Coach Hire Across Switzerland

Lausanne Coach Hire from the Lake to the Cathedral

Lausanne climbs from the lakeside at Ouchy up to its cathedral, and the M2 metro links the two. Coach spaces are painted yellow with an "autocar" sign and need no booking. The short-stay ones sit near the station, the Cité and Ouchy; the all-day ones lie along the lake to the west and by the Vélodrome.

Reading the yellow markings

A plate under each sign gives the maximum stay. Stops of 15 to 30 minutes: by the station on Place de la Gare; near Place du Tunnel, which serves the Cité and the Riponne; and in Ouchy, near Place de la Navigation and Place du Port. All-day spaces are near Avenue de Rhodanie between Ouchy and Bellerive, at Vidy and by the Vélodrome.

The large central car parks have height limits under 2 m, so they take neither coaches nor high-roof minibuses. White-marked spaces belong to lorries, not coaches.

Setra high-capacity coach, exterior
Setra high-capacity coach, exterior

Olympic Museum and Ouchy

The museum names no coach bay. Set down at Ouchy, where short stays are possible near Quai d'Ouchy and Avenue de l'Elysée, then send the coach to the all-day spaces. Groups from 10 book ahead, private tours take 25 per guide, and guide and driver enter free. Allow about two hours. It is closed on Mondays.

CGN boats leave Ouchy for Lavaux, Vevey, Montreux, Chillon and Evian. Register the group with the CGN, arrive 20 minutes early and order group meals 15 days ahead.

Airports for a group arriving in Lausanne

Stadiums and arenas a coach can reach

  • Vaudoise aréna — Home of Lausanne HC (ice hockey, National League) and a multi-sport complex at Malley, Chemin du Viaduc 14, 1008 Prilly: three ice rinks (two indoor, one outdoor), Olympic swimming pool, fencing and table tennis centre. Train (RER) to Prilly-Malley (2 minutes from Lausanne station), metro M1 stop "Malley", buses 7, 17, 18, 19, 32 and 33 (stops Galicien or Perrelet); a new tram line is being tested next to the arena (autumn 2026). The 140-space underground car park is closed during events and Lausanne HC matches; other car parks nearby are at the Malley Lumière shopping centre (300 spaces) and, on match evenings only, a car park on Route des Flumeaux. No coach parking is published.
  • Stade de la Tuilière — Home ground of FC Lausanne-Sport (football) at the Blécherette in the north of the city. Bus 1, 20 or 21 from Lausanne station to "Lausanne Blécherette", opposite the stadium; drivers leave the motorway at the Blécherette exit and use the Vélodrome car park (about 15 minutes on foot or 3 minutes on bus 1). Parking on Route de Romanel is checked at every match. Spectators use the entrance (A, B, C or D) printed on the ticket. No coach parking is published by the club.
  • Stade Olympique de la Pontaise — Stadium opened in 1954 at Route des Plaines-du-Loup 7, 1018 Lausanne, with 15,700 seats and an athletics track; venue of the annual Athletissima international athletics meeting, also football and concerts. The Vélodrome car park (Route des Plaines-du-Loup 21, 580 places) is nearby; the marked coach spaces on Avenue du Vélodrome and at Parc du Loup are in the same area (see coach notes).

Coach day trips from Lausanne

  • Cully (Lavaux vineyards) — about 10 km, about 20 min
  • Rivaz (Lavaux Vinorama) — about 17 km, about 25 min
  • Chaplin's World (Corsier-sur-Vevey) — about 25 km, about 30 min
  • Montreux — about 30 km, about 35 min
  • Château de Chillon (Veytaux) — about 33 km, about 40 min
  • Château de Grandson — about 42 km, about 40 min
  • Aigle (Château d'Aigle) — about 47 km, about 50 min
  • Gruyères — about 57 km, about 60 min
  • Genève — about 63 km, about 1 h
  • Évian-les-Bains (France), by road around the lake — about 67 km, about 1.25 h
  • Col du Pillon (Glacier 3000) — about 71 km, about 1.25 h
  • Sion — about 96 km, about 1.5 h
  • Bern — about 105 km, about 1.5 h
  • Täsch (Matterhorn Terminal Täsch, shuttle train to Zermatt) — about 168 km, about 2.5 h

Where a coach can stop in Lausanne, and other rules

  • Genève Aéroport (GVA) is about 61 km by road from the Place de la Palud, about 55 min in light traffic. Journeys take longer at peak times.
  • Lausanne marks coach-only spaces ("autocars") on public ground with yellow markings and an "autocar" sign; the maximum parking time is shown on an extra plate under the sign. No booking or permit system for these spaces is published. Separate white-marked spaces are for heavy goods vehicles.
  • Coach spaces on the city's official online map (October 2026), 46 spaces at 16 locations: Avenue de Rhodanie near no. 15 between Ouchy and Bellerive (10 spaces, 24 hours); Avenue du Vélodrome by the Vélodrome car park (9 spaces, 24 hours); Route de Chavannes at Chemin des Sablons, Vidy (5 spaces, 24 hours); Parc du Loup near the Vélodrome (4 spaces); Route de Vidy near no. 4 (2 spaces, 2 hours); Quai d'Ouchy near no. 4 (two bays of 2 spaces, 2 hours); Avenue de l'Elysée near nos. 15 to 30 (three single spaces, 2 hours); Place du Général-Henri-Guisan / Quai de Belgique (1 space, 2 hours); Place du Port / Vieux-Port, Ouchy (2 spaces, 30 minutes); Place de la Navigation / Avenue de Rhodanie 2, Ouchy (1 space, 15 minutes); Place de la Gare (2 spaces, 30 minutes); Place du Tunnel / Rue de la Borde (2 spaces, 30 minutes); Route du Pavement near Route du Signal (1 space, 3 hours).
  • Short-stay coach spaces (15 to 30 minutes) are only at Place de la Gare, Place du Tunnel (for the Riponne and the Cité), Place du Port and Place de la Navigation (Ouchy); all-day (24-hour) coach spaces are only on Avenue de Rhodanie (between Ouchy and Bellerive), at Vidy (Route de Chavannes) and at the Vélodrome (Avenue du Vélodrome).
  • Pedestrian zones: about 5 km of streets in the city centre, at Ouchy and around the station are free of motor traffic. Rue de Bourg and Rue Enning are closed by retractable bollards that lower automatically only during delivery hours. In pedestrian zones vehicles may drive only where an extra plate allows it, at walking pace, and park only in marked places. The old town (Cité) around the cathedral is reached on foot or by metro M2 / bus from the coach stops.
  • Large public car parks in the centre have low height limits (for example Parking du Port d'Ouchy 2.00 m, Parking de la Riponne 1.95 m, Beaulieu 1.90 m), so they cannot take coaches or high-roof minibuses.
  • Olympic Museum: no coach bay is named by the museum; use the coach spaces on Quai d'Ouchy and Avenue de l'Elysée (2 hours) or set down at Ouchy and park at Avenue de Rhodanie. The museum entrance for reduced mobility is the north entrance on Avenue de l'Elysée.
  • Beaulieu: vehicles over 1.90 m (coaches, minibuses) may park on the surface during events only after a written request to the event organiser. STCC (EPFL): no coach facilities published; the nearest marked coach spaces are at Vidy (Route de Chavannes, 24 hours).
  • Works at Lausanne station (Léman 2030): the SBB is rebuilding the station while it stays open. Drilling and excavation are under way on Place de la Gare to build an underground multimodal hall; the city lists the Place de la Gare works site from 2021 to the end of 2035. The main works (longer and wider platforms, three new underpasses) start at the end of 2027; the Epinettes car park opens in 2026. Expect changing traffic layouts on Place de la Gare and Avenue d'Ouchy.
  • Other city works in autumn 2026: Avenue d'Ouchy (8 July to 31 October 2026), Avenue d'Ouchy 17 (16 September to 4 December 2026), Rue Centrale / Place Saint-François (14 September to 31 December 2026), Place de la Riponne (until 30 November 2026), and several sites in the Plaines-du-Loup / Pontaise area (from 28 September 2026 to 30 April 2028).
  • Tram: a new tram line is in test running in the Malley / Prilly area in autumn 2026 (Vaudoise aréna). In late September 2026 Route du Mont in Prilly was closed for 3 to 4 weeks after a pipe burst; event traffic is signposted to the Malley motorway exit.
  • Lausanne station (Place de la Gare): main station on the Genève - Lausanne - Bern - Zürich line and the Simplon line to Valais, with EC trains from Milan and TGV trains from Paris, RER Vaud regional trains, and metro M2 (to Ouchy-Olympique downhill, Flon / Riponne / Bessières uphill). Coach set-down: marked short-stay coach spaces on Place de la Gare (2 spaces, 30 minutes), within the long-running station works.
  • Lausanne-Flon: hub for metro M1 (to Malley, EPFL and Renens) and M2, at the foot of the centre; Prilly-Malley RER stop for the Vaudoise aréna; Renens station for the western suburbs and M1.
  • 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.
  • Cross-border day trips: a coach based in Switzerland may take a group into a neighbouring country and back. The road rules, charges and any low-emission rules of that country apply on its roads, so the operator checks them before the trip.

The Cité and the station

There is no coach stop at the cathedral. Use the short-stay spaces near Place du Tunnel, or put the group on the M2 to Bessières, and ask the operator to confirm the stop. The belfry climb is stairs only.

Lausanne station is being rebuilt while it stays open, with works on Place de la Gare listed until 2035. Expect changing layouts there and on Avenue d'Ouchy, and allow extra time for a station pick-up.

Lavaux and further afield

Cully is 20 minutes away and Rivaz 25, but Lavaux's roads are narrow, winegrowers have priority, and no official coach parking was found in Cully, Chexbres or Rivaz. The UNESCO site asks visitors to come by train or boat. One plan: the coach drops the group in Lutry, the group walks or rides the vineyard train, and the coach collects at a point the operator confirms.

Chaplin's World is 30 minutes away, Chillon 40, Gruyères an hour and the Col du Pillon for Glacier 3000 about 1.25 hours. Täsch, the railhead for Zermatt, is about 2.5 hours.

What organisers ask us

Can the coach park at the SwissTech Convention Center?

The venue publishes no coach facilities. Vidy, a short drive away, has the closest all-day coach spaces, and the operator agrees the set-down with the venue.

Do we need to book coach spaces in Lausanne?

No booking or permit system is published. The driver uses whichever marked space is free, with the all-day spaces as the fallback.

Which airport is best for Lausanne?

Geneva Airport, 61 km away. Allow about 55 minutes by coach when the roads are quiet.

More group trips by coach

Vehicles, each with a driver