May a cyclist or a pedestrian cross from Switzerland to France near the Basel EuroAirport without going into the airport?
I was cycling today in Switzerland, and I found myself on the path along Route Douaniére heading toward the Basel EuroAirport. I figured I'd cycle up to the airport, find a way to cross into France, and then head straight back across to my home in Germany.
The map below shows where I rode. I found that as I approached the airport, options seemed more and more limited, and a barbed-wire-topped fence lined the road on both sides. At the airport itself, I rode up the deliveries-only road and one or two other places, but all I found anywhere was fencing and various aviation-oriented manufacturing firms.
I'm not surprised it's not possible to cross between Switzerland and France in a car around the EuroAirport (though I'm also not sure why it's like this). But I was surprised I couldn't find a place to cycle or walk across. There are a fair number of border crossings around here that are open to pedestrians and cyclists but not autos. But apparently not at the EuroAirport.
Did I miss it, or is there really no way to get to France even by foot or by bike once one starts up the Route Douaniére to the EuroAirport from Basel?
Best Answer
I don't live in Basel anymore, so I cannot completely vouch for this. But there used to be a small pedestrian/bicycle path branching off to the left from Flughafenstrasse (coming from the Basel side; 47°34'29.2"N 7°33'44.0"E), right at the border. Following this path for about 100 meters you can then turn right and you're in France. As far as I know there was nothing sketchy about this path, but this was at least six years ago so things might have changed, or perhaps my memory fails me.
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Can you drive from Switzerland to France?
Yes, the driving distance between Switzerland to France is 654 km. It takes approximately 6h 9m to drive from Switzerland to France.Is Basel in France or Switzerland?
Basel, also known as Basle (German), B\xe2le (French) and Basilea (Italian), is a Swiss city located in north-western Switzerland (in the German canton), where the Swiss, German and French borders meet. It is the third largest city in the country after Z\xfcrich and Geneva.Can I fly into Geneva and go to France?
Even if you go through the French sector, you will have to go through Swiss formalities on the plane as your destination is Geneva. On arrival, you can then pass through the French sector, take the customs route and reach France. You will need to ensure that you meet the conditions to enter France.A Swiss Airport in France? | EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg
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Answer 2
How close must you be to the airport? I haven’t been there, but on aerial photos, there appear to be several unblocked places to cross on the southwest side of the airport. My images were too large to upload, but there was (1) a sidewalk disappearing under trees at the border, with Rue St.-Exupéry ending at the same place; (2) further southwest, Im Burgfelderhof crosses the border and joins Rue de Romains which follows the border; (3) nearby, it looks like you can go through or around the Burgfelderhof tram stop to cross Rue de Romains and get on N266.
Answer 3
It seems to be possible to cross over to the French side via the S3/F6 parking lot (as identified by @jcaron). As per Google Maps there are "no entry" signs on the road there, but presumably its okay for bicycles to cross over. Here's how it looks like on Google Maps:
And Apple Maps shows a similar picture:
So just turn right before you enter the airport, cross over via the parking lot and after that you're on the French side. Alternatively, take the side road headed towards the gas station (Autopole) and cross over there.
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