Fodor's Travel Talk Forums

Fodor's Travel Talk Forums (https://www.fodors.com/community/)
-   Europe (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/)
-   -   Train stations Geneva? (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/train-stations-geneva-625679/)

suze Jun 22nd, 2006 03:30 PM

Train stations Geneva?
 
I know the airport is Cointrin & downtown is Cornavin.

But the trains from Annecy arrive at "Eaux-Vives" station. What is the best way to get to the airport from that station? I researched online but find only trains with several transfers required or a combination of bus/walking/tram/walking.

Is it really that difficult? Is it close enough that to use a taxi might be practical?

Thank you, Suze

swandav2000 Jun 23rd, 2006 03:04 AM

Hi suze,

As best as I can recall, Geneva is very small. I took a taxi from the airport (yes yes not the brightest option!) to my hotel and it was very quick and not too expensive. But of course Eaux-Vives may be in a suburb and it may be a lot more --

If your friend is coming from Annecy, why not use the bus? The bus from Annecy comes into the very heart of town or to the airport (I discovered that the bus is the easiest way to get between Geneva & Annecy when trying to work out an excursion from Montreux).

Here's a link to the bus service:

http://212.203.98.98/WW70AWP/WW70AWP...828?DRAPEAU_EN

Or you can type in "www.gare-routier.com"

After you click on the flag for "English," go to the "Choose a schedule" drop down menu, and choose "Regular lines region bordercross" to get the Annecy schedules.

Be sure to click on "Where to find us" to get the map.

Best of luck!

s

Dukey Jun 23rd, 2006 03:39 AM

Try this link to the Geneva public transport..and look at the "city center" map which will show you the location and transport links from the Eaux-Vives station

http://www.tpg.ch/Internet+TPG/Anglais/Maps/defaut.htm

hopscotch Jun 23rd, 2006 03:40 AM


Gare des Eaux-Vives is on the east side of the city, about 5 miles from the airport. There is probably public transport available from Eaux-Vives. You could take a taxi to the airport or to Cornavin, about 2 miles from Eaux-Vives. There is a bus from Gare de Cornavin to the airport.

kappa Jun 23rd, 2006 03:42 AM

The bus is not that frequent (it's not like city bus but trans-border transportation) but if that meets your friends' need, yes. You will arrive at Gare Routière bus terminal which is locate between the Mont-Mlanc Bridge and Cornavin station. Then you can either a taxi direct to airport. Frankly that's the easiest considering the luggage. The taxi would cost about CHF 30, day rate. Or you can walk up to the station (3 min with no luggage). Discounting the train tickets x 2 = you would save only CHF 25.

Gare des Eaux-Vives is the station where only French local/slow trains arrive (no Swiss train - it's like arriving Basel from France. There is the border right after getting off the trai. Location of the station is in the Rive-Gauche, in the city center (as the name indicates, Le Parc des Eaux-Vives is nearby) but somehow inconvenient for tourists. Even I, living in Geneva since 23 years, have used this station only once so far.

"bus/walking/tram/walking" > walking part is like 1 min. In your place, I would simply take a taxi direct to the airport. That would cost an extra CHF 10 or so.

kappa Jun 23rd, 2006 03:46 AM

> The bus is not that frequent ..

I meant the bus between Annecy nad Geneva.

> There is probably public transport available from Eaux-Vives .

Hopscotch, I think suze already did it. That's how she got bus/walking/tram/walking thing, I think. Or she might did it on on Swiss railway site. If so, tpg (Transport Public Genevois) mentioned above might give a better/more detailed result.

kappa Jun 23rd, 2006 03:50 AM

And if you will be at Cornavin, take a train rather than bus. Every 20 min, and more space. You can take the train (only Cornavin-Cointrin line) with the city bus ticket (ca.CHF3 for 1 hour use incl.transit)

swandav2000 Jun 23rd, 2006 04:05 AM

Hi all,

kappa, that interregional bus also stops at the airport, so that would be the most convenient. The schedules are at the www.gare-routiere.com site --

s

kappa Jun 23rd, 2006 06:10 AM

> that interregional bus also stops at the airport ...

Ok, then they do it nowadays till airport. It used be only in winter for ski season that the Annecy bus goes till airport.

kappa Jun 23rd, 2006 06:15 AM

Looks like that's www.gare-routiere.ch not com.

suze Jun 23rd, 2006 06:24 AM

Thank you all so very much! I have always arrived Geneva by air and taken the train out to Vevey/Montreux, which was easy as can be.

This time I am helping a friend plan a few days she has unplanned at the end of a trip to Paris, then a river barge with friends.

I, of course, wanted to send her to Vevey(!), but she thought somewhere in France might be good until she flys home from Geneva... and a kind poster on another thread mentioned Annecy as a possibility.

I'll research the bus, thanks again, especially if she could be dropped at the airport direct. That would be perfect. Think I'd use a taxi, myself. But will pass this all on and let her decide.

merci beaucoup!

swandav2000 Jun 23rd, 2006 06:48 AM

Hi again kappa,

Did you try the gare-routiere.com and it didn't work? Both ".ch" and ".com" work from the US. It's weird -- I always forget the url and did a google, and the ".com" came up but not the ".ch" Oh well --

kappa, you can't imagine my jealousy at where you live!!

s

kappa Jun 23rd, 2006 07:20 AM

swandav, that's funny with com, I get the message "you are not autorized to open the page" , it doesn't say the URL is wrong or page does not exist.

I try google and get both ...com. and ...ch. but only ch works on my computer, hummm ....

Kappa from sunny but hot Geneva. That's ok, I will get away to Paris (surely it will be hot there too though) for La Fête de la Music tomorrow morning.

swandav2000 Jun 23rd, 2006 08:08 AM

kappa, hehhehhe, it's "cooling down" to 88F (31 C?) here in east TN today.

Enjoy Paris!

s

PalQ Jun 23rd, 2006 08:18 AM

A tram runs from the Eaux-Vives station area to Cornavin station for trains to the airport.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 03:52 PM.