Gentle Geneva

Gentle Geneva

Geneva may be synonymous with international diplomacy, finance and a high standard of living, but this French-speaking, cosmopolitan city has much more to offer the visitor than politics and money.

Gentle Geneva

Geneva may be synonymous with international diplomacy, finance and a high standard of living, but this French-speaking, cosmopolitan city has much more to offer the visitor than politics and money.

Geneva sits on the south-western end of Lake Geneva, or Lac Laman as it’s called in French, where the lake flows into the Rhene River. It is surrounded by two mountain chains, the Alps and the Jura, and on a good day Mont Blanc can be seen from the city centre. At the end of virtually every street you’ll see a peak or the lake.

Daxis cafe live geneva
Café society (Image: Flickr/Daxis)

Geneva first appears in history as a Roman border town, fortified against the Celtic tribe Helvetii in 121 BC. Today, with a population of under 200,000, its Old Town (the Vieille Ville) is surrounded by a compact modern city, with an opera house, luxury boutiques, banks and international organisations (the UN’s European HQ among them).

Not short on culture, philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born there (in 1712), writer Voltaire had an estate there, it was the home of Calvinism and one of the great centres of the Protestant Reformation. The Red Cross was formed there by Henry Dunant (1863) and the city has featured in numerous books and films. Sophia Loren lives there and even Astérix got there, in a tale involving an edelweiss and a lot of plum brandy.

On Lac Léman (Image: Flickr/eGuide_Travel)

The Victorians enjoyed going there because it was so civilized with its fresh air, rippling lake and snow-capped mountains. The Duke of Brunswick, whose mother was Britain’s Princess Augusta, liked it so much a monument to him similar to the Albert Memorial in Hyde Park was erected there. On a less happy Royal note, Empress “Sissi” of Austria was assassinated at the lakeside in 1898.

Geneva is a good landfall for an eventful long weekend, with its airport just 15 minutes from the city centre.

On one day you could go to the pretty market town of Nyon and take the small tickety-tak train up the foothills of the Jura and hike through forest paths (in winter — hire snow shoes) or, much more relaxingly, have a leisurely fondue or a raclette at La Givrine, a chalet eaterie there.

eGuide Travel
The Jet d’Eau (Image: Flickr/eGuide_Travel)

On another day you could visit the Old Town: walk across Mont Blanc bridge or catch a yellow mouette boat across the water, narrowly missing being drenched by the Jet d’Eau, once a pressure release for hydro-power, now a permanent 140m plume of water and a Geneva landmark. A favourite restaurant in the Old Town, Brasserie-Restaurant de l’Hôtel-de-Ville, serves a fine Swiss menu.

You could also take a train south-west into the wine growing area and come back by péniche (barge) along the river through lush nature sanctuaries. Or go round the lake in a paddle steamer built a hundred years ago. You might also visit Carouge, a separate town 15 minutes away with its preserved 18th century streets. And to help offset the cost, hotels and hostels provide a free daily travel pass for guests.

Take the train through France to Geneva. It’s a lovely ride of about six hours from London.

Lac Léman water taxi (Image: Flickr/eGuide Travel)