Zurich

Zürich has a reputation to maintain. Kleintropolis, Max Frisch called it – shorthand for a city that feels like a global capital while remaining compact enough to walk end to end in an afternoon. The Bahnhofstrasse is reliably among the world's most expensive retail strips, the banks are discreet, and the trams run on time.

Which makes it easy to miss. Visitors follow the Limmat through the Altstadt, tick off the Grossmünster and the Fraumünster, and leave satisfied but slightly puzzled – as if the city kept something back. It did.

VoiceMap's self-guided audio tours follow the water deeper. Walk the streets of Hottingen, where artist Verica Kovacevska invites you to experience the neighbourhood through the senses of the blind. Trace medieval waterworks from the Sihl to the Lindenhof, where the Romans once built their baths. Or take the darker route: beneath Zürich's polished exterior, the Paradeplatz and the Bahnhofstrasse have attracted some of Europe's most audacious heists – and someone is ready to walk you through every one.

Plug in your earbuds. The trams can wait.