Märlitram Zurich 2026: children only — and two St Nicholas rides where parents come too
✓ Checked at the source · as of 9 October 2026 · 1 date still open
Only children ride Zurich's Märlitram: St Nicholas swaps to the tram, two angels read Christmas fairy tales, and grown-ups don't ride. If you want to ride with St Nicholas as a whole family, Zurich has two other ways, one by steam and one on the lake.
📅 Ride days 2026 — date and status
Samichlausfahrt in den Sihlwald (Zürcher Museums-Bahn)
✓Saturday, 5 December 2026 · 1 day
- Organiser
- ZMB Zürcher Museums-Bahn, mit Radio Zürisee
By steam train from Wiedikon to the Sihlwald, then on foot with the Schmutzlis to the hall at the visitor centre: the Samichlaus waits there for the verses, with punch at decorated tables.
Source: museumsbahn.ch · checked on 9 October 2026
Samichlaus-Fahrt auf dem Zürichsee (ZSG)
✓Sunday, 6 December 2026 · 1 day
- Organiser
- Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft (ZSG)
The Samichlaus boards the scheduled boat with the Schmutzli, because the donkey cannot carry all the presents alone. A little verse earns a small surprise — you travel on an ordinary ZVV ticket.
Source: zsg.ch · checked on 9 October 2026
St. Annahof Märlitram
date still opennot published yet
- Organiser
- Coop City St. Annahof (Buchung über Zürich Tourismus)
Only children aged 4 to 9 may ride: the Samichlaus swaps to the tram while two angels read Christmas fairy tales.
Source: zuerich.com · checked on 9 October 2026
🕐 Departure times and duration
A date does not tell you when the train, tram or boat leaves.
First trip: Wiedikon dep. 13:40, Sihlwald arr. 14:20, return dep. 16:10, Wiedikon arr. 16:47 · Second trip: dep. 17:20, arr. 18:00, return dep. 19:50, arr. 20:25
Departures from Bürkliplatz at 13:30 (service 35) and 15:00 (service 44)
🗓️ Running today?
2 days with something on, 2 of them on a Saturday or Sunday – enter your day and the check tells you what is open.
📅 Visit-day check
Pick the day you are free — the answer comes from the verified ConvivaPlus dataset, not from a run you have to work out in your head.
| Session | Run | Opening hours | Date set? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Samichlausfahrt in den Sihlwald (Zürcher Museums-Bahn) | Sat 5 Dec | First trip: Wiedikon dep. 13:40, Sihlwald arr. 14:20, return dep. 16:10, Wiedikon arr. 16:47 · Second trip: dep. 17:20, arr. 18:00, return dep. 19:50, arr. 20:25 | confirmed |
| Samichlaus-Fahrt auf dem Zürichsee (ZSG) | Sun 6 Dec | Departures from Bürkliplatz at 13:30 (service 35) and 15:00 (service 44) | confirmed |
Calculated from the ConvivaPlus dataset — every row with its own source above.
🚉 Boarding & transport — where it starts
- Meeting point
- Bahnhof Zürich Wiedikon
- Destination
- Sihlwald, Halle beim Besucherzentrum
🎟️ Tickets & prices from the operator
- Children 2–16 CHF 29 (with Samichlaus bag), adults CHF 39, under 2 free (accompanied, no bag). Every child taking part needs their own ticket.
- Tickets from about mid-October 2026 at Radio Zürisee and Ticketcorner. The trip runs in any weather; prams travel in the luggage van.
- Valid: ZVV single ticket zones 110+140+150, day pass 110+140 or 110+150, Zurich Card, GA, Junior and Children's Co-Travel cards. Adults CHF 9.40 (Half Fare 4.70), children from 6 CHF 4.70.
- Free table reservation on 044 487 13 13 (minimum spend).
- Tickets for the 2026 season online from 13 November; collection only at Coop City St. Annahof, Bellevue, Sihlcity, Oerlikon or the Visitor Information in the main station. The 2026 operating days are not yet published.
✨ On-board programme
The Märlitram is a ritual with clear rules. Tickets are not collected at the tram but at a Coop City or the Visitor Information in the main station; you board at the «Märlitram» stop near Bellevue. Inside, St Nicholas rides along and two angels read aloud. Booking goes through Zürich Tourismus, the contact is Coop City St. Annahof.
The museum railway does it differently: by steam train from Wiedikon to the Sihlwald, then everyone gets off and walks with the Schmutzlis, St Nicholas's helpers, to the hall at the visitor centre, where he listens to the children's verses at decorated tables, with punch. And on the lake he boards the scheduled boat because the donkey cannot carry all the presents alone. A little verse earns a small surprise.
How does your child get to St Nicholas?
One click – anonymous, no sign-up required.
🎯 Tips for families
Three rides, three different tickets. What to know beforehand.
- 1Märlitram: collect your ticket, don't just buy itBought online, but collected at a Coop City (St. Annahof, Bellevue, Sihlcity, Oerlikon) or the Visitor Information in the main station. Only children aged 4 to 9 may ride.
- 2Museum railway: every child needs a ticketChildren 2–16 CHF 29 with a St Nicholas bag, adults CHF 39, under 2 free but without a bag. Tickets from around mid-October at Radio Zürisee and Ticketcorner; prams travel in the luggage van.
- 3Boat: a ZVV ticket is enoughValid: single tickets zones 110+140+150, day passes 110+140 or 110+150, Zurich Card, GA, Junior and Children's Co-Travel cards. Reserve a table free on 044 487 13 13, with a minimum spend.
- 4Two departures, two chancesThe museum railway runs twice on Saturday (13:40 and 17:20 from Wiedikon), the boat twice on Sunday (13:30 and 15:00 from Bürkliplatz). Miss the first, take the second.
📊 Ride days compared with nearby rides
Where this ride falls between November and February.
Each bar is a ride, dark this one, light the nearest.
- ZurichSamichlausfahrt in den Sihlwald (Zürcher Museums-Bahn) · Samichlaus-Fahrt auf dem Zürichsee (ZSG) · St. Annahof Märlitram
- BaumaZH
🗺️ Nearby — more festive rides
While the Märlitram waits for its dates, the fondue tram runs from November, leaving Bellevue twice each evening. In the Zurich Oberland the DVZO steam train sets off on 28 November 2026 to find the Samichlaus and bring him to Bauma; every Zurich ride is on the canton page.
On Sunday Zurich also swims across the Limmat at the St Nicholas swim. All 12 verified rides in Switzerland in the overview.
More festive rides in the canton of Zurich
All of the canton of Zurich→Just across the canton border
❓ FAQ — answered
Answers from the verified dataset — no operating day carried over from last year.
People also ask
Related questions from our magazine
Yes, from Bellevue, twice each evening.
Arrivals and parades are in the verified calendar.
Yes, run by the BERNMOBIL historique foundation with Loeb; the dates are being planned.
The ConvivaPlus verdict
For children of Märlitram age the tram is the classic, once the dates are out. For families who want to ride together, the steam train and the boat are Zurich's better answers: one a day out with a woodland walk, the other a short ride for the price of a ticket.
Freshness note: Märlitram operating days 2026 not yet published. Museum railway and ZSG read at source on 9 October 2026.
Check the latest: ConvivaPlus festive rides dataset 2026 – Zurich →
- ◆On foot to St Nicholas: in the Sihlwald the train ride doesn't end at St Nicholas but on a footpath with the Schmutzlis.
How we check
Every date comes from the organiser's, the municipality's or the canton's own site — never from an aggregator, never copied over from last year. Next to each source is the date we last read it.
Anything not yet published stays open — we don't guess.
Something missing or changed? A note below is enough; we check it at the source.
ConvivaPlus Editor · Family & Day Trips
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For Zurich's Märlitram, St Nicholas leaves his reindeer in the stable and takes the tram, says Zürich Tourismus.
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🚂 Festive rides · 9 October 2026