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Arrival and Information
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The main
train station
, Gare de Cornavin, lies at the head of Rue du Mont-Blanc in the city centre. Expresses from Paris and Lyon arrive in a separate French section (passport control), but local French trains from Annecy/Chamonix terminate at Gare des Eaux-Vives on the east side of town (tram #12 or #16 into the centre). From the
airport
, 5km northwest, trains and bus #10 run regularly into the city. The international
bus station
is on Place Dorciere in the centre. The
tourist office
is in the main post office at 18 Rue du Mont-Blanc (Mon-Sat 9am-6pm; tel 022/909 70 00,
www.geneva-tourism.ch
); pick up the weekly
listings
magazine
Geneve Agenda
, and the excellent
Info-Jeunes
brochure, geared towards budget travellers. There's also an information office on the Pont de la Machine (Mon noon-6pm, Tues-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 10am-5pm; tel 022/311 99 70,
www.ville-ge.ch
), and a CAR info-bus parked at the Mont-Blanc exit of the train station (mid-June to early Sept daily 9am-11pm; tel 022/731 46 47). There are dozens of city
tours
, including self-guided strolls by Walkman (deposit Sfr50), guided walks (Sfr12; mostly June-Oct), and scenic boat trips (lake cruises from Sfr11; downriver journey Sfr22). Local
trams
and
buses
cost Sfr2.20 (1hr) or Sfr5 (24hr).
Geneva has plenty of budget
accommodation
- ask at the tourist office about cut-price multi-night deals. Their brochure
Info-Jeunes
lists 21
hostels
, eight of them women-only, including the popular
Home St-Pierre
, 4 Cour St-Pierre (beside the cathedral), which now has one dorm for men (tel 022/310 37 07; ?10-15/$16-24). The bustling HI hostel, 30 Rue Rothschild (tel 022/732 62 60,
www.yh-geneva.ch
; ?10-15/$16-24), is spotless, as is the SB
City Hostel
, 2 Rue Ferrier (tel 022/901 15 00,
www.cityhostel.ch
; ?10-15/$16-24).
Cite Universitaire
, 46 Avenue Miremont (tel 022/839 22 22,
www.unige.ch/cite-uni
; ?10-15/$16-24), has dorms and cut-price rooms. Of cheaper
hotels
,
De la Cloche
, 6 Rue de la Cloche (tel 022/732 94 81,
www.smpage.ch/cloche
; ?20-25/$32-40), and
St Victor
, 1 Rue Francois-LeFort (tel 022/346 17 18; ?20-25/$32-40), are quiet and characterful. Best
campsite
is
Camping d'Hermance
(tel 022/751 14 83; closed Oct-March; bus #E), 14km northeast, just before the French frontier - with free lake access. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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Switzerland,
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