Geneva is an elegant French-speaking city in Switzerland nestled on the southwestern tip of Lake Geneva, a sort of crescent, which contains it entirely, protects it, and enhances it. Its geographical profile is shaped by morainic hills, stirred by the waters of the Lake and a very lively Rhône.
1 Geneva at a glance
At first glance, it appears to the tourist as an overly composite puzzle, not easy to understand, with all those chasing streets, bridges, passages and underpasses, parks, boulevards, dizzying water jets on the lake, glass and air-conditioned buildings, hypermodern neighborhoods and monuments.
A whirlwind of styles, characters, moods and atmospheres that, if savored little by little, however make it possible to understand how unique this city is, which now belongs to the whole world.
Geneva places of interest
2 International District
Meeting point of a thousand cultures, languages, and traditions, Geneva is known as the city of institutions and international organizations, of the UN, the WTO, the Red Cross, and the Crescent, the World Health Organization. It is the city of diplomacy, of a culture of meeting palpable in every expression. And that’s not all, because Geneva is also the city of major fairs (who hasn’t heard of the International Motor Show?), exhibitions, important conferences; of high finance and very advanced industry; of a strongly ethical and Calvinist capitalism.
3 Geneva, Old Town
From an urbanistic point of view, Geneva is practically three cities in one: the Old Town or Vieille Geneve, nestled on a gentle hill south of Lake Geneva. You can start from the Pont du Mont Blanc, the first of the eight bridges connecting the banks of the Rhône at the lake’s outlet. Worth visiting is l’Ile Rousseau, a polygonal islet covered by a garden, with the statue that Geneva dedicates to the philosopher and thinker, its illustrious citizen; the remains of the Tour, with the plaque that commemorates Julius Caesar’s passage in 58 BC. We recommend diving into the suggestive maze of low medieval streets, savoring the Romanesque-Gothic lines of the Cathedral or the late Renaissance ones of the splendid Hotel de Ville.
4 Geneva Cathedral
The Cathedral of St. Peter, located atop the old town, is one of the most interesting places in Geneva. The style of the church ranges from Gothic, to Romanesque, to Neoclassical architecture. The cathedral hosts Protestant rites and is the city’s most important place of worship. The church was the city’s cathedral from the late 4th century until 1535, the year of the Protestant Reformation. From the north tower of the three-nave building in Geneva’s historic center, there is a beautiful view of the city and the lake.
5 Reformers’ Wall
The International Monument to the Reformation, also known as The Reformers’ Wall, is a monument located inside the Parc des Bastions in Geneva. The great figures of the Reformation are represented in the form of gigantic statues and bas-reliefs. At the center stand John Calvin, William Farel, Theodore Beza, and John Knox. On the sides are personalities who spread the Reformation in Europe. It is a symbolic place of the city, worth a visit.
6 Right Bank, Palace of the United Nations
The Right Bank, the right bank of Geneva is dotted with the palaces of diplomacy and international organizations: the Palace of the United Nations, in whose courtyard stands the famous Armillary Sphere, a work by the sculptor Paul Manship; here is also the International Museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent and many others, from lush parks and gardens (Parc Mon Repos or the pharaonic Botanical Garden), luxury hotels, and representative palaces.
7 Rive Gauche, Museum of Ancient Art and History
The Rive Gauche, the left bank, on the other hand, is full of banks, commercial and financial institutions, watchmakers, and jewelers. Here are also located the University, the Museum of Ancient Art and History, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Baur Collection dedicated to Oriental art.
8 Geneva, Jet d’eau
This is where you can admire the famous jet d’eau, the water jet about 140 meters high operating from March to October. The jet d’eau has become the symbol of Geneva over time. It was originally built as a pressure relief valve for the water supply pipe of the jewelers’ machinery. However, by the end of the 19th century, the decision was made to raise and illuminate the jet d’eau. 500 liters of lake water now shoot upwards every second at almost 200 km/h. The water jet, weighing over five tons, is thus constantly in the air. A must-see place of interest in Geneva.
