Coach Hire Across Switzerland

Interlaken Coach Hire for Schools, Clubs and Tours

Many Jungfrau programmes start in Interlaken, and the town runs a strict coach system. Passengers get on and off at the two stations only. The rest of the day depends on where the coach parks and which train the group catches.

Five minutes at West or Ost

The marked coach stops are at Interlaken West and Interlaken Ost. A coach may stand there for five minutes at most, then it has to leave for an official coach park. Several central streets are closed to coaches. Have the group packed and waiting before the coach pulls in.

For a day visit the two Kursaal parks on the Strandbadstrasse allow up to four hours. P1 at Interlaken West takes coaches for up to 48 hours, which suits a group staying overnight. The town map changes from time to time, so the driver checks the current one.

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

The coach stops where the road ends

Wengen and Mürren have no road. For Wengen, the coach sets the group down in Lauterbrunnen and the Wengernalpbahn takes over. For Mürren, the group rides the cable car to Grütschalp and the train on, or goes to Stechelberg for the Schilthornbahn.

For the Jungfraujoch, the fastest plan puts the group on the Eiger Express at Grindelwald Terminal, a 35-minute coach run, with the Jungfraubahn for the final climb. Reserve the Jungfraubahn seats with the tickets. At busy times the Park+Ride at Matten or Wilderswil is the easier change point.

Airports for a group arriving in Interlaken

Coach day trips from Interlaken

  • Wilderswil (Schynige Platte railway) — about 4 km, about 10 min
  • Iseltwald (coach parking by booking only) — about 12 km, about 20 min
  • Lauterbrunnen (trains to Wengen and Mürren) — about 13 km, about 20 min
  • Trümmelbach Falls (closed in winter) — about 17 km, about 30 min
  • Spiez — about 18 km, about 30 min
  • Stechelberg (Schilthornbahn to Mürren and the Schilthorn) — about 19 km, about 35 min
  • Grindelwald Terminal (Eiger Express to the Jungfraujoch) — about 20 km, about 35 min
  • Brienz — about 23 km, about 35 min
  • Ballenberg, Swiss Open-Air Museum (Hofstetten entrance) — about 23 km, about 35 min
  • Thun — about 32 km, about 40 min
  • Aare Gorge (Aareschlucht) near Meiringen — about 33 km, about 55 min
  • Kandersteg (Oeschinensee gondola) — about 45 km, about 1.25 h
  • Bern — about 57 km, about 1 h
  • Luzern (over the Brünig pass) — about 70 km, about 1.5 h
  • Gstaad — about 71 km, about 1.75 h
  • Zürich — about 121 km, about 2 h
  • Montreux — about 148 km, about 2.25 h

Where a coach can stop in Interlaken, and other rules

  • Bern Airport (BRN) is about 52 km by road from the Höhematte, about 1 h in light traffic. Zurich Airport (ZRH) is about 136 km (about 2.5 h), EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg (BSL) about 159 km (about 2.5 h) and Geneva Airport (GVA) about 213 km (about 3.25 h). Journeys take longer at peak times.
  • Railway stations: Interlaken Ost is the main station, with trains to Bern and Zürich, the Berner Oberland-Bahn to Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald, the Zentralbahn to Luzern and the Lake Brienz boats; Interlaken West, nearer the town centre, has the Lake Thun boats.
  • Coaches in Interlaken (town map of April 2026): passengers may get on and off only at the marked coach transit stops at Interlaken West and Interlaken Ost stations, for at most 5 minutes; the coach must then leave and park at an official coach park. Several central streets are closed to coaches, and the map shows the recommended routes.
  • Official coach parks (paid; town map of April 2026): P1 Interlaken West, Waldeggstrasse (8 spaces, up to 48 hours); P3 Kursaal Nord, Strandbadstrasse (13 spaces, up to 4 hours by day and 13 hours overnight); P4 Kursaal Ost, Strandbadstrasse (14 spaces, up to 4 hours, no parking 22:30 to 08:00); P5 Interlaken Ost, Lindenallee (5 spaces, up to 5 hours, coins only); P6 Bahnhof Ost 1, Untere Bönigstrasse (9 spaces, up to 24 hours). The map marks a temporary closure near the Kursaal, so check the current map before travel.
  • Matten bei Interlaken lists two public car parks where coaches may park: P2 at the ice-sports centre (Tellweg) and P3 on the Brunngasse. The Park+Ride at Matten (day parking only) and at Wilderswil station (open day and night) are the recommended change points to the trains into the Jungfrau region.
  • Iseltwald on Lake Brienz: coaches may park only with an online booking, between 08:00 and 17:00 (18:30 in summer), for at most 1.5 hours, one coach per time slot, on the Dorfplatz. From 5 to 23 October 2026 no coach parking is available in Iseltwald because of road works; groups go by public bus or by boat. The boat from Interlaken Ost takes about 40 minutes in season.
  • Car-free villages: Wengen and Mürren cannot be reached by road. For Wengen, the coach sets down in Lauterbrunnen (multi-storey car park below the station, or the church car park) and the group takes the Wengernalpbahn. For Mürren, the group takes the cable car from Lauterbrunnen to Grütschalp and the train on, or the bus to Stechelberg and the Schilthornbahn via Gimmelwald. The valley roads are narrow and winding, with snow and black ice in winter.
  • Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe (3,454 m): the fastest route is the Berner Oberland-Bahn or the road to Grindelwald Terminal, the Eiger Express to the Eigergletscher station, then the Jungfraubahn (about 50 minutes from Grindelwald Terminal, changes included). The traditional route runs over the Kleine Scheidegg by the Wengernalpbahn from Lauterbrunnen or Grindelwald (about 90 minutes from Grindelwald). A seat reservation on the Jungfraubahn was compulsory from 1 May to 31 October 2026 and is strongly recommended at other times; booked groups have reserved, unnumbered seats.
  • Mountain roads: the Brünig pass towards Luzern is open in summer and winter; the Grimsel and Susten passes to the south and east are open only in summer.
  • Lötschberg car train (BLS, Kandersteg–Goppenstein): the trains for large vehicles run once an hour and take buses with at most 22 seats (vehicles up to 12 m long, 2.5 m wide and 28 t); a full-size coach is not carried. A full coach between the Bernese Oberland and the Valais goes round by road: over the Grimsel pass in summer, or by the motorways via Bern and Lausanne all year.
  • Lauberhorn ski races in car-free Wengen: 15 to 17 January 2027 (super-G on Friday 15, downhill on Saturday 16, slalom on Sunday 17 January). Spectators reach Wengen by train from Lauterbrunnen; expect heavy demand for parking in Lauterbrunnen and at the Park+Ride sites.
  • Jungfrau-Marathon: 10 and 11 September 2027, from Interlaken up to the Kleine Scheidegg; expect road closures and full hotels in Interlaken on race days.
  • 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.

Lakes, Iseltwald and Ballenberg

Boats leave Interlaken West for Lake Thun and Interlaken Ost for Lake Brienz. Iseltwald takes one coach per time slot, booked online, for 90 minutes at most. If no slot is free, the group can go by boat instead, about 40 minutes from Ost.

Ballenberg, with old farmhouses gathered from across Switzerland, lies 35 minutes or so by road and is a seasonal visit. The museum has two entrances, Hofstetten and Brienzwiler, so agree which gate the coach waits at before the group walks off.

Leaving the Oberland

Luzern lies about 1.5 hours away over the Brünig, a road kept open in every season. The Grimsel and Susten are summer passes. For the Valais, note that the Lötschberg car train carries buses of up to 22 seats only. A full-size coach must use the Grimsel when it is open, otherwise the long way round by Bern and Lausanne.

What organisers ask us

Can the coach stop outside our hotel on the Höheweg?

Not under the town rules. Boarding happens at the station stops, and the coach then waits in a coach park. A hotel within walking distance of West or Ost saves the group a lot of carrying.

Which airport is closest for an Interlaken group?

Bern Airport is about an hour by coach. Zurich Airport is about 2.5 hours and Geneva Airport about 3.25 hours in light traffic, so plan the first day around the arrival time.

Is a coach useful during the Lauberhorn races?

Yes, as far as Lauterbrunnen. The races run from 15 to 17 January 2027 and spectators take the train up to Wengen. Parking in the valley fills early, so set the group down first thing.

More group trips by coach

Vehicles, each with a driver