Schaffhausen, yes that’s the correct spelling and it is pronounced similar to (शाफुस्सैन).
A trip to Zurich is considered incomplete if you have not been to this picturesque place. For travelers who choose Zurich as their gateway to Europe, the Rhine Falls may mean a pleasant side trip, with picture book Schaffhausen as the primary destination.

Schaffhausen is Switzerland’s northernmost urban outpost almost touching Germany and can be reached from Zurich in around 40 minutes by train. From Schaffhausen’s railroad station, a bus will take you to the cataracts in about 10 minutes, or you may walk to them from the town’s riverfront in less than an hour.
We did both. While going we walked and came back by bus.

Rhine, the mightiest river in Europe, near Schaffhausen, Switzerland, is no match for Niagara Falls or nature’s majestic waterworks in Latin America; yet the Falls have attracted and awed visitors for centuries and they still do.

After passing a few hundred yards and railroad bridge with beautiful arches, the blue-green water of Rhine thunder down over a series of terraced cliffs of almost the height of a seven-story building. In the middle stand two shrubbery rocks, trying in a vain effort to calm down the violent water. The roar with which the Rhine moves from a rock ledge to the lower level can be compared to its anger & lament for its own fall. At this point the river is about 600 ft wide and plunges 70 ft.

Just after the fall, it takes a shape of a giant river which hence flows smoothly. And like any other river in the world, it also has its own share of toxic waste from cities and factories.

If you have time, don’t hesitate to climb up to the Munot Fortress, on a hill that rises from the north bank of the river behind a curving row of old houses. You’ll get a splendid view of the Rhine and the town. Depending on the season, a boat ride is also available for going up to the rock.

And if you are in no hurry to cover many places of Switzerland, I’d recommend you to stay in here for a few days instead of having to catch an evening train to return to Zurich or proceed to Stuttgart.

Time:- The best period to visit the place is June-July when the snow and glaciers in the Alps melt and the Rhine swells. Another good time for visit is the evening of Aug. 1, Switzerland’s national holiday. On this occasion the Rhine Falls is crowned by a fireworks display. I personally would prefer to be in Geneva during that period for its annual Fêtes de Genève or Geneva festival.
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