Zurich
Switzerland.
Switzerland · 6 districts · 3 vibes
6 handpicked hostels in Zurich, sorted by traveler rating.
Zurich is Switzerland made into a city: punctual trams, lakeside finance towers, prices that wince every backpacker. The hostel scene is small (six properties worth talking about) but they all sit either in Niederdorf Old Town or one short tram ride from it. The lake is free, the drinking water is free, the Migros six pack is the budget traveler's friend, and the Old Town is medieval-streets beautiful in a way few capitals can match.
What to do in Zurich.
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Best Hostels in Zurich
6 handpicked hostels in Zurich, sorted by traveler rating.
Zurich Youth Hostel (Jugendherberge)
Zurich Youth Hostel (the Jugendherberge) is the city's largest, longest-running, and most institutional hostel — 8.5 from 3,540 reviews, run by Swiss Youth Hostels (HI), and the only Zurich property that bundles a real Swiss breakfast, a bar with happy hour, organized walking tours, and bar crawls under one roof. The trade-off: it sits in residential Wollishofen, 12 minutes by tram 7 from Hauptbahnhof.
Oldtown Hostel Otter
Oldtown Hostel Otter is the dead-centre Niederdorf hostel with a built-in pub — the Wüste Bar at street level — and an actual shared kitchen upstairs (a rarity at this address). 8.3 from 1,838 reviews, EUR 55 bunks, and the convenience of being inside walking distance of literally everything in central Zurich.
Viktoria Budget Hostel
Viktoria Budget Hostel is the cheapest serious bunk in Zurich (EUR 45 nights, 8.2 from 1,335 reviews) and it earns the savings the hard way — adults-only, residential Höngg address 18 minutes from Hauptbahnhof by tram 13, no breakfast, no bar, but a real shared kitchen with stovetop, dishwasher, microwave, fridge and a garden terrace where you can cook your Migros pasta and offset two restaurant meals a day.
Sigma Self Check-in Hostel
Sigma Self Check-in Hostel is the autonomy hostel — adults-only, no front desk (key by code), basic but spotless setup on Bergstrasse uphill from Hottingen, EUR 42 nights with garden access and ping-pong. 8.2 from 34 reviews (small sample but high rating), the cheapest Old Town-adjacent bunk in Zurich and the answer for travelers who don't want to deal with a receptionist.
Friendly Hostel Zurich
Friendly Hostel Zurich is the most centrally-located budget bunk in the city — Strehlgasse 3, three minutes from Bahnhofstrasse, four from Paradeplatz, six from the lake. 8.0 from 2,506 reviews, EUR 48 nights, and a small terrace with city view that makes the rooftop-style sunset a built-in feature of the stay.
Green Marmot Capsule Hotel Zurich
Green Marmot Capsule Hotel Zurich is the city's only proper Japanese-style capsule setup — small, AC-equipped, sealable pods instead of bunks, on a Schifflände address that puts you right on the Limmat at Bürkliplatz with the lake at your door. 7.7 from 5,725 reviews, EUR 60 a capsule, with a city-view terrace and a coffee shop on site.
Hand-picked guides.
Zurich is the city where a sit-down meal starts at CHF 25 and a Migros pre-made pasta is CHF 5. The hostel shared kitchen is therefore a bud…
A built-in hostel bar in Zurich is the difference between a CHF 7 beer at a Niederdorf bar and a CHF 4 beer at the hostel happy hour. Two Zu…
Board games at a Zurich hostel are the rainy-evening solution that the city desperately needs — Zurich gets 130 days of rain a year, the caf…