Taxi rank, meter, surcharges and waiting: how the taxi from Kloten works, where it falls short on longer journeys and what a pre-booked transfer does differently.
The taxi is the most obvious choice after landing – you walk out, get in, drive off. For short journeys into the city that is often reasonable. On longer routes to Lucerne, Basel, Bern or the mountains, however, the limits of the system show. This article explains how the taxi at Zurich Airport works, which questions you should clarify beforehand and when a pre-booked transfer is the better decision.
Where to find the taxi rank
The taxi ranks are right outside the arrivals areas – you leave the arrivals hall and follow the "Taxi" signs. During the day there are usually enough vehicles; late in the evening, when several flights land at once or in bad weather, queues form. The waiting time cannot be predicted, and a vehicle with room for seven people or with a child seat is not guaranteed at the rank.
How the taxi fare is made up
Taxis in Zurich run on the meter: a base fare plus an amount per kilometre driven plus time spent in traffic. At night and on Sundays and public holidays different tariffs apply, and depending on the operator there may be surcharges for luggage or additional passengers. The crucial point: you only know the final fare when you have arrived. For a ride into the city centre the range is manageable. For a ride to Bern or Davos it is not – here you should explicitly agree the fare before departure and have it confirmed.
We deliberately do not quote taxi tariffs here: they differ by company, time of day and route and change regularly. Ask at the rank for the tariff or a fixed amount before you get in.
What a fixed-price transfer does differently
With a pre-booked transfer the price is fixed before you depart – per vehicle, regardless of time of day, traffic or detours. On our route pages you see it transparently: Zurich Airport–Winterthur for example from CHF 88.90, Zurich Airport–Zug from CHF 138.69, Zurich Airport–Lucerne from CHF 189.75, Zurich Airport–Basel from CHF 258.50 (each Business Class, per vehicle). Included in the price are meet & greet in the arrivals hall, 60 minutes of waiting time after landing, flight tracking and child seats. There is no night surcharge and no luggage fee.
Add to that predictability: your chauffeur is there when you land, with the vehicle you booked. You choose in advance whether to travel as a couple in the E-Class, as a group of seven in the V-Class or as three in the S-Class. And you receive an invoice with VAT shown – for business travellers often the deciding factor.
When the taxi still makes sense
For spontaneous, short daytime rides into the city, without much luggage and without children, the taxi from the rank is a good option. As soon as one of the following applies, pre-booking pays off: you travel with more than four people, you have ski equipment or special luggage, you land late in the evening or at night, your destination is outside the canton of Zurich, or you want to know the price in advance. In these cases the fixed-price transfer is not only more convenient but as a rule also the more economical choice.
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