How to get to San Marino from the UK

San Marino is a country without an airport or a railway station, perched on a mountain 27 km from the sea. It sounds awkward and it isn’t. Every route funnels into one place, Rimini railway station, and from there a bus climbs to the top in 55 minutes. The only real decision is how you reach that station, and for a British traveller the answer depends on the month.

Rimini, the airport with San Marino in its name

Its full name is the International Airport of Rimini and San Marino Federico Fellini, and it sits at Miramare, about 8 km south of central Rimini. In the 2026 season its departures board had exactly what a Brit wants. Ryanair to Stansted on Sundays and Thursdays, with extra summer days, easyJet to Gatwick on Saturdays and Wednesdays, Ryanair to Manchester on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and British Airways to Heathrow on Saturdays until 26 September.

The catch is the calendar. The last of those departures fall between 18 and 24 October, and I couldn’t find a winter programme on the airport’s site. If you’re planning November or February, look elsewhere.

From the terminal, the number 9 city bus stops right outside and runs into Rimini. You can also walk about a kilometre across the SS16 to the Miramare Airport stop on the Metromare, or to Rimini Miramare railway station, with trains every 15 minutes on average. The airport puts a taxi into the centre at about 15 minutes. There’s no direct airport bus to San Marino that I could find, so plan on going via the station.

Bologna, the all-year answer

Bologna’s Guglielmo Marconi airport has direct flights from London, Manchester and Edinburgh. Its list doesn’t say which airlines or how often, so I’d check that on a flight search rather than guess.

The Marconi Express monorail reaches Bologna Centrale in 7 minutes for €12.80, running every 7 to 15 minutes from 05:40 to midnight. From the central station the regional train to Rimini leaves every hour, takes 1 hour 27 minutes and costs €11.30. The Frecciarossa does it in 53 minutes from €26.50. I’d normally save the money, but if you’re racing the last bus, the fast train is worth it. The final leg, stop by stop, is in my guide to the Rimini to San Marino bus.

What about Ancona?

It’s the third option and the one I’d use least. Ryanair flies from Stansted. From the airport there’s a train from Castelferretti-Falconara Aeroporto to Ancona station, then another to Rimini, 1 hour 5 to 1 hour 15 minutes on the regional train for €9.95, or 46 to 50 minutes on the Frecciarossa from €14.90. Two trains and a bus is doable, but it only makes sense if the fare is much cheaper. Inside San Marino itself there’s just a grass strip for light aircraft and helicopters at Torraccia, with no passenger flights.

By rail, as far as Rimini and no further

San Marino did have a railway. The narrow-gauge line to Rimini opened in 1932 and stopped running in July 1944, after the wartime bombing. The government is studying a longer tourist stretch, but that’s a plan, not a service. If you’re touring Italy by train, get off at Rimini. The town deserves a few hours of its own, and I cover it in my guide to Rimini.

Driving, the SS72 and a border you won’t notice

From the A14 motorway between Bologna and Ancona, leave at Rimini Sud and follow the SS72 dual carriageway up to the Città, about 22 km. You pay the motorway toll at the A14 exit. I haven’t found an official line saying the SS72 itself is free, though it’s a state road, so I won’t promise it. You cross into San Marino at Dogana under a welcome arch, with no checks and no customs post.

The UK government adds two things for drivers. You need your UK licence and the 1968 international driving permit, and the permit can’t be bought outside the UK. At the top, only permit holders can drive into the old town, so you’ll leave the car below. What’s known about the car parks is in my page on parking in San Marino.

Sort these before you leave

Your passport, with enough validity for Schengen rules and an Italian entry stamp. Nobody stamps anything at the San Marino line, and the souvenir version is explained in how to get the San Marino passport stamp. A plan for your phone, because EU roaming rules stop at the San Marino line, as I explain in using your phone in San Marino. And your bus ticket bought online, since Bonelli recommends booking and a ticket guarantees you a place on that departure, not a seat.