Zurich International Airport is the main gateway to Lucerne from outside of Switzerland. The airport is a comprehensive facility, situated less than an hour by car from Lucerne. Options for getting to Lucerne from the airport are good and include buses, trains, taxis and hire cars. While having a good bus network and efficient taxi cabs, the city of Lucerne itself is intimate and very easy to get about on foot.

Zurich International Airport is the closest airport to Lucerne, which is situated about one hour away by car via the A4 motorway. The airport is located about seven miles to the north of Zurich along the A51 motorway and it comes with two terminals, spread across three levels. Zurich International is Switzerland's busiest airport, handling millions of annual passengers from destinations throughout Europe and the rest of the world. 

Essential facilities at the airport include banks with bureau de change services, cash machines on every floor, a post office, wireless internet access, a lost property office, a medical and dental centre, nurseries and prayer rooms.

Shopping and eating options are also adequate at Zurich International Airport. There is a shopping centre and many individual outlets including duty-free as well as numerous coffee shops, snack bars, restaurants and bars. Along with the medical centre, Zurich Airport also has several pharmacies, while excellent business facilities are also available on-site. 

A huge conference centre has more than 30 rooms of varying sizes able to seat hundreds of delegates and office facilities can be found at the conference centre reception desk and include a fax machine, photocopier and secretarial services. 

Disabled travellers are well taken care of at Zurich International Airport, where accessible and adapted toilets have been employed, along with specially adapted public telephones, wide aisles to allow for unhindered wheelchair access and ramps and lifts where necessary. Zurich Airport also has special assistance desks in Departure, while porters can provide extra assistance. 

There are plenty of information points dotted around the terminal buildings in both the Arrivals and Departures areas, providing valuable information on airport facilities and services as well as flight and train schedules, bus timetables and maps and directories. 

Parking options at Zurich International Airport include three covered parking areas situated near the terminals and an uncovered long-term car park located farther out. The long-term car park offers cheaper rates over lengthy periods and is fed by courtesy shuttle bus, while special needs parking and valet parking are also available. 

To get to Lucerne from Zurich Airport by car, take the A20 Zurich motorway bypass in a westerly direction before reaching the A1; merge with the A4 south and then merge again with the A14 for Lucerne. The distance is only about 40 miles, which can be achieved easily in less than one hour. You can also hire cars direct from the airport, with most of the world's major car rental companies represented here.

Public transportation from Zurich International Airport to Lucerne is also good, especially seeing as Swiss Federal Railways have a station located directly under Terminal B. Trains run to Lucerne frequently throughout the day and take about 30 minutes to reach the city. Trains, buses and taxis also run direct to Zurich city centre and there are hourly trains from Zurich Central Station to Lucerne.

There is a bus station situated behind car parks 2 and 3, and 11 bus lines serve various destinations including Lucerne from the airport. The bus station is also accessible from the airport's shopping centre.

Getting about Lucerne by day or at night by public transport is fairly straightforward, although most of the Old Town, where the majority of the attractions are situated, is pedestrian-only and quite compact, making getting about on foot easy.

Lucerne has an extensive bus network for its size, where ticket prices are determined by the distance travelled. Bus tickets are available from automatic vending machines or from major city hotels. Visitors can buy a reasonably-priced two-day ticket that allows unlimited travel on all buses.

The other option for getting about Lucerne if you are staying some distance outside of the city is by taxi. Taxi fares are reasonably priced in comparison to Geneva or Zurich, yet quite expensive nonetheless.