Minibus Hire Across France

EuroAirport pickups: choose the right sector first

EuroAirport is unusual: one terminal on French soil next to Basel, divided between a French side and a Swiss side. For a group heading into Alsace, getting the sector right is the key to an easy pickup.

French sector or Swiss sector?

On the airport site, vehicles cannot drive from one sector to the other without passing through the customs zone, and a customs road leads from the Swiss sector straight into Basel. So the pickup has to happen in the sector your passengers will walk out of, and the driver needs to know which one in advance.

If someone comes out on the wrong side, people on foot can switch sides upstairs, on level 3, through the departures hall.

Executive Sprinter van interior with leather seats
Executive Sprinter van interior with leather seats

The coach station

Group coaches load at the French-sector coach station, level 2, beneath the viaduct facing the terminal. Its six barrier-controlled bays take vehicles of 12 to 15 m and are in use between 04:00 and midnight, all year. A coach gets half an hour per visit and holding on site is not allowed, so a driver who is early waits off the airport until the group is nearly through.

The car parks in front of the terminal have low barriers, 1.90 m in F1 and S1, too low for most minibuses.

The terminals

  • Single passenger terminal with a French sector and a Swiss sector

Handy to know at EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg

  • Height limits: car parks F1 and S1 1.90 m, F4 1.95 m, F5 2.00 m.
  • Each sector has a Parking Express in front of the terminal for dropping off and picking up, with a short free period and a maximum stay of 4 hours.
  • Bus line 11 runs from the French-sector arrivals forecourt to Saint-Louis railway station in 10 to 15 minutes, with regional trains from Saint-Louis; line 220 runs to Lörrach and Weil am Rhein in Germany, and a direct coach runs hourly to Freiburg Hauptbahnhof in about 60 minutes.
  • Bus line 50 runs from the Swiss-sector arrivals forecourt to Basel SBB station in about 20 minutes, every 7 to 10 minutes.
  • A customs road links the Swiss sector directly with the city of Basel; vehicles cannot drive between the two sectors on the airport site without passing through the customs zone, so a pick-up must use the sector the passengers will exit from. Pedestrians cross between the sectors on level 3, in the departures hall.
  • EuroAirport is the world's only binational airport, run under a Franco-Swiss treaty signed in Berne on 4 July 1949; it stands on French soil next to Basel, with one terminal divided into a French sector and a Swiss sector.

How far to Basel, Mulhouse and Strasbourg

Basel's SBB railway station is only some 8 km off, a quarter of an hour's drive. Mulhouse station is about 30 km, about half an hour. Strasbourg is a proper drive: around 135 km to Place Kléber, which takes about 1 h 35 when roads are quiet, most of it on the A35. Colmar, Eguisheim and Riquewihr make natural stops for a group touring the Alsace wine villages.

Low-emission zones and borders

Strasbourg's low-emission zone stretches over every one of the Eurométropole's 33 communes, coaches included. Vehicles with a Crit'Air 4 or 5 sticker, or none, are already kept out, and enforcement against Crit'Air 3 is planned from January 2027. A French Crit'Air sticker is needed even on foreign vehicles, and German cities have their own environmental zones. These rules are live and may shift, so check them before you go.

If your trip continues into Switzerland, remember that Switzerland charges foreign coaches a heavy-vehicle fee; mention it when you ask for a quote.

Your questions, answered

Which airport is closer to Strasbourg?

Strasbourg-Entzheim is about 11 km from Place Kléber, so it is far closer. EuroAirport suits groups visiting southern Alsace, Basel or Freiburg, or anyone whose flights happen to land there.

Is there public transport?

Bus 50 links the Swiss-sector forecourt with Basel SBB in about 20 minutes, while bus 11 takes the French side to Saint-Louis station for regional trains onward. A direct coach goes hourly to Freiburg Hauptbahnhof.

Can the minibus wait for a delayed flight?

Not on site: waiting is forbidden at the coach station and each movement is limited to 30 minutes. The driver waits outside the airport and comes in when you are ready.

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