Geneva Switzerland Trip Report

24 April 2024By Brett

What’s better than impromptu trip to Geneva Switzerland?! I drove down to Geneva to visit a friend who was flying in for work so I decided to make the 6 hour trip down there and here’s what you can expect from a quick weekend trip in this lake-side city! You can also check out my trip report to Lucerne last year if you want to see the other side of the country!

Getting There

There are several options to get there. I have taken the Germany ICE train and Swiss train to Switzerland before but this time I decided to drive. I have a sports car so I try to get on the autobahn in the spring as much as I can!

You will need a physical vignette card for your car or an e-vignette. I purchased my e-vignette before getting to Switzerland. I purchase from this website. There are several third party websites that seem to allow you to buy e-vignette but I went to the Swiss website then followed their official link. Finally, you can buy physical vignettes at gas stations along the border before getting to Switzerland.

Where to Stay

I stayed in an airbnb near Plainpalais in central Geneva. It was a good spot to be because we were right next to several tram lines and it was convenient to walk and take the dog out in the park. We did park in the Plainpalais parking garage and it was 24CHF per day. It was great for downtown parking in a big city. The whole city felt very accessible. I had to drive through town on the way out and traffic wasn’t unbearable and crazy busy. It was pretty easy to even drive through town.

Getting Around

There are tons of options to get around in Geneva. There are tons of bike and tram lanes and if you bring your bike you’ll be more than welcomed! I didn’t see any rental bike stations but doesn’t mean they’re not out there.

a cafe setting with flowers and outdoor sitting with cobblestones all around
The fondue cafe where we had dinner at!
a geyser looking jet shooting up in lake Geneva with blue water all around
The Geneva Jet.
a giant wooden chair with a broken leg outside the UN in Geneva symbolizing civilian casualties of war
The Broken Chair monument near the UN in Geneva.
a small bust in a grassy and flowery area of Gustave odor in Geneva
The bust of Gustave Ador in the Geneva park.
an ornate monument in Geneva dedicated to Brunswick
The Brunswick Monument in Geneva
a wooden dinghy sail boat moored to the shore of lake Geneva
The Geneva Neptune sailboat.

My main method was the Geneva tram. The Geneva tpg operates most of the public transit methods to include tram and bus. I used the day pass for 8CHF per person and it allows both bus and tram usage. You can also buy individual stop tickets if you want to bring the price down to match exactly what lines you’re using.

Remember, the Geneva tram uses a zone system so make sure you know where you’re going and if it’s in the right zone for your day pass which only allows the central core zone.

Lucerne Switzerland Trip

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