Andelfingen is the main town in the district of the same name, on the Thur between Schaffhausen and Winterthur in the centre of Zurich wine country, a fertile, gently-contoured countryside. Golden fields of corn, a meadow mosaic and cultivated fields, impressive timber-framed houses and walking and cycling paths all contribute to the unique character of the wine country. This is where grapes for Zurich’s sparkling vin du pays ripen in the autumn. Water-sports fans take to the Thur for dinghy trips and river rafting; with a little luck beavers can be spotted on the trip to the Thurspitz (confluence of Thur and Rhine).

Andelfingen is at the crossing point of two military roads, Schaffhausen-Winterthur and Stein am Rhein-Baden, at the crossing over the Rhine. As the site of a bridge that was widened in 1324, Andelfingen was a customs and trading point with market rights and also a regional centre. In 1799 the bridge was destroyed during a war and replaced by a new wooden structure in 1814.

Andelfingen Castle was built in 1613, then demolished and rebuilt in 1782. Until the collapse of the Old Federation, the governor of Zurich held a court of law in the castle and administrated the Andelfingen region. Andelfingen Castle has a well-kept park, a wonderful example of 19th-century landscape gardening. The park is open to the public during the day throughout the year. In winter the castle is a venue for cultural events.

The Thur path leads along the Thur, with 13 information panels on Thur hydrological construction work in past and modern times, the Thur landscape as well as unusual flora and fauna. Further Andelfingen attractions: large open-air swimming pool, the Haldenmühle (mills), local history archives, an art gallery and a factory producing traditional church-tower clocks.