A weekend in December spend in Geneva
"The best education I have ever received was through travel." Lisa Ling
This friday 8th of December 2017, my husband & I flew to Geneva in Switzerland to spend the weekend. He bought me this trip as a present a few months ago, and as always I was so excited! I hadn't been to Switzerland before, which also meant that I could add a new country to my list. So today my count says 31 countries in total. We traveled with EasyJet from Copenhagen Airport and the trip lasted for less than 2 hours.
When we arrived at the airport in Geneva, we experienced something chocking. in all the cities and countries I've been to, the ride from the airport to the city is the most expensive ride- and thats the funny part. I dont know If its because Switzerland is the richest country in the world, or what the reason could be- but when you arrive in Geneva, you get to pick up a ticket that last for 80 minutes, for free. Yes, free! So you can basically get from the airport by bus and train and not pay a single dollar.
FACTS
Currency: Swiss Franc
Adapter: Be aware that if you're traveling from outside of Europe you will need an adapter for your electronic devices.
Citizens: Around 200 thousand people live in Geneva
Language: German, French & Italian
DANSK VERSION I BUNDEN
Transportation
As I mentioned above, the transportation from the airport to the city is free. When we arrived at the hotel, we recieved to transportation tickets by the hotel assistant. The tickets gives you access take just about any bus, train, tram and even boat to cross the lake for free.
Yes, again - obviously all transportation for tourists in Geneva is free. We took the boat several times from one end of the Lake to the other. Its a 7 minute ride and gives you the opportunity to get off at two different stops while it also gives you a beautiful view of the famous water fountain jet d'Eau and the beautiful mountains.
Where to stay?
We took the bus from the airport, for approximately 15 min and got off at the central station, Corniva. We were about to figure out the location of our hotel and In between worriying about whether we had to walk a long distance or get lost, right there just a few steps from the main station, I saw the hotel - Ibis style. You probably know it from other cities because it is a large hotel chain.
The check in was an easy process, and we quickly got the keys to our room on 3rd floor. Nice, big, trendy and clean! We had a nice breakfast included and the breakfast area was modern furnished. As If that wasnt enough, the hotel was located 5 min from Lake Geneva and 15 minutes walk from all the shopping streets, restaurants and if you come in December, a little christmas as well.
The hotel good service and they offer services such as luggage storage, umbrellas for rainy days and they even give you your breakfast to go, if your check out is earlier than breakfast time!
Where to eat?
Switzerland is known for being pricy - but it is not impossible to find affordable food. The big chain Vapiano, that serves delicious italian food is less than a 10 minute walk from the hotel, and among others, we tried a lebanese restaurant named Parfums de Beyrouth. One of the best shawarmas I've ever had, and believe me - I've tried a lot! They're open til 6 am on weekends. Not far from Parfums de Beyrouth we found a cozy Shisha cafe, that serves shishas, drinks and food. Chez Leyla is the name and it's absolutely recommendable!
And of course there's a Starbucks located on every corner. The famous Ladure for french macarons and delicious dessert is located right by Geneva lake.
So you wont go hungry to bed.
DANSK VERSION
____________________________________
En december weekend i Geneve
Fredag den 8. december 2017 fløj min mand og jeg til Genève i Schweiz for at tilbringe weekenden. Han købte mig denne tur i gave, nogle måneder tilbage, og som altid var jeg så begejstret og spændt! Jeg havde ikke været i Schweiz før, hvilket også betød, at jeg kunne tilføje et nyt land til min liste. Så i dag siger min optælling 31 lande i alt. Vi fløh med EasyJet fra Københavns Lufthavn, og turen tog knap to timer.
Da vi ankom til lufthavnen i Genève oplevede vi noget ret så overraskende. I alle de byer og lande, jeg har besøgt, er tog/busturen fra lufthavnen ind til centrum den dyreste tur - og det er den sjove del. Jeg ved ikke, om det er fordi Schweiz er det rigeste land i verden, eller hvad årsagen ellers kunne være - men i hvert fald, når du ankommer til Genève, kan du i lufthavnen trække en gratis billet, som er gyldig i 80 minutter. Ja, gratis! Så du kan dybest set komme fra lufthavnen med bus og tog helt omkostningsfrit.
Transport
Som jeg nævnte ovenfor er transporten fra lufthavnen til byen gratis. Da vi ankom til hotellet, modtog vi transportkort af hotelassistenten. De giver dig adgang til næsten al transport herunder bus, tog, sporvogn og endda båd til at krydse Geneve søen gratis.
Ja, igen - Alle transportmidler i Geneve er gratis for turister. Vi tog båden flere gange fra den ene ende af søen til den anden. Det er en kort 7 minutters tur og giver dig mulighed for at komme afsted ved to forskellige stop, samtidig giver det også en smuk udsigt over den berømte vandfontæne Jet d'Eau og de smukke bjerge.
Hvor skal man bo?
Vi tog bussen fra lufthavnen i ca. 15 min. Og ankom på hovedbanegården, Corniva. Vi var ved at finde ud af placeringen af vores hotel og ind imellem bekymringen om at skulle gåvi skulle gå en lang afstand eller fare vild, lige der kun få skridt fra centralstationen, lå hotellet - Ibis Style. Du kender det muligvis fra andre byer, da det er en stor international hotelkæde.
Indcheckningen på hotellet var en kort og nem proces, og vi fik hurtigt nøglerne til vores værelse på tredje sal. Pænt, trendy og rent. Vi havde en god morgenmad inkluderet og morgenmadsområdet var indrettet ret moderne. Ovenpå en lækker hoteloplevelse, var hotellet placeret 5 min fra Geneve søen og 15 minutters gang fra alle shoppinggaderne, restauranterne og hvis du kommer i december, et lille julemarked.
Alt i alt har hotellet super god service og tilbyder tjenester såsom bagageopbevaring, paraplyer til regnfulde dage og muligheden for at få din morgenmad to-go, hvis du checker ud inden morgenmad serveres.
Restauranter
Schweiz er kendt for at være rimelig pricy - men det er ikke umuligt at finde mad til overkommelige priser. Den store kæde Vapiano, der serverer lækker italiensk mad, ligger mindre end 10 minutters gang fra hotellet. Vi prøvede blandt andet også en libanesisk restaurant ved navn Parfums de Beyrouth. En af de bedste shawarmas jeg nogensinde har smagt, og tro mig - jeg har prøvet mange! De har åbent til 6 om morgenen i weekenden.
Ikke langt fra Parfums de Beyrouth fandt vi en hyggelig vandpibecafe, der udover vandpibe serverer, forskellige drikkevarer og mad. Chez Leyla er navnet og er et super hyggeligt sted! Selvfølgelig er der også en Starbucks placeret på hvert hjørne.
Den berømte Ladure-kæde for franske makaroner og lækker dessert ligger lige ved Genèvesøen.
Så der er forskellige ting at vælge imellem og du går ikke sulten i seng.