World Country Guide

Travel - International

Air
Switzerland’s national airline is Swiss (LX) (website: www.swiss.com).

Approximate flight times
From Basle, Bern, Geneva or Zrich to London is one hour 50 minutes. From Geneva to Los Angeles is 17 hours and from Zrich is 14 hours 35 minutes. From Geneva to New York is nine hours 45 minutes and from Zrich is seven hours 20 minutes.

International airports
Zrich (ZRH) (Kloten) (website: www.flughafen-zuerich.ch) is 11km (7 miles) from the city (travel time – 20 minutes). Trains run every 10 to 15 minutes from under Terminal B. Regional and night buses are available. Passengers arriving in Switzerland by air can purchase a special Fly-Rail Luggage ticket from their airport of departure which will enable them to have their luggage delivered directly to a Swiss railway station. With the Fly-Rail Baggage service, passengers leaving Switzerland can check their bags in at the railway station up to 24 hours before their flight. Taxis to the city are available (travel time – 15-30 minutes).
Geneva (GVA) (website: www.gva.ch) is 5km (3 miles) north of the city. Taxis to the city are available. There is a regular train service to Geneva Cornavin Station (travel time – six minutes). The no. 10 bus runs from the airport to the city centre.
Bern (BRN) (Belp) is 9km (5.5 miles) southeast of the city (travel time – 20-30 minutes). Bus services are available to Bern station. A rail service runs from Bern to Zrich Airport. Taxis are also available.
Basle (BSL) (Basel-Mulhouse) is 12km (7 miles) from the city. Bus runs to Basle SBB Luftreisebro. Taxis are also available.

Departure tax
None.

Rail
Travelling from the UK, the quickest way is to travel by Eurostar through the Channel Tunnel to Paris (travel time – three hours) and, from there, to Switzerland. For further information and reservations contact Eurostar (tel: (0870) 0000 792 (travel agents) or (08705) 186 186 (public; within the UK) or (01233) 617 575 (public; outside the UK only); website: www.eurostar.com); or Rail Europe (tel: (08708) 371 371; website: www.raileurope.co.uk). General enquiries and information requests must be made by telephone.
Other connections from London via the main channel crossings are available (minimum travel time of about 14 to 15 hours to Basle and Lausanne, the main points of entry). There are also through trains from many other European cities.

Road
Switzerland can be reached by road from Austria, France, Germany and Italy. Some approximate driving times to Geneva and Zrich by the most direct routes are: Calais– Geneva: 12-13 hours (747km/464 miles); Dunkirk–Geneva: 12-13 hours (732km/454 miles); Calais–Zrich: 13-14 hours (790km/490 miles); Dunkirk–Zrich: 14-15 hours (880km/ 546 miles). Coach: There are coach services to Switzerland as well as scheduled coach tour operators. Contact Switzerland Tourism for further details (see Contact Addresses section). In the UK, Eurolines, departing from Victoria Coach Station in London, serves destinations in Switzerland. For further information contact Eurolines (tel: (08705) 143 219; e-mail: welcome@eurolines.co.uk; website: www.eurolines.com).