Lugano on Lake Ceresio: 960 km through the San Bernardino into the Sottoceneri – and back

With around 63,700 inhabitants, Lugano is the largest municipality in the canton of Ticino and lies in the Sottoceneri where the Cassarate flows into Lake Lugano; the official language is Italian. Anyone moving from Berlin to Lugano leaves the EU customs union along with their residence. What you have used for at least six months and will continue to use in Ticino may come along duty-free as removal goods: this requires the signed form 18.44, a complete list of items and proof of the move, for example a tenancy agreement in Lugano or an employment contract. The customs office only clears goods during its hours for commercial goods, so we schedule the border crossing on a working day and then take care of unloading and assembly.

Anyone returning from Lugano to Berlin declares the export at the Swiss customs office with the list and both addresses. In Germany the household goods remain duty-free if you have lived outside the EU for at least twelve months and used the items for at least six months (Regulation (EC) 1186/2009). You also receive the fixed price for this direction after the survey.

From Moabit the AVUS and the A10 lead onto the A9, which we follow to Nuremberg; then via the A6 to the Feuchtwangen/Crailsheim interchange, the A7 to Memmingen and the A96 to Lindau. After a short stretch on the Austrian A14 past Bregenz we change into the St. Gallen Rhine valley and onto the Swiss A13: via Chur, through the San Bernardino Tunnel and the Misox valley to Bellinzona-Nord. There the last stretch begins on the A2 heading south to the Lugano-Nord or Lugano-Sud exit. Altogether around 960 km, approx. 14.5 hrs by lorry including breaks.

The road tunnel at the San Bernardino is 6,596 m long and has been open since December 1967; beyond it the A13 descends through the Misox valley into Ticino. One day's driving time is not enough for the whole journey, so two drivers take turns or the lorry stays overnight before the border, which it then crosses on a working day. In Lugano we unload directly at your address and assemble the furniture; for the return move to Berlin the same process applies in reverse.

The two local mountains, Monte Brè and Monte San Salvatore, frame the bay of Lugano. The medieval old town was largely demolished between 1910 and 1942; today Piazza della Riforma and the shopping street Via Nassa form the centre, with the cathedral of San Lorenzo above them. Since the mergers of 2004, 2008 and 2013 the city has had 21 quartieri, from Molino Nuovo and Besso to Pregassona, Breganzona and Gandria. Lakeside promenade or hillside: for the lorry, access, floor and parking space are decisive, so we look at your address beforehand. After moving in you register with the city's Controllo abitanti; the municipality states the deadline and documents.

Back in Berlin you have two weeks to register at the Bürgeramt, with your ID and the landlord confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbestätigung). We apply to the road traffic authority of the district office for the parking restriction outside the new Berlin building. You can hand over the flat in Lugano as soon as the lorry is loaded – so moving out and departure fall on the same day.

These figures serve as initial orientation for Berlin–Lugano and the trip back; what ultimately applies is set out in the fixed price after the survey:

For the roughly 960 km from the Spree to Ticino we calculate from €3,800, and the same for the opposite direction. The heavy vehicle fee, customs formalities and a second driver are itemised separately in the quote; it becomes binding after a free survey.

The load is decisive: the more cubic metres, the more expensive. For Lugano the roughly 960 km across the Alps, the LSVA on the Swiss kilometres, customs clearance and a second driver or an overnight stop are added. At the destination in Ticino, floor, lift and carrying distances then count. You can save with a part load; you can add furniture assembly or a parking restriction.

For the move to Lake Lugano you put together what you need:

• Private move – a whole household from Berlin to Ticino
• Company move – office with IT and files, listed separately
• Furniture transport – single pieces across the Alps
• Part load – a small household on a shared tour
• Move with assembly – dismantled in Berlin, assembled in Lugano
• Clearance – cellar and attic in Berlin cleared

Besides Ticino we drive from Stromstraße 21 to many other cities in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. The locations overview gives you an overview; individual long-distance routes are listed under Long-distance moves.

Are you moving to Lake Lugano or coming back from Lugano to Berlin? Then we look at your household goods in the flat or by video call, fill in form 18.44 and the list of items together and send you the fixed price in writing – guide price from €3,800. The survey costs nothing: 01625978461.