Geneva is a beautiful, leading European city with plenty to offer the discerning traveller. In Switzerland, the language tends to change depending on where you are between French, German and Italian, and you will find that in Geneva French is largely used and most places have French names, although English is pretty commonly spoken by the people too.
One of the things Geneva is most famous for is of course CERN, the world’s largest research centre for particle physics.
It is also a home to the LHC (Large Hadron Collider), which has been a source of much controversy and fascination over the few years it has been actively used to conduct experiments that try and recreate the conditions instantly after the big bang.
You can take a tour of the facilities at CERN, and this is rated as one of the best things to do in Geneva, but you will need to book well in advance.
Lake Geneva Night Scene, Geneva, Switzerland
Geneva is also famous for the UNOG – Palais des Nations, where the UN sits. You can take a tour of these impressive buildings, or simply admire them from the outside.
If you like history, you can find plenty to interest you here, from the Reformation Wall through to the historic old town with its beautifully preserved town square.
There are also plenty of old religious sites as well as museums covering everything from art to Swiss history and science.
Notre-Dame basilica in Geneva, Switzerland
Geneva is a great place to shop and socialise too, with world class restaurants and bars as well as fantastic shopping opportunities.
Another must see is Lake Geneva itself, which is a beautiful freshwater lake that empties into the river Rhone and is flanked in places by beaches.