Zurich Lichterschwimmen: hundreds of candle boats on the Limmat, made by schoolchildren
✓ Checked at the source · as of 20 October 2026
It began in 1962 as one class's surprise, at seven in the morning. Today, every year shortly before Christmas, Zurich schoolchildren send hundreds of little candle boats from the Stadthausquai onto the Limmat – at six in the evening, and everyone may watch.
📅 Lit days 2026/27 — date and status
A single Thursday – miss it and you wait a year.
Lichterschwimmen Zürich
✓Thursday, 17 December 2026 · 1 day
- Organiser
- Zürich Tourismus (Patronat: Schul- und Sportdepartement der Stadt Zürich)
Source: zuerich.com · checked on 20 October 2026
🕐 Lighting times and closed days
It starts at 18:00 – only 2 in the calendar start later.
Thursday 17 December 2026 at 6 pm at Stadthausquai (one evening)
Each bar is one light, dark this one, pale the nearest ones.
🗓️ Is it lit today?
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📍 Start & getting there — where it begins
- Meeting point
- Stadthausquai, Zürich (Punsch am Weinplatz)
🔦 Good to know from the organiser
- Watching is free; Zürich Tourism offers hot punch and something sweet on the Weinplatz.
✨ What to expect
Zürich Tourismus tells the story itself: in 1962 the teacher Hansruedi Obi from the Ilgen school wanted to celebrate the school New Year's Eve differently with the class. They made little candle boats and launched them at the Stadthausquai on that morning at 7 am – a surprise for the city.
The morning became an evening. Since 2019 Dorothea Lanz from the Balgrist school has carried the tradition on, making around 800 candle boats with pupils. Whoever built a boat may also put it on the water themselves.
And it is a thank-you: with the Lichterschwimmen, Zürich Tourismus thanks the people of Zurich for their hospitality towards visitors from Switzerland and abroad. That is why it is free, and why there is punch on the Weinplatz.
Have you ever been to the Lichterschwimmen?
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🗺️ Nearby — more lights
There is a Lichterschwimmen in Aargau too: in Aarburg, as early as the Saturday before the first Advent, as the highlight of the Christmas market. In Zurich itself the Lucy shines above the Bahnhofstrasse, and the Zurich Christmas markets are in the Christmas market calendar.
All 24 checked lights in Switzerland in the overview.
More light trails and shows in the canton of Zurich
All of the canton of Zurich →Just across the canton border
❓ FAQ — in short
Answers from the verified dataset — no date is carried over from the previous year.
People also ask
Related questions from our magazine
It is switched on on 19 November 2026 during Nightshopping.
All checked light trails, shows and festivals from October to March.
The ConvivaPlus verdict
The Lichterschwimmen is half an hour you cannot move: one evening, one time, one riverbank.
When we last checked: Date, place, history and offer from Zürich Tourismus (zuerich.com), read on 20 October 2026.
Check the latest: ConvivaPlus light trails dataset 2026/27 – Zurich · Stadthausquai →
🗓️ At the same time in the canton of Zurich
- 🏊 Winter swimming in the canton of Zurichfrom Fri 9 Oct
- 🚂 Festive rides in the canton of ZurichSun 1 Nov – Sun 28 Feb
- 🕯️ Candle dipping in the canton of Zurichfrom Mon 2 Nov
- 🏮 Turnip lanterns in the canton of ZurichThu 5 Nov · Fri 6 Nov · Sat 7 Nov · Sat 14 Nov
- 🛍️ Sunday shopping in the canton of ZurichSun 15 Nov – Sun 27 Dec
- ✨ Christmas markets in the canton of ZurichWed 18 Nov – Thu 24 Dec
- 🎅 St Nicholas in the canton of ZurichSun 29 Nov
- 🎭 Carnival in the canton of ZurichSat 30 Jan – Mon 15 Feb
How we check
According to the ConvivaPlus calendar, 14 of the 17 confirmed events this season start earlier than this one and 2 later.
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.
Something missing or changed? A note below is enough; we check it at the source.
ConvivaPlus Editor · Family & Day Trips
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Come later and you only see them drifting downstream.
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✨ Light trails · 20 October 2026