What we love in Geneva is this urban nature. A walk along the lake, a ride on a boat, and then a café on a terrace in the Old Town. The Rhône crossed the city, saying hi to the building with its crystal-clear water. Welcome to Geneva!
The symbol of the world’s smallest metropolis is the “Jet d’eau” – a fountain with a 140-meter-high water jet at the periphery of Lake Geneva. Most of the large hotels and many restaurants are situated on the right-hand shore of the lake. The old town, with the shopping and business quarter, holds sway over the left-hand shore. It is dominated by St. Peter’s Cathedral. However, the actual center of the old town is the Place du Bourg-de-Four, which is the oldest square in the city.
The quays, lakeside promenades, countless parks, lively side streets in the old town, and elegant shops invite guests to stroll. One of the best-maintained streets is the Grand Rue, where Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born. The mouettes, a type of water taxi, enable crossings to be made from one lakeshore to the other, while larger vessels invite visitors to enjoy cruises on Lake Geneva.
Geneva is Switzerland’s most international city, as it is where the European seat of the UNO is based. Even the International Red Cross directs its humanitarian campaigns from here. Besides being a congress city, Geneva is also a center for culture and history, as well as for trade fairs and exhibitions. The “Horloge Fleuri,” the large flower clock in the “Jardin Anglais” (English Garden), is a world-renowned symbol of the Geneva watch industry.
Culturally, this city on the westernmost fringe of Switzerland has much to offer. International artists perform in the Grand Théâtre and Geneva Opera House, and an extremely diverse range of museums, such as the “Musée international de l’horlogerie”, a watch museum with a collection of jewelry watches and musical clocks, and the International Museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, which provides an insight into the work of these humanitarian organizations, invite city guests to visit them.
A rewarding excursion destination is Mont Salève, which is situated in neighboring France. The cableway lifts visitors to an altitude of 1100 meters in less than five minutes, giving rise to outstanding vistas across the city of Geneva, Lake Geneva, the Jura, and Montblanc. Geneva lies idyllically between Alpine peaks and vineyards on the largest lake in Western Europe.