Rapperswil-Jona is often pictured as a small castle town framed by roses and blue water. That image is real, but it captures only the western edge of a larger municipality. On the upper Lake Zurich, the historic town of Rapperswil sits beside the broad, joined-up neighbourhoods of Jona, Kempraten and other settlements. The Canton of St. Gallen’s statistical portal records 28,834 permanent residents in the municipality in 2025; this is the resident population of Rapperswil-Jona, not a count of the wider lake region. The city’s present character comes from that combination: an intimate old centre, working and residential districts, and a shoreline that has long served as both route and destination.
A bridge before the town
People lived around the upper lake long before there was a Rapperswil to visit. Local archaeological summaries report finds in the area dating back at least 5,000 years and remains of a prehistoric wooden crossing, around 1600 BC, near today’s Seedamm. At Kempraten, farther along the same shore, the Roman settlement of Centum Prata left traces at several sites. These are important chapters in the region’s history, but they do not make the medieval town a Roman foundation. The local historical account says Rapperswil’s foundation probably took place around 1200, when the Rapperswil family moved its seat across the lake from Alt-Rapperswil, now Altendorf. The town and castle are first recorded in documents in 1229. A wooden bridge to Hurden followed in 1358, strengthening the crossing’s role in travel and trade.
Castle hill, lanes and roses
The first walk belongs to the old town. From the station, the route runs past the harbour and narrow shopping streets toward the Lindenhügel, where Rapperswil Castle rises above the roofs. Its towers and walls make the town legible from the lake; from the hill, the view reverses the scene, taking in the harbour, the upper lake and the Seedamm. The castle exhibition leads visitors through the building’s history and its links with the Habsburgs and the bridge. At the hill’s foot, the deer park and lakeside paths add quieter pauses to a compact centre.
Roses are not simply a logo here. The tourism office counts more than 20,000 flowering roses in gardens near the Capuchin monastery and on the Schanz from May to October. The latter includes a scent garden designed for visitors with visual impairments, with names marked in Braille. The weekly Friday market brings local produce into the same historic streets, while cafés, independent shops and restaurants make the centre useful beyond a quick photo stop. The short climb from Hauptplatz to the castle is part of the experience: the tourist route notes 53 steps, then a broad view of water and the surrounding hills.
Stories told through objects and industry
For a deeper account than the castle can provide, the Stadtmuseum Rapperswil-Jona occupies historic buildings on Herrenberg, including a fourteenth-century tower and a fifteenth-century town house. Its permanent exhibition ranges across roughly eight centuries, setting a model of the town around 1800 against the present-day plan. Everyday craft, jewellery, industrial production, tourism and Circus Knie share the galleries, an apt portrait of a town whose identity has never rested on scenery alone. The museum is wheelchair accessible; its current opening hours and exhibitions should be checked before a visit.
That industrial thread is still visible in the Alte Fabrik, once the first production site of Geberit and now a cultural venue. Geberit traces its beginnings to Albert Gebert’s tinsmith and plumbing workshop in Rapperswil in 1874. Today the old factory hosts exhibitions, theatre, music, literature and a public library. On the Jona side, the OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences has a campus with teaching, laboratories, a library and research facilities. Together, these places show how manufacturing, education, services and culture have grown alongside tourism. The city’s history is not frozen in the castle walls.
Walking out over the lake
One of the most distinctive outings begins at the harbour and crosses the water on foot. The present Rapperswil–Hurden wooden footbridge opened in 2001, measures 841 metres and follows the line of earlier crossings used by travellers and pilgrims on the Way of St James. It is a pedestrian route, not a substitute for the road-and-rail Seedamm beside it. Across the bridge, Hurden lies in the canton of Schwyz; Pfäffikon is close by and connects to wider rail routes. The walk makes the town’s geography unusually tangible: instead of looking across the lake, visitors step into it.
Boats extend the itinerary to Ufnau and Lützelau, the small islands just offshore, while scheduled services connect Rapperswil with other lakeside places, including Zürich and Schmerikon. Ufnau is served by passenger boat; access and services at Lützelau depend on boat or seasonal arrangements. Swimming areas, promenades, cycling routes and the longer Obersee trail offer alternatives for visitors who want a day outside rather than another museum. Families can add Knies Kinderzoo, a short walk from the station, and the city’s public transport makes it possible to combine the lakeside with Jona or Kempraten without a car.
Getting there and making a day of it
From Zürich, the practical option is the train: regional tourism information gives a journey of about 40 minutes, while the direct SBB timetable is the place to check the exact departure and any works. The lake steamer from Zürich’s Bürkliplatz takes around two hours and turns the journey into an outing; sailings change by season. Rapperswil-Jona itself has a main station in Rapperswil, S-Bahn stops in Jona and Kempraten, another station at Blumenau, city buses, regional buses and a harbour. The Friday market, old town, castle, museum, footbridge and harbour can be linked on foot; buses are useful for wider neighbourhoods and the Jona attractions.
The visitor centre at Fischmarktplatz can help with maps, boat tickets and guided walks. Accommodation ranges from hotels and guesthouses to holiday rentals and camping in the wider destination; restaurants, cafés and shops cluster around the old town and station, with everyday services spread through the municipality. A rewarding first day is to arrive by train, browse the market if it is Friday, climb to the castle, visit the museum, then cross the wooden bridge before returning by boat or rail. A longer stay can add Ufnau, the lakeshore toward Schmerikon or Jona’s cultural and educational sites. Check current train, bus and boat timetables, museum hours, island access and seasonal facilities before setting out.