Arriving to Switzerland by plane

Switzerland is located at the heart of Europe. Lausanne is located in the french part of Switzerland, not far from Geneva.

Geneva International Airport connects directly with many capitals worldwide or via the European hub of major companies (London, Paris, Frankfurt). Budget airlines also serve Geneva from numerous European cities. Lausanne is only a short train ride from Geneva International Airport.

Smaller airports (Basel and Zurich) are also well connected to Lausanne via the Swiss Federal Railways.

Getting to Lausanne by train

The Swiss Federal Railways are quite efficient, there is usually one train every 30 minutes between major cities.

From Geneva airport, the journey takes 40 minutes and from Basel or Zurich airport just under 3 hours. To organize your journey and check the timetable, please use the website of the Swiss Federal Railways.

Every airport has a railway station. If you come late and the station is not manned, blue ticketing machines (speaking English and taking major credit cards) are available. Be aware of the limited validity of return tickets from Geneva Airport to Lausanne: if you take your ticket at the machine it will only be valid for one day and it is better to take a single; however at the counter you can obtain a return with extended validity.

There is only one train station in Lausanne. Disembark there and reach your hotel using the local transport system (Transports Lausannois) or take a taxi from in front of the north side of the railway station (towards platform 1).

From the Lausanne train station to EPFL

As you exit the train station on the north side (towards platform 1), cross the road and proceed towards the entrance of the Metro marked by M, located on the right of the Mc Donalds fast-food.

Buy a ticket for SFr. 2.40 at the blue ticketing machine. This ticket is valid for one hour on the entire network within Lausanne.

Take the metro uphill, one stop (you can use either platform, just take a train travelling uphill).

Change to the Metro Ouest, also called M1 or TSOL.

Get off at the stop marked EPFL (approximately 12 minutes journey) and make your way to the conference venue.

Arriving by car

In Switzerland, motorways are indicated with green road signs (not blue like the rest of Europe). If you come from abroad, you must buy a SFr 40.- sticker at the border to use Swiss motorways. If you rent a car, this tax is included in the rental agreement.

From Geneva airport, take motorway A1 to Lausanne.
From Zurich airport, take motorway A1 to Bern, then follow motorways A12 – A9 to Lausanne.
From Basel airport, follow motorway A3 to Basel, then A2 – A1 to Bern and finally A12 – A9 to Lausanne.

When you get to Lausanne, stay on the motorway, take the direction Lausanne-sud and use the exit marked Université-EPFL. The entrance to the campus is approximately 1km after this exit. Use the visitor parking located under the General Information EPFL (see the map on the venue section).

If you are arriving from another location, we recommend that you use the Mappy or the Via Michelin web site to plan your journey.