Zurich West: The Industrial District Turned Creative Quarter

Zurich West — Kreis 5 — is the city's great urban transformation story. What was for most of the 20th century a dense industrial district of factories, rail yards, and working-class housing has become, over the past two decades, the creative heart of Switzerland's largest city: galleries, clubs, design studios, restaurants, and one of Europe's best food halls occupy the repurposed industrial buildings that defined the district before the manufacturers left.

The Schiffbau complex is the anchor: a former turbine factory that now houses the Zurich Playhouse's main stage, a jazz club (Moods), and one of Zurich's best restaurants (Clouds, on the upper floor of the Prime Tower next door). The Halle 622 and Halle 550 across the rail tracks host concerts, trade fairs, and events. The Prime Tower itself, at 126 metres, is the city's tallest building and has a rooftop bar with the best views in Zurich.

For food and drink: Im Viadukt, the arched railway viaduct that runs through Kreis 5, has been converted into a mixed-use space with market stalls, independent shops, and restaurants — the Markthalle inside is a covered market with Zurich's best cheese, meat, bread, and produce vendors. The bars along Langstrasse (running from Kreis 4 into Kreis 5) represent Zurich's alternative and nightlife culture: the street has a rep for seediness it no longer fully deserves, and the mix of dive bars, cocktail spots, and kebab stalls is genuinely varied.

The industrial district transition isn't complete — pockets of original use remain — which is what makes it interesting. Come on a Saturday when the Markthalle market is at full energy and the district is operating at its best.