Private jet to Switzerland

Switzerland draws private flyers for two reasons that rarely overlap in the calendar: the banks, trading houses and international organisations of Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Lugano, and the ski resorts of Valais, the Bernese Oberland and Graubünden. The country is small, yet the mountains stretch every drive. Zurich to St. Moritz takes about three hours by road, while a light jet lands at Samedan, five kilometres from the resort, in about 40 minutes.

Two big airports, Zurich and Geneva, take any aircraft and have separate terminals for business aviation. Basel uses the binational EuroAirport, and four smaller fields serve the capital and the valleys: Bern-Belp, Sion, Lugano and Samedan. The country belongs to Schengen but not to the EU or its customs union, so there is no passport check from Schengen airports, but every arrival passes Swiss customs. As a broker, we compare aircraft from operators in Switzerland and across Europe, and choose the airport by where you are going as much as by the size of the jet.

Send the route, dates, number of passengers and, if you know it, the resort or meeting address through the form:

Why travel to the Swiss Alps and cities by private jet

Flight times to the Swiss airports

Times for a Phenom 300 light jet, as in the main price table, including taxi, climb and descent:

Sion is almost as close as Geneva: 1:35 h from London in the same aircraft. To Lugano and Samedan the runway, not the distance, decides the aircraft, so these airports are priced with turboprops and light jets: Munich - Samedan is 0:51 h in a Citation CJ3. From Copenhagen allow 1:49 h in a Pilatus PC-24, from Stockholm 2:32 h, from Larnaca 3:50 h in a Phenom 300, from Doha or Dubai 5:30-6:18 h and from New York 7:24-7:48 h in a long-range jet.

Private jet prices to Switzerland

Every price is for the whole aircraft, one way, plus handling, landing fees and any passenger taxes, assuming an aircraft available near the departure airport. The flight time refers to the first aircraft in the row.

From the European hubs to Zurich, Geneva and Sion

From London the three main airports cost much the same: EUR 12,000 in a Phenom 300 to Zurich, Geneva or Sion. The shortest sector in the table, Milan Linate - Geneva, costs EUR 9,500 in the same light jet and EUR 12,000 in a Challenger 350.

To Lugano, Samedan and Bern

Lugano has a runway of about 1,420 m and a steep approach, Samedan sits at 1,707 m above sea level, and Bern-Belp has 1,730 m with daytime hours for aircraft over 3.5 t. Here turboprops and light jets with locally trained crews are the normal choice:

Flights within Switzerland

Foreign operators may not carry passengers between two Swiss airports, so these short hops are flown by a Swiss operator or with a special permit from the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA). They are useful after a long-haul arrival in Zurich or Geneva:

From Scandinavia and Ireland

For a ski week from Stockholm the Gulfstream G280 at EUR 22,000 has the largest hold of the three; a family of four with soft bags travels well in the PC-24 at EUR 15,500.

Long-haul flights

Zurich and Geneva take every long-range jet without restriction, and all three types below fly these routes non-stop:

Three factors set the figure: hours in the air, where the nearest available aircraft is parked and the date. In WEF week and on winter Saturdays fewer aircraft are free and parking is scarce, so the jet often flies away empty between the two legs, which the quote shows as positioning. Switzerland charges no passenger tax on departure, but landing, noise and emission charges apply at every airport. Taxes come from the other end of the route. A French departure costs about EUR 420 a head in a jet and roughly half in a turboprop; Italy charges EUR 100 up to 1,500 km and EUR 200 beyond, whether the flight starts or ends there; Austria takes EUR 12, or EUR 30 up to 350 km; Germany and Norway have departure taxes, and the Netherlands taxes aircraft of 5.7 t or more. From the UK, Air Passenger Duty depends on weight and seats: nothing for the PC-12 or any other aircraft under 5.7 t, the private-jet rate for 20 t and more with fewer than 19 seats, the standard band for the rest. Anything else is listed in the quote.

Business jet price per flight hour

Heavy Jets from EUR 8,300 / hour

Light Jets from EUR 3,200 / hour

Ultra Long Range Jets from EUR 12,000 / hour

Super Midsize Jets from EUR 6,300 / hour

Very Light Jets from EUR 2,500 / hour

Long Range Jets from EUR 9,800 / hour

Midsize Jets from EUR 4,500 / hour

Turboprops from EUR 2,000 / hour

Three typical trips with their costs

Price per person

The charter price split by the number of travellers:

Calculator

Enter the route, the date and the number of passengers to receive an estimate by e-mail within minutes.

Swiss airports and business aviation terminals

Each airport serves a different part of the country, and each has its own limits on hours, runway and crew training. Our pages on the individual airports cover terminals, handlers and transfers in detail:

When Zurich has no slot, St. Gallen-Altenrhein (1,455 m) near Lake Constance takes light jets for eastern Switzerland and Liechtenstein, and Friedrichshafen across the lake in Germany takes larger ones. For Lugano, Milan Malpensa is the fallback in low cloud. Geneva clients bound for Megève or Courchevel sometimes land at Annecy or Chambéry in France. The military field at Dübendorf near Zurich is not open to charter flights.

Which aircraft for Switzerland

At Samedan the payload depends on the temperature and the aircraft's performance on the day, and in summer the Maloja wind picks up from late morning, so operators plan arrivals early. Ski bags take more room than suitcases: six people with skis and boots fit comfortably in a midsize jet, while a light jet suits four. Tell us the number of ski bags with the request, especially for Lugano, Sion and Samedan.

Unsure which airport suits your resort or meeting? Leave your number and a consultant will call you back.

Month by month: when to fly

Demand peaks in two seasons. From late December to the end of February the mountain airports run at capacity, and WEF week in January is the busiest of the year in Zurich and eastern Switzerland. A second, smaller peak comes in June with Art Basel. The easiest months are May and October to early December, when aircraft, slots and parking are available at short notice. Empty Legs are most frequent after WEF week, at the end of the ski holidays in late February and March, and in September, when aircraft return north from the Mediterranean.

From the airport to the resorts

The airfield at Saanen near Gstaad does not take charter jets, so guests land in Bern or Geneva. In WEF week roads and helicopters around Davos are fully booked, and in February the valley roads to the Valais resorts slow down on Saturdays, so the transfer is booked together with the flight. Helicopter operators set their own weight limits for luggage and skis, which we pass on with the quote.

Empty Legs to and from Switzerland

An Empty Leg is a flight an operator has to make without passengers, for example after a drop-off in Sion or Zurich. With so many short stays and tight parking, such legs are common here and sell well below the normal price. Typical directions:

The operator sets the date and time of an Empty Leg, so it suits a flexible plan more than a fixed meeting. Mail the route and your window of dates to empty-legs@jets.flights, and we send suitable legs as they appear.

Travelling with a dog or cat

Switzerland is outside the EU but applies equivalent rules for pets, so the papers are the same as for an EU country and there is no quarantine. The animal flies in the cabin with you, and the operator must approve it in advance:

• Microchip implanted before the rabies vaccination.
• Rabies vaccination; a first vaccination must be given 21 days or more before the flight.
• EU pet passport, which Switzerland accepts; pets from Great Britain travel with an animal health certificate.
• A private traveller may bring no more than five dogs, cats or ferrets.
• No tapeworm treatment is required to enter Switzerland.

For the flight home to the UK, Ireland, Malta, Finland or Norway, a dog needs tapeworm treatment by a vet 1-5 days before arrival; on a UK trip of five days or less a UK vet can give it before leaving. British airports accept pets only through approved handlers, so the return airport is chosen with this in mind. Helicopter operators may refuse large dogs, which we check before booking the transfer.

Entry rules, Swiss customs and taxes

Before departure

• Valid passport or ID card for every passenger.
• Full names, birth dates and passport or ID numbers by the eve of departure.
• Departure and arrival times checked against slots, night limits and daylight at the mountain airports.
• Number of ski bags, golf bags and hard cases.
• Watches, jewellery, art, samples or cash to be declared at Swiss customs.
• Pet passport, microchip and rabies vaccination; no docked ears or tail.
• Final address: hotel, chalet, heliport or office, so the car or helicopter is booked.
• Company name and VAT number for the invoice.

How to book a flight to Switzerland

1. Send the departure airport, dates, passengers, luggage and the final address, from Paradeplatz to a chalet in Zermatt.
2. We match the airport to the address and the group: Sion, Samedan or Lugano where the aircraft and crew are cleared for them, otherwise Zurich, Geneva or Bern.
3. We check slots and parking at Zurich and Geneva, daylight and opening hours at the mountain airports, and keep an alternate ready for WEF week and winter Saturdays.
4. The proposal shows two to four aircraft, naming operator and model, with cabin photos, one price per aircraft and the car or helicopter as a separate item.
5. Once you have signed and paid, slots, handling, the customs papers and the transfer are confirmed.

Questions about private flights to Switzerland

• • How much does a private jet to Switzerland cost?

  • A Phenom 300 from London to Zurich, Geneva or Sion costs from EUR 12,000 one way for the whole aircraft, and from Milan Linate to Geneva EUR 9,500. A turboprop from Munich to Samedan starts at EUR 7,000. Handling, landing fees and the departure country's taxes are added in the quote.

• • Which airport is best for a ski holiday?

  • Sion for Verbier, Crans-Montana and Zermatt, Samedan for St. Moritz, Bern-Belp or Geneva for Gstaad, and Zurich for Davos and Klosters.

• • Can any jet land at Samedan or Lugano?

  • No. Both airports take turboprops and light jets, and some midsize jets with approval, and the pilots need special training for them. Larger aircraft land in Zurich or Milan, followed by a car or helicopter.

• • Can we fly back late in the evening?

  • Zurich gives charter flights departure slots until 21:45 and Geneva closes at 22:00. Bern takes aircraft over 3.5 t until 19:00, and Sion and Samedan close at dusk in winter, so late returns are planned from Zurich, Geneva or Basel.

• • Is there passport control on arrival?

  • Not from Schengen airports, but there is always Swiss customs. Arrivals from the UK and other non-Schengen countries pass a passport check at the business aviation terminal.

• • Do I need to declare watches or jewellery?

  • Switzerland is outside the EU customs union, so expensive watches, jewellery, art and goods over CHF 150 per person may need a declaration. We arrange the paperwork with the handler before the flight.

• • Can a foreign operator fly us from Geneva to Sion?

  • Normally not: domestic flights in Switzerland are flown by Swiss operators or with a special FOCA permit, and we book the right one. Geneva - Sion costs from EUR 6,000 in a Pilatus PC-12.

• • Can my dog fly with us?

  • Yes. A dog travels in the cabin if it is chipped, vaccinated against rabies and has an EU pet passport. Dogs with docked ears or tails may not enter Switzerland except in narrow cases.

• • When is it hardest to find an aircraft?

  • WEF week in January, the February school holidays, Christmas and New Year, and Art Basel in June. Book several weeks ahead for these dates.

• • Are there Empty Legs from Switzerland?

  • Yes, especially after WEF week, at the end of the ski holidays and in September. Write to empty-legs@jets.flights with the direction and dates.

• • How far ahead should we book?

  • For peak weeks several weeks ahead; in May, October and November a few days is usually enough, and a flight to Zurich or Geneva can often be arranged within a day.