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Grand Genève

Grand Genève

The bay, the parks and the beaches, all within tram reach

Activities
110
Towns
28
Altitude
370 à 520 m

The Swiss side of the Grand Genève is a city sitting at the tip of the lake, ringed by communes running from Versoix to Hermance and from Meyrin to Veyrier. For families, the appeal is how much fits into a small area: twenty minutes on a tram or on the Léman Express takes you from a shaded playground to a public beach. Bois-de-la-Bâtie, Parc La Grange and Parc Bertrand cover most outdoor plans, with paddling pools in summer and wide open lawns the rest of the year. On the water, Plage des Eaux-Vives, the Vengeron in Bellevue and the Bécassine in Versoix are all reachable without a car. When it rains, neighbourhood cinemas such as the Cinémas du Grütli or Les Scala run screenings for young audiences. This is a place where you can improvise, which is exactly what you need with children.

Grand Genève

Family activities in Grand Genève

Everything to do with your kids in the region. Tell us the constraint of the day and we will show you what fits.

Illustration of the Alpine Botanical Garden of Meyrin

Meyrin

Alpine Botanical Garden of Meyrin: a playground amidst flowers and animals

3-12 yrs Free
Illustration of the Boulodrome Park in Carouge, playground and pump track

Carouge

Parc du Boulodrome: the large sports playground of Carouge

4-14 yrs Free
Illustration of the playground and wading pool at Parc Bertrand in Geneva

Geneva

Play area of Parc Bertrand: wading pool and large games in Champel

1-12 yrs Free
Illustration of the playground and wading pool at Parc Trembley in Geneva

Geneva

Play area of Parc Trembley: playground and wading pool at Petit-Saconnex

1-12 yrs Free
Illustration of the playground at Parc La Grange in Geneva, wading pool and rose garden

Geneva

Playground of Parc La Grange: play in the heart of the most beautiful park in Geneva

1-12 yrs Free
Illustration of the playground at Parc des Evaux in Onex, playground and small train

Onex

Playground of Parc des Evaux: 50 hectares of play and nature in Onex

2-14 yrs Free
Illustration of the playground at Parc des Bastions in Geneva, giant chessboard

Geneva

Playground of the Parc des Bastions: climb, slide, and play giant chess in the heart of Geneva

2-12 yrs Free
Illustration of the playground at Bois-de-la-Bâtie in Geneva

Geneva

Bois-de-la-Bâtie playground: the largest play area in Geneva

1-12 yrs Free
Illustration de la facade des Cinemas du Grutli a Geneve, panneaux d affiches lumineux et tram au crepuscule

Geneva

Les Cinémas du Grütli in Geneva: the young-audience cinema from age 4

4-16 yrs Indoor

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Plan the family outing

Getting there, weather, ages, budget: the answers before you go.

Getting there

The Léman Express serves Genève-Cornavin, Lancy-Pont-Rouge, Genève-Eaux-Vives and Chêne-Bourg, and runs up the right bank as far as Coppet. The Geneva to Lausanne main line stops at Genthod-Bellevue, Versoix and Céligny. In town, tpg trams and the Mouettes genevoises, the small boats that cross the bay in a few minutes, cover nearly everything else. By car, the Vernier, Meyrin and Genève-Lac motorway exits open onto the wider area.

Good to know: on Saturdays, aim for a park and ride (Bernex, Bachet, Sous-Moulin in Thônex) and finish the trip by tram. It costs less than a city-centre car park and saves half an hour of circling.

With toddlers

Parc des Bastions works from end to end with a pushchair, with wide paths, play equipment and giant chess boards that keep older siblings busy too. Parc Trembley in Petit-Saconnex and Parc Bertrand in Champel open their paddling pools in summer, shallow and supervised. The alpine botanical garden in Meyrin combines a playground, flowers and animals on flat, enclosed ground, which is ideal before the age of three. For swimming, the Reposoir beach in Pregny-Chambésy and the Bécassine in Versoix both have a large lawn for your bags and a gentle slope into the water.

The local classics

Bois-de-la-Bâtie is still the biggest playground in the canton and pairs well with the free animal park next door. A pedal boat on the bay, facing the Jet d'eau, fills an hour and often ends up as the best memory of the day. Parc des Evaux in Onex, fifty hectares of play areas and meadows, easily absorbs a whole afternoon for nothing. In Carouge, the Boulodrome park extends a walk through the old streets, and Pointe-à-la-Bise in Collonge-Bellerive combines a swim with a nature reserve.

Frequently asked questions

How do we get to a beach in Geneva without a car?
Plage des Eaux-Vives is walkable or a short tram ride from the centre, and the Mouettes genevoises boats shorten the trip from the right bank. The beach at Parc de la Bécassine in Versoix is a few minutes from the railway station. The Vengeron in Bellevue and the Reposoir in Pregny-Chambésy need a bus plus a short walk, but both are free.
What can we do in Geneva with kids when it rains?
The Cinémas du Grütli run screenings for children from the age of four, with short films suited to a first trip to the cinema. Les Scala in Eaux-Vives, Le City and Le Nord-Sud in Servette round out the neighbourhood options, usually cheaper and calmer than a multiplex. As a fallback, the covered play areas in shopping centres will get you through a late afternoon.
Which free outings work with kids in Geneva?
Every public beach in the canton is free, and so is the small animal park at Bois-de-la-Bâtie. The playgrounds in Parc Bertrand, Parc Trembley, Parc La Grange and Parc des Bastions cost nothing and are open year round. Parc des Evaux in Onex, fifty hectares of it, lets you spend a full day outdoors without opening your wallet.

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