Things to do in Geneva

Things to do

1. The Jet d’Eau and the harbor

   A hundred and forty meters high, and the lakeside promenade to the Bains des Pâquis. On Wikipedia (in French)

   RelaxationViewpoint1 hr 30 minFreebest in the afternoon

2. The old town and St. Pierre Cathedral

   Calvin’s pulpit, the cathedral towers and the longest wooden bench in the world. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Culture and historyMonument2 hr≈ €7best in the morning

3. CERN

   Renzo Piano’s Science Gateway, free, above the twenty-seven-kilometer accelerator. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Culture and historyMuseum3 hrFreebest in the afternoon

4. The Bains des Pâquis

   A 1930s jetty, a sauna in winter, and fondue served on the lake. On Wikipedia (in French)

   RelaxationBeach2 hr≈ €2best in the morning

5. The Salève cable car

   Eleven hundred meters above Geneva, the whole lake and Mont Blanc opposite. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Nature and sceneryViewpoint3 hr≈ €20best in the afternoon

6. The Palais des Nations

   The UN’s European headquarters, Barceló’s Human Rights Room, and the Broken Chair outside. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Culture and historyMonument1 hr 30 min≈ €15best in the morning

When to go

The most pleasant months in Geneva: from May to September, taking weather and crowds into account.

More ideas for those months: where to go in May, where to go in June, where to go in July, where to go in August, where to go in September.

Averages measured over recent years: mean temperatures and number of rainy days, month by month.

What budget on the ground?

Per person and per day, including accommodation, meals, local transport and visits — excluding the round trip. An estimate calculated the same way as in the app, from the local cost of living.

Budget

€115

Mid-range

€215

Comfort

€400

Getting there from Paris: the carbon footprint

Per person, round trip, in kilograms of CO₂ equivalent — manufacturing, energy and, for flights, contrails included.

Train

34 kg

Bus

38 kg

Plane

180 kg

By train rather than by plane: 150 kg less CO₂e per person (5 times less).

Factors from ADEME (Impact CO₂); outside France, rail uses the European average published by the European Environment Agency.

Book on the ground

Tours and tickets

• Go City Multi-attraction passes for big cities
• Klook Tours, tickets and excursions
• Tiqets Museums and monuments, skip-the-line tickets
• WeGoTrip Self-paced audio tours

Internet on site (eSIM)

• Airalo Data eSIM, by country or region
• Drimsim SIM card that works in almost every country
• Saily Data eSIM
• Yesim Data eSIM

From the airport

• GetTransfer Drivers make an offer for your ride
• Intui Private transfers at a fixed price
• Kiwitaxi Booked transfers, from taxi to minibus
• Welcome Pickups Driver waiting on arrival, price fixed in advance

Rent a car

• Auto Europe Rental comparison
• EconomyBookings Rental comparison
• GetRentacar Cars from rental companies and private owners
• Localrent Local rental companies, often no credit card needed

Partner links: if you book through them, Tripora may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you and without changing the order of these lists, which is alphabetical.

Good to know: Switzerland

Plugs

Type C, J, 230 V

Emergencies

112, 117 (police), 144 (ambulance), 118 (fire)

Driving

On the right

Near Geneva

• Annecy France, 34 km
• Montreux and the Vaud Riviera Switzerland, 64 km
• Chamonix and Mont Blanc France, 64 km
• Lyon France, 110 km
• Grenoble France, 120 km
• Zermatt Switzerland, 130 km

Elsewhere in Switzerland

• Basel
• Interlaken and the Bernese Oberland
• Lucerne
• Lugano
• Montreux and the Vaud Riviera
• St. Moritz and the Engadin
• Zermatt
• Zurich