Coach Hire Across Switzerland

Schaffhausen and Rhine Falls Coach Hire for Groups

Most groups come for the Rhine Falls, and the falls have two banks with two car parks. The north bank is in Neuhausen, the south bank at Schloss Laufen in the canton of Zurich. Decide which side the group starts from before you book the boat.

North bank: ticket, stop, receipt

Neuhausen works in four steps. One: the driver pulls a ticket at the P1/P2 barrier. Two: the group gets out at the Kurzzeithaltestelle. Three: the driver pays at the cash desk within 15 minutes. Four: the receipt becomes the parking ticket for the Burgunwiese, five minutes off, with no time limit.

For the pick-up it repeats: back to the stop, pay again. From 18:00 to 09:00 the car park is free. The boat ticket office at Schlössli Wörth has a group counter.

MAN Lion's Coach 49-seat touring coach, front three-quarter view
MAN Lion's Coach 49-seat touring coach, front three-quarter view

South bank: Schloss Laufen

At Schloss Laufen, P5 and P6 sit beside the visitor centre, the only place selling tickets for groups of 15 and more. No vehicle may drive onto the castle site. For anyone in a wheelchair this bank is a dead end: neither the basin nor the landings can be reached.

Boats run from April to October. The Felsenfahrt to the middle rock finishes with a climb of over 100 steps. For the group rate, parties of 20 and up request a booking online and report at the group counter 15 minutes before; groups starting at Schloss Laufen are at the landing 20 minutes early and cross by ferry.

Airports for a group arriving in Schaffhausen

Stadiums and arenas a coach can reach

  • FCS Arena — Home ground of FC Schaffhausen in Schaffhausen-Herblingen (Industriestrasse 2a), with about 8,200 seats and a heated artificial pitch; also used for concerts with a capacity of a good 20,000 people. 250 paid parking spaces next to the stadium; no coach parking is published by the club.

Coach day trips from Schaffhausen

  • Rheinfall (Rhine Falls), Laufen side at Schloss Laufen — about 5 km, about 10 min
  • Stein am Rhein — about 19 km, about 30 min
  • Winterthur — about 29 km, about 40 min
  • Zürich — about 52 km, about 1 h
  • Konstanz (Germany) — about 56 km, about 1 h
  • Insel Mainau (Lake Constance, Germany) — about 59 km, about 1 h
  • Titisee (Black Forest, Germany) — about 68 km, about 1.25 h
  • Triberg (Black Forest, Germany) — about 79 km, about 1.5 h
  • St. Gallen — about 84 km, about 1.25 h
  • Basel — about 96 km, about 2 h

Where a coach can stop in Schaffhausen, and other rules

  • Zurich Airport (ZRH) is about 37 km by road from the Fronwagplatz, about 50 min in light traffic. Journeys take longer at peak times.
  • Schaffhausen city has an official coach parking map ("Car-Parkplätze Schaffhausen", on the Schaffhauserland Tourismus website) with three types of coach spaces: parking, set-down and pick-up stops (maximum 30 minutes), and parking that must be registered in advance with the Stadtpolizei Schaffhausen.
  • Coach parking: Munot sports ground on Munotstrasse (for the Munot and the east of the old town) and Fischerhäuserstrasse (for the old town and the Museum zu Allerheiligen).
  • Coach set-down and pick-up stops, maximum 30 minutes: Schaffhausen Bahnhof Nord on Mühlentalstrasse; Klosterstrasse in front of the Museum zu Allerheiligen (headroom 3.80 m); Bachstrasse by the Mosergarten.
  • Coach parking only after registering with the Stadtpolizei: the gravel area at the Zeughaus on Randenstrasse, and Breitenaustrasse in front of the stadium.
  • In the wider old town area, public car parking is paid and mostly limited to two hours; day parking is a few minutes' walk away, for example at Mühlentalsträsschen, Viehmarkt or Munot. The Herrenacker and Herrenacker Süd car parks are the nearest for the Kammgarn and the Museum zu Allerheiligen (cars only).
  • Rheinfall north bank (Neuhausen am Rheinfall): the official Rheinfall car park P1 to P4 is on Nohlstrasse, 8212 Neuhausen am Rheinfall. Coaches take a ticket at the barrier of P1/P2 and stop at the short-stay stop ("Kurzzeithaltestelle") until the passengers have got off. Parking must be paid at the cash desk within 15 minutes, against a receipt. The coach then parks on the Burgunwiese in Neuhausen am Rheinfall (about 5 minutes away) with no time limit, using the receipt as its parking ticket. To pick the group up again, the coach returns to the short-stay stop and pays again. Vehicles over 2.90 m high count as coaches; parking is not charged from 18:00 to 09:00.
  • Car park P4 at the Rhine Falls (Nohlstrasse) is for cars and motorhomes up to 8 m only and is closed from November to March.
  • Rheinfall south bank (Schloss Laufen): the official Schloss Laufen car park on Laufenstrasse (P5, P6) takes cars and coaches; it is paid. The visitor centre is directly beside it.
  • A further car park about 15 minutes on foot uphill from the Rhine Falls has spaces for cars and coaches, but its coach spaces may be used only together with a Rheinfall ticket offer or a booking at the restaurant there.
  • There is no boat service between Schaffhausen and the Rhine Falls; a tourist road train runs between the Schifflände in Schaffhausen and the Rhine Falls, and bus 1 (towards Herbstäcker) and bus 6 run from Schaffhausen station to "Neuhausen Zentrum", about 10 minutes on foot from the falls.
  • Stein am Rhein: the town recommends the Untertor car park for cars and coaches; coaches use the Busparkplatz Untertor Nord (paid 08:00 to 18:00 every day, payable on site or online in advance).
  • Kammgarn (Baumgartenstrasse): the car park in front of the Kammgarn was removed in summer 2024 for a new city park, and an underground car park is being built below it, due to open when works end at the end of 2026.
  • The Rhine Falls boats run only from the beginning of April to the end of October; exact departure times depend on the season, demand and weather.
  • Schaffhausen station (Bahnhof Schaffhausen): served by SBB and Deutsche Bahn (DB) trains, with trains to Stein am Rhein (about 30 minutes) and S-Bahn S33 to Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall and Winterthur; coach set-down at Bahnhof Nord on Mühlentalstrasse (maximum 30 minutes).
  • Neuhausen Rheinfall station: step-free station above the north bank of the Rhine Falls, with a direct train from Zürich HB and a lift down to the basin.
  • Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall station: small station on the south bank (S33 Winterthur-Schaffhausen), about 3 minutes on foot from the falls.
  • 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.
  • 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 old town and the Munot

Parking inside the old town is not possible. Three 30-minute stops serve it: Bahnhof Nord on Mühlentalstrasse, Klosterstrasse at the Museum zu Allerheiligen, with 3.80 m of headroom, and Bachstrasse beside the Mosergarten. For longer waits the coach goes to Fischerhäuserstrasse or the Munot sports ground. Two more areas open up after registering with the Stadtpolizei.

A guided Munot visit takes about 75 minutes, and parties of 35 or fewer may finish with an aperitif on the battlement.

Stein am Rhein and beyond

Stein am Rhein is 30 minutes by road. Coaches use the Busparkplatz Untertor Nord, paid during the day, and the town suggests paying online in advance. Scheduled boats also link the two towns, so the group can sail one way.

Lake Constance at Konstanz or Insel Mainau takes about an hour; the Black Forest at Titisee about 1.25 hours. Zurich Airport is about 50 minutes away.

What organisers ask us

Can the group get from town to the falls without the coach?

Yes, though not by boat. A small road train starts at the Schifflände, and city buses 1 and 6 go to Neuhausen Zentrum, ten minutes' walk from the falls. By coach the 5 km take about ten minutes.

Can wheelchair users see the falls?

Yes, from the north bank: a lift runs from the step-free Neuhausen Rheinfall station down to the basin. On the Laufen side, basin and landings are out of reach.

Can a minibus use car park P4?

P4 takes cars and motorhomes up to 8 m and closes from November to March. Anything over 2.90 m high pays as a coach and follows the four steps at P1/P2.

More group trips by coach

Vehicles, each with a driver