details of the Uetliberg Lookout Tower

Getting There

Uetliberg Lookout Tower next to the Uto Kulm Restaurant

The Uetliberg Lookout Tower is located at the top of the Uetliberg 45 minutes from Zurich downtown.

The easiest way to get there is to take the Uetliberg train from Zurich HB. It takes around 25 minutes to get to the final station: Uetliberg.

** At the time of writing in Summer 2023, the train line is undergoing maintenance and various portions will be closed throughout the summer. Check the SBB schedule to see how to get around these closures (we took the tram to Triemli and then caught the train from there).

Once you reach the final station, the Lookout Tower is another 10-15 minute walk uphill from the train. There is a wide gravel path to the top which you can push a pram up, although looking at the guys sweating their way up, I would not recommend it for most people. It is steep.

The walk to the top of the tower is 72 meters in total and quite a few sets of stairs. It only take about 5-10 minutes to walk up, depending on how fit you are. If you notice yourself getting out of breath, take a pause and wait a minute to catch your breath. It is quite the climb up!

Payment Options

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I just wanted to mention payment options and using the machine to enter the tower because it was a little confusing when I was there. When you first starting climbing you come to a landing with a gate and a machine on the right.

It costs CHF 5 per person and you can pay with a credit card or 1 & 2 CHF coins. The machine is not manned and there are no real instructions on it. So, here is what you need to do.

To pay and enter, do the following on the payment machine:

Press the button labeled “Tower Access”
Pay with a card or coins
A green light appears above the gate when your payment is ok
You can now enter the turnstile

Repeat this process for each person.

Is it worth climbing the Uetliberg Lookout Tower?

Yes, it is definitely worth climbing to the top of the Uetliberg Lookout Tower if you go to the top of the Uetliberg. You get a far better, wider and clearer 360 degree view of the surroundings from there which includes distance views of the Alps, Lake Zurich, Zurich city and in all other directions. You won’t get such a view of the Zurich area anywhere else.