Zurich Hauptbanhof

About Zurich Hauptbanhof

Zurich Hauptbahnhof (HB) is Switzerland’s largest and busiest railway station, opened in 1871 and extensively rebuilt below ground in the 2000s with the Durchmesserlinie tunnel project. The station sits at the head of Bahnhofstrasse in the centre of Zurich, with 16 terminus tracks at street level and ten through tracks underground. The Shopville retail concourse below ground links the platforms to the tram and bus stops outside and runs every day of the year.

Getting from Zurich HB to Zurich

The station sits in the heart of the city, with Bahnhofstrasse, the Limmat river, the financial district and the lakeshore all within a 15-minute walk. Road transfers from the kerb at Bahnhofquai or Bahnhofplatz reach most central addresses in 5 to 15 minutes, depending on traffic across the bridges. Pre-booked drivers wait at the marked meeting point inside the main concourse, which avoids the loading-zone confusion outside.

Platforms and pickup points

Platforms 3 to 18 sit at street level under the train shed, while platforms 21 to 24 (Löwenstrasse) and 31 to 34 (Museumstrasse) sit below ground for through services. The marked meeting point is in the main concourse near the central information board, where most travellers cross the station regardless of platform. Drivers hold a printed name sign at this spot, and lifts and escalators run from every platform to the concourse level.

Common transfer routes from Zurich HB

• HB to Zurich Airport (ZRH): 12 km, 20 to 30 minutes
• HB to Lucerne: 55 km, 50 to 65 minutes
• HB to St Gallen: 85 km, 65 to 85 minutes
• HB to Bern: 130 km, 90 to 110 minutes
• HB to Davos: 145 km, 125 to 145 minutes
• HB to Basel SBB: 90 km, 70 to 85 minutes

Booking your Zurich HB transfer

Pick Zurich Hauptbahnhof as the pickup point with the train arrival time and the exact drop-off address, then choose a saloon, estate or van class to match the party. Payment runs on Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Alipay, iDEAL, Wero or PayPal at booking, with free cancellation up to 24 hours before pickup. Operators hold a Swiss passenger transport concession and the fare stays fixed for the full door-to-door run.