There are 8 ways to get from Zurich to Essen by train, bus, night train, car, or plane
Select an option below to see step-by-step directions and to compare ticket prices and travel times in Rome2Rio's travel planner.
Train
best- Take the train from Zürich HB to Basel SBBtrain Ice / ...
- Take the train from Basel SBB to Essen Hbftrain 43
6h 35m€59–162Bus
cheapest- Take the bus from Zurich Bus Station to Dortmund central bus stationbus N07
10h 49m€44–101Night train, train
- Take the night train from Zürich HB to Bonn-Beuelnighttrain Nj
- Take the train from Koeln-Ehrenfeld to Essen Hbftrain Re
10h 19m€191–335Drive 593 km
- Drive from Zurich to Essencar 593 km
5h 54m€103–148Train via Stuttgart
- Take the train from Zürich Stadelhofen to Schaffhausentrain S9 / ...
- Take the train from Schaffhausen to Hauptbahnhoftrain 87
- Take the train from Hauptbahnhof to Essen Hbftrain 47 / ...
8h 10m€74–208Fly to Düsseldorf International Airport
- Fly from Zurich Airport (ZRH) to Düsseldorf International Airport (DUS)plane ZRH - DUS
4h 7m€82–266Fly to Frankfurt, train
- Fly from Zurich Airport (ZRH) to Frankfurt (FRA)plane ZRH - FRA
- Take the train from Frankfurt to Essen Hbftrain
4h 25m€112–288Fly to Cologne Bonn Airport, train
- Fly from Zurich Airport (ZRH) to Cologne Bonn Airport (CGN)plane ZRH - CGN
- Take the train from Köln Messe/Deutz Bf to Essen Hbftrain
5h 13m€89–263
Zurich to Essen by train
Questions & Answers
The cheapest way to get from Zurich to Essen is to bus which costs €40 - €110 and takes 10h 49m.
The fastest way to get from Zurich to Essen is to fly which takes 4h 7m and costs €80 - €270.
No, there is no direct bus from Zurich station to Essen station. However, there are services departing from Zurich Bus Station and arriving at Essen central train station via Dortmund central bus station. The journey, including transfers, takes approximately 10h 49m.
No, there is no direct train from Zurich to Essen. However, there are services departing from Zürich HB and arriving at Essen Hbf via Basel SBB. The journey, including transfers, takes approximately 6h 35m.
The distance between Zurich and Essen is 663 km. The road distance is 593 km.
The best way to get from Zurich to Essen without a car is to train which takes 6h 35m and costs €55 - €170.
It takes approximately 6h 35m to get from Zurich to Essen, including transfers.
Zurich to Essen bus services, operated by FlixBus, depart from Zurich Bus Station.
Zurich to Essen train services, operated by SBB GmbH, depart from Zürich HB station.
The best way to get from Zurich to Essen is to train which takes 6h 35m and costs €55 - €170. Alternatively, you can bus, which costs €40 - €110 and takes 10h 49m, you could also fly, which costs €80 - €270 and takes 4h 7m.
What companies run services between Zurich, Switzerland and Essen, Germany?
You can take a train from Zürich HB to Essen Hbf via Basel SBB in around 6h 35m. Alternatively, FlixBus operates a bus from Zurich Bus Station to Dortmund central bus station once daily. Tickets cost €35–95 and the journey takes 9h 45m.
- Website
- swiss.com
Flights from Zurich Airport to Düsseldorf International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 16m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €60–250
Flights from Zurich Airport to Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €65–260
Flights from Zurich Airport to Cologne Bonn Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- When
- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday
- Estimated price
- €60–190
- Website
- lufthansa.com
Flights from Zurich Airport to Düsseldorf International Airport via Munich
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 7m
- When
- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday
- Estimated price
- €45–320
Flights from Zurich Airport to Düsseldorf International Airport via Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 10m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €60–310
Flights from Zurich Airport to Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €65–260
Flights from Zurich Airport to Cologne Bonn Airport via Munich
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 5m
- When
- Sunday
- Estimated price
- €85–340
- Website
- eurowings.com
Flights from Zurich Airport to Düsseldorf International Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 15m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €65–180
Flights from Zurich Airport to Cologne Bonn Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- When
- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday
- Estimated price
- €60–190
- Website
- condor.com
Flights from Zurich Airport to Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 55 min
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €70–190
- Website
- airdolomiti.it
Flights from Zurich Airport to Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €80–260
- Phone
- +49 (0) 7531 915109
- info@sbb-deutschland.de
- Website
- sbb-deutschland.de
Train from Zürich HB to Basel SBB
- Ave. Duration
- 53 min
- Frequency
- Every 2 hours
- Estimated price
- €8–11
- Schedules at
- sbb-deutschland.de
Train from Zürich Stadelhofen to Schaffhausen
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €6–8
- Schedules at
- sbb-deutschland.de
- Phone
- +49 30 311 682904
- Website
- bahn.de
Train from Zürich HB to Basel SBB
- Ave. Duration
- 53 min
- Frequency
- 3 times a day
- Estimated price
- €28–32
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Basel SBB to Essen Hbf
- Ave. Duration
- 4h 42m
- Frequency
- Every 4 hours
- Estimated price
- €50–130
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Schaffhausen to Hauptbahnhof
- Ave. Duration
- 2h 16m
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €23–50
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Hauptbahnhof to Essen Hbf
- Ave. Duration
- 2h 56m
- Frequency
- Every 2 hours
- Estimated price
- €45–130
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Frankfurt to Essen Hbf
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 47m
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €30–90
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Köln Messe/Deutz Bf to Essen Hbf
- Ave. Duration
- 50 min
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €13–55
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
- Phone
- +41 848 446 688
- Website
- sbb.ch
Night train from Zürich HB to Bonn-Beuel
- Ave. Duration
- 7h 30m
- Frequency
- Once daily
- Estimated price
- €170–300
- Website
- https://www.sbb.ch/en
Train from Zürich Stadelhofen to Schaffhausen
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 5m
- Frequency
- Every 30 minutes
- Estimated price
- €25–28
- Website
- https://www.sbb.ch/en
- Phone
- 0221 13 999 444
- Website
- nationalexpress.de
Train from Koeln-Ehrenfeld to Essen Hbf
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 13m
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €16–23
- Schedules at
- nationalexpress.de
Rome2Rio's guide to FlixBus
Contact Details
- Phone
- +49 30 300 137 300
- service@flixbus.com
- Website
- flixbus.fr
Bus from Zurich Bus Station to Dortmund central bus station
- Ave. Duration
- 9h 45m
- Frequency
- Once daily
- Estimated price
- €35–95
- Website
- https://www.flixbus.co.uk
Want to know more about travelling around Germany
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More Questions & Answers
Zurich to Essen bus services, operated by FlixBus, arrive at Dortmund central bus station.
Zurich to Essen train services, operated by SBB GmbH, arrive at Basel SBB station.
Yes, the driving distance between Zurich to Essen is 593 km. It takes approximately 5h 54m to drive from Zurich to Essen.
Book your Zurich to Essen train tickets online with Omio.
Book your Zurich to Essen bus tickets online with FlixBus.
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