Things To Do in Schaffhausen

Spend a morning touring the Old Town on foot. There's a good view of the town from the battlements of the Munot, which dates from 1564. The round fortress has a tower, platform, and parapet walks. It can be reached by stairs and has a covered footbridge across the moat. The Munot is the only fortress to be based on a book by Albrecht Dürer, published in Nürnberg in 1527. The fortress is open May to September daily from 9am to 8pm, October to April daily from 10am to 5pm. Admission is free.

The crowning glory of the Old Town is the Münster (All Saints' Church), on Münsterplatz. Now Protestant, it was formerly a Benedictine monastery, consecrated in 1052. Its Romanesque architecture is stern and plain. In a nearby courtyard is the 15th-century bell that inspired Schiller's poem "Song of the Bell" and the opening of Longfellow's "Golden Legend."

The most characteristic street is Vordergasse, where visitors usually stop to photograph the frescoed Haus zum Ritter, dating from 1485. On Fronwegplatz, you'll find two outstanding fountains from the 1520s.

Museum zu Allerheiligen (All Saints' Museum), Baumgartenstrasse 6 (tel. 052/633-07-77; www.allerheiligen.ch), is one of the most important national museums in Switzerland. The exhibits range from prehistoric times to the present, including traditional garb of the province, old weapons, and period furnishings. Visit the Treasury in the former abbots' salon. The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday from 11am to 5pm. Admission is 9F for adults, free for children 15 and under.

A Spectacular Waterfall

The Rheinfall (or Rhine Falls) is the most celebrated waterfall in central Europe. It's also the most powerful -- 700 cubic meters of water per second rush over a width of 137m (449 ft.). The water falls 21m (69 ft.), a sight that inspired Goethe to liken it to the "source of the ocean." This natural wonder is most spectacular in early summer when it's fed by mountain snows.

From the bus station at Schaffhausen, take bus no. 1. There are frequent departures for the 10-minute ride. A train runs every 30 minutes during the day from the station at Schaffhausen to Rheinfall.

To get to the Rheinfall from Zurich, take a train from the Hauptbahnhof to Neuhausen and get off at the Rheinfall stop. The trip takes less than an hour. It's a 15-minute walk from the train depot at Neuhausen to the waterfall. To further enhance the experience, you can take a 15F boat trip to the rock in the center of the Rheinfall from April to October.

In addition, the falls can be viewed from the belvedere of Laufen Castle on the left bank. The castle has been converted into a restaurant with a staircase that leads to the view. Bring a raincoat.

You can also take a ferry across the river to Neuhausen and the little castle of Schlöseli-Wörth (tel. 052/672-24-21; www.schloessliwoerth.ch), built in the 12th century as a Customs post. Today it's a restaurant, open daily from April through September.