Travel to Bern

Flying to Bern

There are no direct flights to Bern from the UK or the USA. Swiss Air Lines, easyJet and British Airways offer direct flights to Zurich from the UK. Direct flights to Zurich or Geneva are available from the USA with Swiss Airlines.

Flight times

To Zurich Airport from London - 1 hour 30 minutes; New York - 7 hours 35 minutes; Los Angeles - 10 hours 55 minutes; Toronto - 7 hours 25 minutes; Sydney - 22 hours 10 minutes (including stopovers). E.g. https://www.skyscanner.net/routes/nyca/zrh/new-york-to-zurich.html

Travel by road

With its central location in Switzerland, Bern is easily accessible by car. If you drive into Bern, make sure you have a valid vignette (toll sticker) if you drive on the Autobahn. The vignette is valid for the calendar year indicated on the sticker. If you do not buy one and are caught without one, expect to pay a fine plus the cost of a vignette. You can order one online before you travel. (https://switzerlandtravelcentre.co.uk/excursion/motorway-vignette-switzerland/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoteGsJix4QIVQuJ3Ch0QkwmXEAAYASAAEgKiK_D_BwE).
Traffic drives on the right in Switzerland and the minimum driving age is 18. Visitors can drive in Switzerland using a national or international driving licence for up to a year.
The maximum speed limits are 120kph (75mph) on highways, 100kph (62mph) on expressways, 80kph (50mph) on roads outside built-up areas, and 50kph (31mph) in built-up areas. There are two motoring associations in Switzerland. These are Touring Club Suisse (TCS) (tel: +41 844 888 111;www.tcs.ch) and Automobil Club der Schweiz (ACS) (tel: +41 31 328 3111;www.acs.ch).
A Green Card is not compulsory but check with your provider that your insurance covers you for travel within Switzerland.

Emergency breakdown services

TCS (tel: 0800 140 140, in Switzerland only) or ACS (tel: +41 44 283 3377).

Routes

The city is directly connected to the national motorway network. The A12 leads to Lausanne, and the A1 runs via Bern between Geneva in the southwest and Zurich in the northeast. From Bern, access to southern Switzerland and Italy is via the Lötschberg Tunnel/Simplon Pass or the St Bernard road tunnel.

Coaches

Eurolines (tel: +41 844 257 224;eurolines.ch/en/) and Flixbus (www.flixbus.co.uk ) run coach services to Bern, connecting the city with destinations across Europe.

Time to city

From Interlaken - 40 minutes; Lausanne - 1 hour 15 minutes; Basel - 1 hour 10 minutes; Strasbourg - 2 hours 20 minutes.

Travel by Rail

Services

Hauptbahnhof Bern, the city's main railway station, is located at the heart of the city. Bern is well-connected to the national and the international railway network.

Operators

Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) (tel: +41 848 446 688; www.sbb.ch/en) is the national rail provider.
If travelling from the UK, you can take the Eurostar from London to Paris, a French TGV train from Paris via Basel to Bern (travel time from Paris to Bern: 4 hours).

Journey times

To Bern from Basel – 55 minutes; Lausanne - 1 hour 10 minutes; Zurich - 1 hour 10 minutes; Geneva – 1 hour 45 minutes.