Getting Around, Lucerne Travel, Transport and Car Rental

(Lucerne, Switzerland)



Photo of the central waterfrontThere are many different forms of transport within Lucerne, allowing you to travel around the city centre and explore Central Switzerland (Zentralschweiz) with ease. The city is located on the northern side of Lake Lucerne (Vierwaldstättersee), which is an especially busy Swiss waterway and offers a range of popular boat trips and ferry transport, travelling to destinations such as the towns of Schwyz and also Weggis.

Most people flying into Switzerland and travelling to Lucerne will arrive at the nearby Zurich International Airport, where the main transport options include hourly trains, buses and rental cars. The historic town is quite compact and ideally should be thoroughly explored on foot, while if you prefer to used public transport, the Swiss Flexi Pass may be of interest and permits unlimited travel on trains, buses and even boats.


Aerial photo of Zurich Airport

Zurich International Airport (ZRH) / Arriving by Air

Address: Zurich, CH-8058, Switzerland, CH
Tel: +41 043 816 2211
Zurich International Airport is the biggest airport near to Lucerne and lies some 112 km / 70 miles to the north of the city centre, being connected by hourly trains. This is Switzerland's biggest airport and handles more than 20 million passengers annually, a figure which continues to increase. Amongst the biggest airlines are Air Berlin, Belair, British Airways, Edelweiss Air, Helvestic and Swiss International. The considerably smaller Berne Airport is also within reach of Lucerne and can be found around 122 km / 76 miles to the west.

Zurich Airport (ZRH) Guide

Driving in the city centre

Car Rental

A number of international car rental companies can be found within the suburb of Ebikon, along the Luzernerstrasse. The locally run Swiss company Miecar features competitive daily and weekend rates, while Europcar and Hertz are also popular choices for many. A number of fast highways radiate outwards and connect cities such as Basel (N2 / E9 motorway) and Zurich (N14 / E41 motorway). Driving in central Lucerne is relatively straightforward and parking spaces are never usually hard to come by, with a particularly popular underground car park being located at the central train station.

WG Car Rental Logo Book your Zurich Car Rental here.

WG Car Rental Logo Book your Luzern Car Rental here.

Buses are a particularly cheap way to get around

Buses and Coaches

City bus transport is run by Verkehrsbetriebe Luzern and departs from outside of the railway station, on the Bahnhofplatz. Lucerne is zones and tickets are priced accordingly, with automatic ticket dispensers displaying the exact fare for each of the destinations. An inexpensive 24-hour bus travel pass is available and covers all of the different zones within the city. Three-day bus passes can also be purchased and offer good value for money.

Trains

Due in no small part to the city's extremely central location in Switzerland, Lucerne is well connected to the majority of cities in Switzerland by rail transport, operated by the Swiss Federal Railway. Hourly trains travel between Lucerne and the town of Interlaken (two hours), via the rather picturesque Brünig Pass. Rail transport is the fastest and most convenient way to reach a number of other prominent Swiss towns and cities, such as Berne (just over one hour), Geneva (just over three hours) and also Zurich (one hour).