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| City Guide - Geneva - Key Attractions | ||
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Key Attractions Cathédrale St-Pierre Built between 1160 and 1289, St Peter's Cathedral is surprisingly small, and even more surprising in its combination of Romanesque, Gothic, and Neo-classical styles. The austerity of the main body of the church is wholly appropriate for a building in which Calvin once preached; but the Maccabean chapel is a riot of gilded embellishment against blue and red grounds that recall the decoration of Cardiff Castle and Castell Coch by William Burges. Under the cathedral is one of Europe's largest underground archaeological sites, while the top of the tower offers fine views over the old town and lake. Cour St-Pierre Tel: (022) 310 2929. Fax: (022) 310 0225. Transport: Bus 2, 3, 5, 7 or 17; tram 12 or 16. Opening hours: Mon-Sat Oct-May 1000-1200 and 1400-1700, Sun 1100-1230 and 1330-1700; Jun to Sep 0900-1900 and Sun 1100-1900. Admission: Free. Large Electron Positron Collider The world's largest scientific instrument straddles the border between Switzerland and France just outside Geneva. Operated by CERN, the instrument lies in a 27km (17 miles) long tunnel - the circumference of London's Circle Line. It is used to study the outcome of high speed collision between constituent parts of atoms, mimicking for a split second the state of the universe at the moment of its creation. The exhibition explains how articles are accelerated to near the speed of light and what has been learnt from over a decade of experiments. Tel: (022) 767 4052. Transport: Bus 15. Opening hours: Mon-Sat 0900-1700. Admission: Free. Jardin Anglais The English Garden, dating from 1854, is home to the Monument National, a statue of two young women - the 'Republic of Geneva' and 'Helvetia' - symbolising Geneva's attachment to the Swiss Confederation on 12 September 1814. Within the park there is an elegant bronze fountain and L'Horloge Fleurie (Flower Clock) - decorated with over 6300 plants - which was installed in 1955 to honour Geneva's watchmaking industry. The clock is the largest in the world - five metres (16.4ft) in diameter and 17.7m (58ft) in circumference; its second hand advances nearly 27cm (10.6 inches) per second. Jardin Anglais, Quai Général Guisan Transport: Bus 2, 9 or 10. Opening hours: Daily 24 hours. Admission: Free. Jet d'Eau The famed Water Fountain is the Eiffel Tower of Geneva, an impressive 140m (459ft) fountain that dominates the Geneva harbour and all modern depictions of the city. When the sun shines, a rainbow hovers behind the powerful jet of water, which spurts straight up into the sky at a speed of 200kph (125mph). Operating hours: Mar-mid-Oct 0930-2315 (subject to weather conditions) (illuminated after sunset). Mur des Réformateurs Construction of the Reformation Wall began in 1909, on the 400th anniversary of the birth of John Calvin. The monument is dedicated to the four figures central to the Reformation movement: John Calvin (1509-64), Théodore de Bèze (1513-1605), John Knox (1513-72) and Guillaume Farel (1549-65). Promenade des Bastions Transport: Bus 3 or 5. Opening hours: Dawn to dusk. Jardin Botanique Geneva's world-renowned Botanical Gardens were created in 1817 in the Parc des Bastions by the botanist A P de Candolle. Relocated to their present site in 1901, the 28-hectare (69-acre) gardens have greenhouses with tropical plants from six continents, a pond brimming with aquatic plants, thousands of flowers, a garden of the senses, an aviary and a park of rare animals, as well as a research laboratory, herbarium collection and extensive library. Chemin de l'Impératrice 1, 1292 Chambésy Tel: (022) 418 5100. Fax: (022) 418 5101. Website: www.cjb.unige.ch Transport: Bus 4 or 18. Opening hours: Daily Oct-Mar 0930-1700; Apr-Sep 0800-1930. Greenhouses Closed Fri. Admission: Free. Palais des Nations (Palace of Nations) The vast building, designed in the form of a double horseshoe and set in a park with century-old trees, is the largest United Nations centre after New York. It was built between 1929 and 1937 to host the League of Nations, the precursor to the UN. Visits are extremely popular and allow entrance to certain conference rooms, including the Council Room (with frescoes by José Maria Sert) and the Assembly Hall, and an opportunity to sign the Livre d'Or, the golden book of peace. Palais des Nations Avenue de la Paix 14 Tel: (022) 907 4896. Fax: (022) 907 0032. E-mail: visit-gva@unog.ch Transport: Bus 5, 8, 11, 14, 18, F, V or Z. Opening hours: Apr-Jun, Sep-Oct, daily 1000-1200 and 1400-1600; Jul-Aug, daily 1000-1700; Nov-Mar, Mon-Fri 1000-1200 and 1400-1600. Admission: SFr8.50. Musée de l'Horlogerie et de l'Emaillerie (Clock and Watch Museum) Set in an attractive town house, this museum traces the development of Genevois clock-making, which began in the seventeenth century and reached its height in 1785. Of particular interest is the watch owned and made by Jean-Jacques Rousseau's grandfather, in the form of a skull which splits in half to reveal the time, and an astronomic automated clock made in 1711. Route de Malagnou 15 Tel: (022) 418 6470. Fax: (022) 418 6471. Transport: Bus 1, 6, 8 or 88; tram 12 or 16. Opening hours: Wed-Mon 1000-1700. Admission: Free. MAMCO (Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art) Situated in a factory, the museum extends over four floors, best visited from top to bottom. One of the permanent displays is L'Appartement, a faithful reproduction of a Parisian collector's flat, for which he has loaned his own furniture, paintings and sculptures. Rue des Vieux-Grenadiers 10 Transport: Bus 1 or 4 to Ecole-de-Médecine. Opening hours: Wed-Sun 1200-1800, Tues 1200-2100. Tel: (022) 320 6122. Fax: (022) 781 5681. Admission: SFr9. Musée International de la Croix-Rouge et du Croissant-Rouge The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum tells the story of the founding of the Red Cross by Henry Dunant and its present humanitarian actions, with a powerful combination of audiovisuals, sculpture and documentation. This is Geneva's most impressive and original museum. Avenue de la Paix 17 Tel: (022) 748 9511. Fax: (022) 748 9228. E-mail: admin@micr.ch Website: www.micr.ch Transport: Bus 8, F, V or Z. Opening hours: Wed-Mon 1000-1700. Admission: SFr10 (concessions available). Maison Tavel The one-towered Tavel House is named after the noble Tavel family, who lived here in the fourteenth century. Today a museum, it provides an insight into the day-to-day lives of Genevois from the fourteenth to nineteenth centuries. The attic houses a huge relief model of Geneva in 1850. Rue du Puits-St-Pierre 6 Tel: (022) 310 2900. Website: www.mah.vill-ge.ch Opening hours: Tues-Sun 1000-1700. Transport: Bus 3, 5 or 17; tram 12. Admission: Free. |
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