Aare Boat Solothurn to Biel: Route, Timetable & All Events

There are faster ways to get from Solothurn to Biel, but none as beautiful as the boat on the Aare. For almost three hours, the ship winds its way through reed banks, past a stork village, under low bridges and through a lock, with the Jura mountains always in view. It’s often called the most beautiful river trip in Switzerland, and having grown up in Solothurn, I’d say it’s one of the best ways to spend a summer day in the region.

In this guide you’ll find everything about the Aare boat between Solothurn and Biel: the route and every stop, the timetable, tickets, the ships and their history, and a complete list of all the events and theme cruises, from sushi and moules nights to Sunday brunch and kids’ trips.

Quick Facts: The Aare Boat Solothurn–Biel

• Operator: Bielersee Schifffahrtsgesellschaft (BSG)
• Route: Solothurn – Altreu – Grenchen – Büren an der Aare – Brügg – Port – Nidau – Biel/Bienne
• Duration: About 2 hours 45 minutes one way
• Season: Early May to early October
• Departures: Two regular boats a day in each direction
• Landing stage in Solothurn: Schifflände on the Aare, at the edge of the old town
• Tickets: Half Fare Card and GA travelcard valid

From the Romandie to the MS Siesta: A Short History

Ask an older person in Solothurn about the boat to Biel and there’s a good chance they won’t say “the boat” at all. They’ll say they’re taking “the Romandie”. The name goes back to the early days of the Aare boats, and it has stuck around for decades.

Regular passenger boats on this stretch of the Aare began in the 1950s as a private business. From 1953, Walter Koelliker ran a boat service between Neuchâtel and Solothurn. In 1966, the Bielersee Schifffahrtsgesellschaft (BSG) took over and limited the route to Biel–Solothurn, the line that still runs today. From then on, the river was served by a small fleet of motor ships called Romandie II, Romandie III and Romandie IV, and for a whole generation, “the Romandie” simply meant the boat on the Aare.

The Romandie ships had long careers. Romandie III was renamed Nidau in 1973 and later ended up in Berlin as the Stralau. Romandie IV became the Büren in 1973 and, in 2015, got its old name Romandie IV back. Romandie II, an 18-metre boat with room for just 60 passengers, now sails on Lake Zurich under a different name.

The company itself is much older than the Aare line. Its roots go back to 1887, when the Dampfschiffgesellschaft Union was founded in Erlach on Lake Biel. It moved to Biel in 1930 and has been called the Bielersee Schifffahrtsgesellschaft since 1966.

Meet the MS Siesta

Today, the biggest ship on the Aare is the MS Siesta, and there’s a good chance this is the boat you’ll travel on. She was built in 1991 by the Deggendorfer Werft- und Eisenbau shipyard in Germany and is designed for one very specific job: carrying hundreds of people down a shallow river and under low bridges. Despite being almost 50 metres long, she sits only about 1.3 metres deep in the water, and the whole ship is just over 5 metres high, which is why she fits under bridges like the motorway bridge at Grenchen.

Instead of a classic propeller and rudder, the Siesta steers with two Schottel rudder propellers at the stern, which can turn in any direction, plus a pumpjet at the bow. That makes her very manoeuvrable, which you’ll notice when she turns in the current or slides into the lock at Port.

Another ship you may travel on is the MS Rousseau, built in 2012 for around 300 passengers.

The Route: Every Stop from Solothurn to Biel

Solothurn

The trip starts at the Schifflände, right below the baroque old town. As the boat pulls away, you get a last look at the old town walls and the river promenade before the city gives way to fields and trees surprisingly quickly.

Altreu

After about 40 minutes, you reach Altreu, Switzerland’s stork village. More than 40 stork pairs nest here in spring and summer, and you can often see them from the boat. It’s the most popular place to get off, especially for lunch at the Restaurant zum Grüene Aff right by the landing. I’ve written a separate guide to the boat trip from Solothurn to Altreu with the best connections there and back.

Grenchen

Twenty minutes later the boat stops at Grenchen, the watchmaking town at the foot of the Jura. Shortly after, the ship has to squeeze under the motorway bridge, one of the reasons the Aare boats are built so low.

Büren an der Aare

For many people, the highlight of the trip. Büren an der Aare is a small historic town with a covered wooden bridge across the river and a pretty old town that’s worth a walk. If you want to break up the journey, this is the best stop to do it.

Brügg and the Lock at Port

After Brügg, the boat reaches Port, where it passes through a lock chamber. Watching the gates close and the ship slowly change level is a small adventure in itself, and kids especially love it.

Nidau and Biel/Bienne

The last stretch takes you to Nidau and finally to Biel/Bienne, Switzerland’s bilingual city on Lake Biel. From here you can continue by boat across the lake to the St. Peter’s Island or on the Three Lakes route through the canals to Lake Neuchâtel and Lake Murten.

Timetable

These are the regular boats on the Aare (times from the 2026 summer timetable). The schedule is usually very similar every year, but the times can change slightly, so always check the BSG website before you go.

Solothurn to Biel

Biel to Solothurn

On Wednesday evenings there’s an extra boat from Solothurn at 19:00 to Altreu and Grenchen, returning to Solothurn at 21:20. This is also when most of the food cruises from Solothurn take place (see below).

How to Plan a Round Trip

• Boat one way, train back: The most popular option. Take the 09:00 boat from Solothurn, arrive in Biel at 11:45, have lunch by the lake and take the train back to Solothurn, which takes less than half an hour.
• The full return trip by boat: Take the 09:00 boat to Biel and the 12:40 boat back, arriving in Solothurn at 15:25. That’s almost six hours on the water, perfect if you just want to relax.
• Half day to Altreu: 09:00 from Solothurn to Altreu, lunch at the Grüene Aff, and the 14:45 boat back.
• Stop in Büren: Get off in Büren an der Aare for a walk across the wooden bridge and catch the next boat or a train onwards.

Tickets and Prices

A full one-way trip from Solothurn to Biel costs around CHF 60 for an adult, and children pay half. The Swiss Half Fare Card and the GA travelcard are valid on board, which makes the trip a lot cheaper or even free if you have one. Shorter stretches, like Solothurn to Altreu, cost less. You can buy tickets on board or online from the BSG. Small dogs in a carrier travel free; bigger dogs need a dog ticket. There’s a restaurant on board, so you don’t need to bring lunch, and the ships are suitable for prams.

Events and Theme Cruises: The Complete List

Besides the regular boats, the BSG runs a long list of special cruises every season, from dinner nights and Sunday brunch to dance parties and family trips. Some start in Solothurn and run on the Aare, most start in Biel and head out onto Lake Biel. The program is similar every year, so here’s an overview of all the events and when they usually take place. The exact dates are published each spring on the BSG website, and most theme cruises need to be booked in advance.

Food Cruises

The food cruises are the most popular events on the program. From Solothurn, they usually run on Wednesday evenings in summer, using the evening boat towards Altreu and Grenchen and back. From Biel, the same themes usually run on Saturday evenings on Lake Biel.

Brunch Cruises

Music, Dancing and Parties

Special Days

For Families and Kids

Culture and Excursions (in German)

My tip: if you live in or near Solothurn, the Wednesday evening food cruises on the Aare are the best way to try the boat without spending a whole day. You leave after work, have dinner on deck while the sun sets over the river and are back in town by around 21:30.

My Tips for the Aare Boat

• Sit on the upper deck on a sunny day, but bring sunscreen: there’s little shade on the river.
• Go downstream in the morning. The 09:00 boat from Solothurn is the only one that runs every day, and it leaves you the whole afternoon in Biel.
• Bring binoculars for the storks at Altreu and the herons along the banks.
• Book theme cruises early. The popular food nights sell out in summer.
• Watch out for swimmers. If you’re swimming in the Aare yourself, stay well away from the boats: they are big and can’t stop quickly.

Make a Day of It in Solothurn

Before or after the boat, there’s plenty to do in Solothurn. My Solothurn travel guide covers the baroque old town, and my guide to the best restaurants in Solothurn will help you find dinner. Check my Solothurn events calendar to see if there’s a festival during your visit, or head out to the countryside to see art in the Alte Brennerei Unterramsern. For more ideas, see all my Switzerland guides.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts

The Aare boat between Solothurn and Biel is slow travel at its best. In under three hours you see storks, a medieval wooden bridge, a lock and some of the most peaceful river landscapes in Switzerland, without ever leaving your seat. Whether you do the full trip, hop off in Altreu for lunch or book a sushi night on a Wednesday evening, it’s one of the experiences I recommend to everyone visiting Solothurn in summer.