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Lausanne · Switzerland

Car hire and driving in Lausanne

Driving distances to the cities around, the rules that change at the border, and where to compare rental prices.

OverviewFlightsHotelsTrainsBusesCar rentalTours

In Switzerland traffic drives on the right. Picking up at GVA means 51 km (32 mi) into the centre before the trip starts. The emergency number is http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1061257 / http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q11185210 / http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q25648814.

Drives from Lausanne

Car rental from Lausanne: distances and estimated journey times
RouteCountryDistanceEstimated time
Lausanne to GenevaSwitzerland51 km (32 mi)about 47 min
Lausanne to BernSwitzerland79 km (49 mi)about 1 h 12 min
Lausanne to BesançonFrance94 km (58 mi)about 1 h 26 min
Lausanne to BaselSwitzerland136 km (85 mi)about 2 h 4 min
Lausanne to MulhouseFrance147 km (91 mi)about 2 h 15 min
Lausanne to DijonFrance152 km (94 mi)about 2 h 19 min
Lausanne to VilleurbanneFrance159 km (99 mi)about 2 h 25 min
Lausanne to LyonFrance162 km (101 mi)about 2 h 28 min
Lausanne to GrenobleFrance165 km (102 mi)about 2 h 31 min
Lausanne to ZürichSwitzerland174 km (108 mi)about 2 h 39 min
Lausanne to TurinItaly180 km (112 mi)about 2 h 45 min
Lausanne to FreiburgGermany189 km (117 mi)about 2 h 53 min
Lausanne to LondonUnited Kingdom742 km (461 mi)about 11 h 19 min
Lausanne to BerlinGermany827 km (514 mi)about 12 h 37 min
Lausanne to MadridSpain1,073 km (667 mi)about 16 h 22 min
Lausanne to RomeItaly695 km (432 mi)about 10 h 36 min
Lausanne to ParisFrance413 km (256 mi)about 6 h 18 min
Lausanne to HamburgGermany818 km (508 mi)about 12 h 28 min
Lausanne to BucharestRomania1,532 km (952 mi)about 23 h 22 min
Lausanne to MinskBelarus1,692 km (1,051 mi)about 25 h 48 min

Distances are straight-line; road and rail routes run about 15–25% longer. Times are estimates from distance and typical speeds, not timetables.

Where to compare car hire

ExpediaCar hire from the major suppliers, and the one to look at if the flight or hotel is already booked there. Part of Expedia Group.Check car hire on Expedia (opens www.expedia.com in a new tab)
DiscoverCarsCompares local and international suppliers. Read the counter reviews before you pick.Check rental cars on DiscoverCars (opens www.discovercars.com in a new tab)
Auto EuropeA broker specialising in Europe, often with clearer all-in pricing for US renters.Get European rates on Auto Europe (opens www.autoeurope.com in a new tab)
Rentalcars.comBooking.com's car arm, with wide airport coverage worldwide.Compare suppliers on Rentalcars.com (opens www.rentalcars.com in a new tab)
Every link above leaves this site.

We take no bookings for these providers and hold no reservation with them. The provider you choose handles payment, confirmation, changes and refunds. How that works.

Common questions

Which side of the road do they drive on in Lausanne?

The right, as everywhere in Switzerland.

How are the journey times on this page worked out?

From straight-line distance and typical speeds for each mode, so they are estimates for planning, not timetables. Road and rail routes run 15–25% longer than the straight line.

Where these facts come from

  • GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
  • Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
  • OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
  • Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines

Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.