Coach Hire Across Switzerland

Bern Coach Hire for School Trips, Clubs and Tours

Bern is easy on coaches for now. The city charges nothing for coach parking on public ground and asks for no booking. That is set to change, so check the city's rules again whenever you plan a trip for next year.

Today's rules and the planned ones

The city has 19 coach sites with 46 spaces. Stays run from half an hour to three hours, and five sites have no limit. They include Aargauerstalden by the BärenPark, Muristalden, Schützenmatte near the station and spaces along the north side of the old town.

A daily charge, booked online by number plate, is planned, with a first phase expected from 2027 and a referendum possible. Setting down and picking up would stay free for 30 minutes, and several central sites would become set-down only. Today the Carterminal Neufeld, beside the motorway junction, is the one place where a coach can park by the hour.

Mercedes-Benz 59-seat coach, exterior
Mercedes-Benz 59-seat coach, exterior

Old town and BärenPark

The squares and lanes of the upper old town have no street parking. Walk the group down from the station, or up from the BärenPark, rather than looking for a stop in the middle. The BärenPark set-down is on Aargauerstalden just above the park. Between November and mid-March the bears are mostly asleep, so a winter visit is about the view.

The Rosengarten coach spaces serve mainly for setting down and picking up, and the view over the old town makes it a good start for a walk. The Zytglogge tour takes 19 people at most, so a class of 25 splits in two.

Airports for a group arriving in Bern

Stadiums and arenas a coach can reach

  • Stadion Wankdorf — Home ground of the BSC Young Boys (football, Super League), Papiermühlestrasse 71 in the Wankdorf area; opened in 2005, 31,500 places for football matches. Formerly named Stade de Suisse Wankdorf. The club recommends public transport (tram 9 to Guisanplatz, trains to Bern Wankdorf station, RBS line 40 to Wankdorf Center) and points drivers to the signed BERNEXPO car parks ("Parkplatz EXPO"); match tickets include public transport in Libero zones 100/101 from three hours before to three hours after the match. No coach parking for visiting groups is published.
  • PostFinance Arena — Home of SC Bern (ice hockey, National League) at Mingerstrasse 12B on the Allmend, beside BERNEXPO; 17,031 places (9,778 standing, 5,635 seated). Formerly the Allmendstadion (1967) and BernArena (2002); named PostFinance Arena since 2007, with the naming rights extended to the end of the 2026/27 season. Tram 9 to "Guisanplatz / Expo"; S-Bahn S1, S2, S3, S31, S4 and S44 to Bern Wankdorf (about 10 minutes on foot); car parks P1 to P4 on the Grosse Allmend via Bolligenstrasse. No coach parking for visiting groups is published.

Coach day trips from Bern

  • Thun (Schloss Thun) — about 29 km, about 35 min
  • Murten / Morat — about 32 km, about 35 min
  • Emmentaler Schaukäserei (Affoltern im Emmental) — about 36 km, about 55 min
  • Fribourg — about 36 km, about 40 min
  • Solothurn — about 41 km, about 45 min
  • Interlaken — about 57 km, about 1 h
  • Kandersteg (Oeschinensee) — about 63 km, about 1.25 h
  • Gruyères — about 67 km, about 1 h
  • Lauterbrunnen — about 67 km, about 1.25 h
  • Grindelwald — about 74 km, about 1.25 h
  • Ballenberg Open-Air Museum (Brienz) — about 77 km, about 1.25 h
  • Basel — about 96 km, about 1.5 h
  • Luzern — about 110 km, about 1.5 h

Where a coach can stop in Bern, and other rules

  • Bern Airport (BRN) is about 17 km by road from the Zytglogge, about 30 min in light traffic; Zurich Airport (ZRH) is about 127 km by road from the Zytglogge, about 1 h 45 min in light traffic; Genève Aéroport (GVA) is about 157 km by road from the Zytglogge, about 2 h 15 min in light traffic. Journeys take longer at peak times.
  • Bern Airport (BRN, Bern-Belp) publishes no coach drop-off, pick-up or coach parking rules; its six car parks cannot be reserved, and the covered car park option is a valet service. Its 2026 timetable consists mainly of seasonal holiday flights (Mediterranean islands, Greece, Spain, Tunisia, Malta and Jersey) plus a route to München; it is not a major scheduled hub. Public transport: S-Bahn to Belp or Rubigen, then BERNMOBIL bus 160 to the terminal (about 35 minutes from Bern station).
  • Present situation (October 2026): the City of Bern does not charge coaches for parking on public ground today, and no booking is needed. There are 19 coach parking sites with 46 spaces in total, with maximum stays from 30 minutes to three hours (five sites have no time limit). The sites the city names include Aargauerstalden (5 spaces, at the BärenPark), Muristalden (4), Schützenmatte (6, near the station), Amtshausgasse (1), Rosengarten, and spaces on Hodlerstrasse, Schüttestrasse and Postgasshalde along the northern edge of the old town.
  • The upper old town squares (Bundesplatz, Bärenplatz, Waisenhausplatz) and the lanes Aarbergergasse, Neuengasse, Rathausgasse, Brunngasse, Kramgasse, Münstergasse and Herrengasse are free of street parking; the lower old town (Untere Altstadt) has separate rules for residents, businesses and visitors. The city reports uncontrolled setting down and "wild" parking around the BärenPark (Aargauerstalden and Muristalden) as its main problem.
  • Carterminal Neufeld: the provisional coach terminal at Neufeld (beside the Neufeld motorway junction and the Park+Ride Neufeld, reached by bus 11 from Bern station in about 10 minutes) is used mainly by long-distance scheduled coaches. It is the only place where coaches can park by the hour without a booking; payment at the machine or by parking app. It has no terminal building, no weather-protected waiting area and no fixed toilets.
  • New coach regime (planned): on 9 September 2026 the city council sent the Stadtrat a change to its charging rules so that coaches pay a daily flat-rate charge for parking on public ground, booked online in advance with the vehicle registration number. Stopping to set down or pick up passengers stays free for up to 30 minutes, without booking. Planned for phase 1 (expected from the 2nd quarter of 2027): the four Muristalden spaces and the five Aargauerstalden spaces become set-down places only, the Amtshausgasse space is removed, and Schützenmatte is cut from six spaces to probably one set-down place; up to two coach spaces at Bahnhof Wankdorf (Max-Daetwyler-Platz) are being studied. The booking system itself is scheduled for 2027/2028. Check the city website before travel.
  • Fern- und Reisebusterminal Neufeld (planned): a full coach terminal for about 15 to 21 coaches is to replace the provisional terminal on the same site, with access from the existing roundabout or Studerstrasse, a heated waiting area, toilets and a drivers' room. The zoning change goes to a city vote expected on 28 February 2027; construction must start by 31 March 2029, and operation is planned from the 3rd quarter of 2030. From then on, coach parking is to move out of the inner city entirely, leaving only set-down places there.
  • BERNEXPO, Festhalle, PostFinance Arena and Stadion Wankdorf: the Wankdorf/Expo area stays directly accessible to coaches under the planned regime. BERNEXPO names a coach set-down zone opposite its main entrance (in front of the hotel across the road). For events with exceptional coach traffic (Zibelemärit, large concerts, ice hockey and football matches) the city police inspectorate (Polizeiinspektorat) sets special coach parking plans.
  • Zibelemärit (onion market) is held every year on the fourth Monday in November (23 November 2026) across the whole inner city, with several hundred market stalls from the early morning; the old town streets are closed to traffic and coach access is under the special plan of the Polizeiinspektorat.
  • Zentrum Paul Klee: coach parking spaces in the immediate vicinity (museum information); access via the A6 exit Bern-Ostring.
  • Bahnhof Bern works ("Zukunft Bahnhof Bern"): the station is being expanded, with a new underground RBS station and a second SBB underpass; full opening of the expanded station is expected in 2031. Platform 3/4 reopens with the December 2026 timetable after about 18 months out of use; the new Bubenberg entrance opens only with the full station. City road works at Bollwerk / Henkerbrünnli (near Schützenmatte) are planned from summer 2027 for about three years; when the station opens, car traffic on the Inselplatz - Bubenbergplatz - Bahnhofplatz - Bollwerk axis is to be cut by about 60 percent, so set-down at the station front will become harder.
  • Bern (main station, Bahnhofplatz): Switzerland's second-largest station, with national and international long-distance trains, S-Bahn Bern and the RBS regional trains; Bern Welcome tourist information is in the station at Bahnhofplatz 10a. No official coach set-down at the station front is published; the nearest coach spaces are at Schützenmatte and along Hodlerstrasse / Schüttestrasse, which will be reduced under the new regime.
  • Bern Wankdorf station: S-Bahn S1, S2, S3, S31, S4 and S44; the stop for BERNEXPO, the Festhalle, the PostFinance Arena and Stadion Wankdorf (about 10 minutes on foot, or tram 9).
  • Cabotage: under Article 20 of the EU-Switzerland Land Transport Agreement, a coach operator established in an EU state may not carry passengers between two places in Switzerland. A group journey that starts and ends in Switzerland therefore needs a vehicle from an operator established in Switzerland. Coaches may carry groups across the border in both directions; these occasional services need no authorisation, but the coach carries a journey form (Fahrtenblatt).
  • Road charges: coaches and other buses over 3.5 tonnes pay the flat-rate heavy vehicle fee (pauschale Schwerverkehrsabgabe, PSVA) for every day they are in Switzerland, on all public roads, and need no motorway vignette; foreign-registered coaches pay the PSVA online through the BAZG "Via" portal or app before entering Switzerland. Minibuses and cars up to 3.5 tonnes need the motorway vignette (the e-vignette linked to the number plate, or the sticker) to use motorways and expressways (Autobahnen / autoroutes / autostrade).
  • Speed and driving bans: on motorways and expressways coaches may drive at up to 100 km/h (articulated buses and scheduled buses with standing places excepted); heavy vehicles are otherwise limited to 80 km/h. The Swiss night driving ban (22:00 to 05:00) and the Sunday and public-holiday ban for heavy vehicles do not apply to vehicles carrying passengers.
  • Drivers' hours: coach drivers follow the Swiss ordinance ARV 1, aligned with the EU rules: at most 9 hours of driving a day (10 hours twice a week), a break of at least 45 minutes after 4.5 hours of driving and at least 11 hours of daily rest, recorded by tachograph. Drivers of foreign-registered coaches must keep the same driving, break and rest rules in Switzerland. In domestic traffic, professional drivers of cars and of minibuses with up to 16 seats besides the driver follow ARV 2 instead.
  • Winter: Switzerland has no general winter-tyre obligation, but a vehicle must be fit for the road conditions and the driver must keep control of it at all times; the Federal Roads Office (ASTRA) recommends winter tyres from October to Easter. Where the sign "Schneeketten obligatorisch" / "chaînes à neige obligatoires" / "Catene per la neve obbligatorie" (sign 2.48) is shown, at least two drive wheels on the same axle must be fitted with snow chains.

Bundeshaus and the museums

Free Bundeshaus tours run Tuesday to Saturday, outside parliamentary sessions only. Groups book online up to 180 days ahead. Anyone 16 or older needs official photo ID, and the group leader reports at the south entrance 30 minutes before the start.

Zentrum Paul Klee, on the eastern edge, has coach parking close by and is reached from the A6 exit Bern-Ostring. At BERNEXPO coaches set down opposite the main entrance and park at Aargauerstalden or Muristalden.

Days out from the capital

Thun and Murten are about 35 minutes away, Fribourg 40, the Emmental show dairy about 55 and Gruyères an hour. Interlaken is an hour, Grindelwald and Kandersteg about 1.25 hours, so the Bernese Oberland fits comfortably into a day trip.

What organisers ask us

Can we come to Bern on Zibelemärit day?

Yes, but plan it differently. On that Monday in late November the onion market takes over the centre and the old-town streets close to traffic. The city police issue a special coach plan, and the operator confirms where your coach stops.

Can the coach set us down outside the station?

No set-down at the station front is published, and the station works will make one harder. The nearest coach spaces are at Schützenmatte and along Hodlerstrasse.

Should we fly into Bern?

Usually not. Bern Airport has mainly seasonal holiday flights and publishes no coach rules. Zurich Airport is the usual choice, roughly 1 h 45 min by coach; from Geneva allow about 2 h 15 min.

More group trips by coach

Vehicles, each with a driver