St Gallen Altenrhein Airport: where to stay, areas and recommended…

St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport is a small regional airport on Lake Constance, 21 km from the city that gives it its name: a taxi covers the distance in about 15 minutes, while the train first requires a 20-minute walk or a taxi to Staad station and then a journey of about 25 minutes, for a total that easily exceeds 40 minutes. With no hotels on site or in the immediate surroundings, anyone flying through this airport almost always ends up sleeping in St. Gallen, whose UNESCO-listed old town and abbey library remain in any case the most sensible destination for the rest of the stay.

St. Gallen, old town and OLMA

City centre · By taxi, the 21 km are covered in about 15 minutes; by train you first need to reach Staad station (20 minutes on foot or a short taxi ride) and then travel another 25 minutes or so to St. Gallen.

Best for: Those who want the UNESCO-listed old town and the abbey library, accepting a transfer of about 15 minutes by taxi from the airport.

Pros

The direct taxi avoids the walk-plus-train combination, handy with luggage or awkward schedules
The old town, the UNESCO-listed abbey and the university are all reachable on foot from the hotels in the area

Cons

There is no direct, fast public link between the airport and the city: the train always requires a change or a walk
The actual hotel offering in St. Gallen is limited compared with other Swiss cities of similar size

Recommended hotels in this area

Radisson Blu Hotel, St. Gallen: Opposite the OLMA exhibition district, 10 minutes on foot from the old town and the station; free access to six fitness studios in the area, and breakfast among the most praised features in reviews.

See more hotels in this area →