Hello all!
My family (papa, mama and 1 year old baby) may be moving to Oetwil am See.. does anyone live there? What do you think?

What can you recommend in the suroundings? Is there an expat community...?
Hello!

I don't know anything about Oetwil am See, but welcome to the Forum.

Welcome from me too. I don't know a great deal about Oetwil am See, and would think that there may not be a huge expat community. However, you will be just above Mannedorf and Stafa where there will be more and this number increases as you go further up the Lake towards Zurich. Mannedorf and Stafa both have lovely beaches (Badi's) which you might enjoy and where you will be bound to hear an English voice or two.

Oetwil am See is not am See....

Been in Oetwil am See once and passed it a couple of time. It feels decently boring. Only remember it for the swimming pool with a water slide and a private hospital.

Let it be, it is close enough to count it for "am See".

Confusing naming is not too unusual for Switzerland. Been once in Valais and visited Bitsch. Nice people, not much of an indecent action on the surface. Disappointing, yet fine.

I have one recomendation that I give to a lot of people... but it doesn't have to do with Oetwil am See: Use organized child activities to make friends in Switzerland.

You are lucky to be moving to Switzerland with a small child.

Generally, it is tough to make friends in Switzerland, especially with Swiss people. This isn't because they are unfriendly, but rather because they normally have their own social live organized and aren't necessarily looking to expand.

However... people are very very open to socializing with other families with small children, so my recomendation to you would be, no matter where you move to... join as many activities as you can with your baby and try to meet other families with similar aged kid/s.

Activities with kids are play groups, baby massage course, singing courses for kids. Look around and go to whatever you can find. If you send your baby to day care, be involved and friendly during drop off and pick up. When you start kindergarten get involved in the school. Join the parent groups, go into school whenever there is an activity where parents can help.

This openness lasts until about 1st. grade, after which the kids make plans on their own without the parents. So... you've got about a 5 year window of opportunity. Use it before it is gone.

Good luck and welcome to Switzerland.

You have obviously not tried walking from Oetwil not-really-on-the-lake-at-all to the real lake of Zurich (the nearest) is a 10 minute drive or 1½ walk and over a hill...

Oetwil is a rather quiet little village, and while farther out still accessible to much of what goes on in the city.

The friends I have there rely on their cars to get around. There is public transportation, but not with the frequency they find they need. YMMV.

For any of the villages along the right side of the Zürichsee and the ridge above, all that really matters is finding a decent place to live. (And maybe tax rates if you are a very high earner.) Many people look outside their immediate village for social life, the distances are really not significant.

May I ask why you are considering Oetwil am See? That might give us more insight in order to give better advice.

We lived there for five years when we first moved to Switzerland.
I don't mean to be unkind but as of late it has a less than favourable reputation for gangs of kids causing antisocial issues.
On a positive note,the schools both kindergarten and high school were really good and my kids did well there. There are also some lovely walks and a really pretty swimming pool.
There are a couple of shops Denner,Volg and a bakery.
Bus services to Uster,Männedorf,Stäfa and Wetzikon.

I would avoid Willikonerstrasse when looking for apartments,it is rather isolated from the village.

Good luck and welcome to Switzerland!