Coach Hire Across Switzerland

St. Gallen Coach Hire for the Abbey District and the East

St. Gallen has a short, clear coach plan. Passengers get off on Lagerstrasse beside the station, the coach parks on Museumstrasse or at Spelteriniplatz, and the group walks into the pedestrian old town.

The coach access plan

From Zurich the plan routes coaches off the A1 at St. Gallen-Kreuzbleiche, towards Lagerstrasse. From Rorschach and Lake Constance the exit is St. Gallen-St. Fiden, towards the coach parks. The Lagerstrasse point is for getting on and off only.

Both coach parks have been paid since November 2024 and take no reservations. If Museumstrasse and Spelteriniplatz are full, the city police name an alternative. Spelteriniplatz is not available while the OLMA or the OFFA is on, nor when the Zirkus Knie visits.

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

The abbey district

From the Museumstrasse coach park to the cathedral and the Stiftsbibliothek is about ten minutes on foot. The tours, 50, 90 or 120 minutes long, take in the Baroque hall, the cellar vaults, the exhibition room and the cathedral. They are booked two weeks ahead for at most 25 people each, so a class of 50 books two. On weekdays, groups with the abbey's own guides can enter from 09:00.

The library closes for set weeks in the year, and the cathedral has no sightseeing during services or on Sunday mornings. Check both before fixing the programme.

Airports for a group arriving in St. Gallen

Stadiums and arenas a coach can reach

  • Berit Sitterstadion — Home ground of FC St.Gallen 1879 in Winkeln, in the west of the city, beside the Shopping Arena; renamed for the 2026/27 season (formerly kybunpark, and AFG Arena before 2016). Winkeln railway station is within walking distance; bus lines 151 (Gossau - stadium - St.Gallen station) and 158 (Herisau - Winkeln - stadium - Abtwil Säntispark) stop at "Arena St.Gallen", with extra buses on match days and an extra bus from the event stop ("Eventkante") on the south side of St.Gallen station. Coach parking: free standing places for coaches on match days with advance registration by e-mail to the club ticketing (number of people and licence plate required).

Coach day trips from St. Gallen

  • Appenzell — about 18 km, about 30 min
  • Wasserauen (Ebenalp cable car) — about 25 km, about 40 min
  • Schwägalp (Säntis cable car) — about 33 km, about 50 min
  • Bregenz (Austria) — about 38 km, about 45 min
  • Konstanz (Germany) — about 44 km, about 1 h
  • Insel Mainau (Lake Constance, Germany) — about 54 km, about 1.25 h
  • Lindau (Germany) — about 59 km, about 1 h
  • Winterthur — about 61 km, about 60 min
  • Stein am Rhein — about 64 km, about 1.25 h
  • Vaduz (Liechtenstein) — about 68 km, about 60 min
  • Rheinfall (Rhine Falls), Laufen side at Schloss Laufen — about 79 km, about 1.25 h
  • Zürich — about 87 km, about 1.25 h

Where a coach can stop in St. Gallen, and other rules

  • Zurich Airport (ZRH) is about 85 km by road from the Marktplatz, about 1 h 15 min in light traffic. Journeys take longer at peak times.
  • Coach set-down and pick-up in St.Gallen: the official set-down-only point ("Nur Ein- und Aussteigen") is on Lagerstrasse, beside St.Gallen station. Coaches then park at the coach park on Museumstrasse; the Spelteriniplatz is the alternative if Museumstrasse is full. If both are full, the Stadtpolizei St.Gallen gives an alternative. All are listed in the coach access plan of St.Gallen-Bodensee Tourismus.
  • Coach parking on Museumstrasse and Spelteriniplatz is paid (since 1 November 2024; day, night and Sunday rates; tickets at machines). No reservation system is published.
  • Spelteriniplatz (Sonnenstrasse 6, 9000 St.Gallen): run by the Stadtpolizei St.Gallen, open 24 hours, maximum stay 24 hours, access from Sonnenstrasse (motorway junction); near the Tonhalle, the museums and the Theater St.Gallen, about five minutes on foot from the old town. The car park is closed during the OFFA fair, the Zirkus Knie and the OLMA fair.
  • Motorway access for coaches (A1): the coach access plan routes coaches from Zürich via exit St.Gallen-Kreuzbleiche (towards Lagerstrasse) and coaches from Rorschach / Lake Constance via exit St.Gallen-St.Fiden (towards Spelteriniplatz and Museumstrasse). The old town is a pedestrian zone, and the walk from the Museumstrasse coach park to the Stiftsbezirk (cathedral and Stiftsbibliothek) takes about ten minutes.
  • Berit Sitterstadion (FC St.Gallen): free coach standing places on match days, only with advance registration by e-mail to the club ticketing. Olma Messen: no coach parking is published, and during the OLMA there is no parking at the fairground. Säntis-Schwebebahn (Schwägalp): coach parking at the valley station.
  • OLMA, the Swiss fair for agriculture and food, runs from 8 to 18 October 2026 (about 335,000 visitors); the Spelteriniplatz coach park is closed during the fair, and visitors are asked to use public transport. The next OFFA spring fair runs from 21 to 25 April 2027 (Spelteriniplatz also closed). The Säntis cable car is closed until late autumn 2026; the Textilmuseum closes from 1 March 2027 for about three years; the Stiftsbibliothek is closed from 9 to 23 November 2026.
  • St.Gallen (Hauptbahnhof): the main station of the city, less than one hour from Zürich HB, with the Appenzeller Bahnen to Appenzell; coach set-down on Lagerstrasse beside the station; event buses leave from the "Eventkante" on the south side.
  • St.Gallen-St.Fiden: second city station, five minutes on foot from the east entrance of Olma Messen St.Gallen. Winkeln: station within walking distance of the Berit Sitterstadion.
  • 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.

Fairs and football

The fair grounds have no published coach parking. While the OLMA is on, nobody parks there, coach or car. Ask the operator to confirm a set-down point. St. Gallen-St. Fiden station is five minutes' walk from the east entrance.

At the Berit Sitterstadion, FC St. Gallen offers free coach places on match days, provided the club's ticket office has the coach registered by e-mail beforehand, with head count and number plate.

Appenzell, Säntis and Lake Constance

Appenzell is 30 minutes away, Wasserauen for the Ebenalp 40 and Schwägalp for the Säntis 50. Appenzell publishes no coach parking, so the operator confirms the stop. Schwägalp has coach spaces at the valley station; the Säntis cable car is being replaced, so check it is running before you plan the summit.

Bregenz is 45 minutes away, Konstanz, Lindau and Vaduz about an hour each. A Swiss coach can make these cross-border trips, and the operator checks Austrian and German road rules first. Rorschach, on the lake, lists coach spaces at the Kurplatz.

What organisers ask us

How long is the drive from Zurich Airport?

Roughly 75 minutes for the 85 km in light traffic. By train, St. Gallen is under an hour from Zürich HB, which helps with late arrivals.

May the driver stay with the coach on Lagerstrasse?

No. Lagerstrasse is for passengers getting on and off; after that the coach leaves for Museumstrasse or Spelteriniplatz.

Do group rates apply at the Stiftsbibliothek?

Yes, from 10 people. Tours must be booked with the online form, and larger groups book several tours side by side.

More group trips by coach

Vehicles, each with a driver