In summer, the Kleinbasel banks of the Rhine are the place to be! Swimming in the Rhine is Basel’s most popular sport in summer. Do as the locals do, and experience an extra-special leisure activity. The colourful Wickelfisch – a swim bag in the shape of a fish which was invented in Basel – will keep your clothes dry. A good place to enter is the riverbank just below Museum Tinguely. If you start there, you can float three kilometres down the Rhine. Afterwards, treat yourself to a refreshing drink or a cool beer from one of the buvettes (refreshment stalls) while you dry off on the sundrenched banks of the Rhine in Kleinbasel.

In August of each year, on the first Tuesday after the school summer holidays, the big Basel Rhine Swim takes place. The start is upstream of the Wettsteinbrücke on the Kleinbasel side. Thousands of Baslers plunge into the cool, refreshing waters of the river. Visitors to the city are also warmly invited to take part. And to be sure the city does not miss out on its fun, in the event of bad weather this big event is simply postponed by a week. For non-swimmers, just watching the spectacle is also an impressive experience.If you wish to combine a cultural experience with a hike, try the “Rehberger Weg 24 stops”. The Rehberger-Weg, which is around five kilometres long, links two countries, two communities and two museums – and tells countless stories along the way. It connects the Fondation Beyeler in Riehen and the Vitra Campus in Weil am Rhein. The path between the two architecturally magnificent places is naturally beautiful, but thanks to 24 special waymarks, your walk or bike tour will become an art excursion in a class of its own. Eye-catching art objects, such as cuckoo clocks, birdcages and a high perch designed by artist Tobias Rehberger, will guide you from one museum to another.

Read more about how to spend the summer in Basel

©Basel Tourism