Two-Day Pre-Cruise in Basel
June 25-26 2026
When planning this trip, we decided to bookend the cruise with a two-day stay in our starting port city, Basel, before boarding the riverboat. Viking (the cruise company) put us up in a very nice hotel within a block of the Basel train station and a main trolley station, and within walking distance of Basel's historic city center and the Rhine.
We made good use of the excellent local trolley system. Each line runs frequently, the routes are easy to follow, and guests at our hotel (and probably others) receive a free length-of-stay pass.
Basel sits at the point where Switzerland, France, and Germany meet, along the Rhine. Founded as a Roman settlement, it became a major center of trade, printing, and humanist scholarship by the 15th and 16th centuries. The city's Old Town preserves this history in its cathedral, medieval guild houses, and cobblestone streets.
Basel is known for its art museums, including the Kunstmuseum Basel, which houses two Picasso paintings bought by citizens in 1967. Picasso was so impressed that he donated four more works. The Fondation Beyeler in Riehen displays works by Monet, Cézanne, and Picasso. The Museum Tinguely has the largest collection of Swiss artist Jean Tinguely.
Since we are not "big" on art museums, we did not visit any, so there are no photos of them here. The places we visited are chronicled in the photos below.
Click on the photos below to enlarge.
Steinenvorstadt Street Shops
Nicknamed 'Kinostrasse' for its cinemas, this became a pedestrian shopping hub after cars were banned in the 1990s.
Olsbergerhof
Rittergasse 27, called 'Olsbergerhof,' bears two carved cats recalling its former names 'Zum Leopard' and 'Zum Tiger.'
Rathaus Kantons Courtyard
In Basel dialect it's called 'Roothuus,' a pun meaning both 'council house' and 'red house,' matching its facade.
Gerbergasse Street
Named for the tanners who once worked leather here, using a spring so mineral-rich it ran a distinct blue color.
Buchel Horn Band at Yodlerfest
Basel hosted the Swiss Federal Yodelling Festival in June 2026, its first time since the very first one in 1924.
Baloise Park Statue
This bronze sculpture, 'Drittes Tier' by Thomas Schutte, depicts a fantastical creature that snorts steam like a dragon.
Tinguely Fountain
Created in 1977 by Jean Tinguely, its iron figures sit exactly where the old city theater's stage once stood.
Freie Strasse
Called 'Free Street' since medieval merchants moved goods here duty-free, this remains Basel's oldest shopping street.
St Alban Gate
First mentioned in 1230, this is one of three surviving gates from Basel's medieval city wall. Sadly, we only managed to visit two gates.
Alphorn Band at Yodlerfest
Just months before this 2026 festival, Swiss yodeling was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
BIS Building
Founded in 1930 to manage WWI reparations, the BIS today calls itself 'the central bank for central banks.'
Basel Minster Cathedral
Originally Catholic, it became Basel's main Protestant church in 1529 and holds the tomb of Erasmus of Rotterdam.
Grossbasel Riverfront
From left to right: the Blaues Haus, which hosted three emperors in 1814, the Alte Universität, and Martinskirche.
St Johannes Gate
Built after the 1356 earthquake, this surviving medieval gate now houses part of Basel's police force.