Genève Genève

Ah Geneva - one of the most liveable cities in the world is treating its already spoiled residents to a free, five-day extravaganza of music, art, culture and performances.

Genève Genève

Over five days, on six different stages around town, Geneva brings you the best the city and canton has to offer. Rather than attracting international acts to lay on entertainment, this festival is all about appreciating what is right under your nose. Local bands and artists will be putting on concerts while local restaurateurs will be serving up tasty local treats.

When you have so many amazing, creative and innovative people on your doorstep, you don't need anything else!

What is on at Genève Genève?

There is so much happening over these five days. There are over 380 artists of all kinds taking part! Here's a sense of what you can expect.

Concerts

There is plenty of music happening during the festival. From pop to rock to rap to funk to electronic to classical, it's all here!

One highlight is the Concert on the Water with the Geneva Chamber Orchestra, where Plage des Eaux-Vives becomes a living room for listening to innovative classical music as the chamber orchestra sets sail.  

Performances and shows

Would you get your hair cut by a child? That's one thing being offered at the festival! Under the watchful gaze of qualified hairdressers, 10 and 11-year-olds will cut and style brave volunteers' hair for free.

There is also the Sound of Geneva, where the little tourist train that usually takes people around town, instead brings bands to you! New musicians who are just starting out will ride the train around town, playing as they go. Catch them at the regular stops, or hop on the train and listen as you go!

If you want to ride the Ferris wheel, be ready to have your tissues to hand. At set times during the festival, you can board with a senior citizen of Geneva who will tell you the most romantic story from their life.

There is also a circus that is gradually sinking under water, but the star of the festival is Elements, a modern opera on the lake. Utilising both the Geneva Chamber Orchestra and modern electronic beats and adding one amazing Ukrainian soprano in the shape of Anna Slizinova, this unique piece of music is paired with an incredible light show on and over the lake, with lasers and drones.

Wellbeing and activities

Sometimes you just need to stop for a moment and take a breath. At Genève Genève, there are plenty of opportunities to do just that. From the holistic, rejuvenating techniques of Kundalini yoga mixed with dance, to dawn "lying down" concerts, where you just lay there and take in the music being played, there's always space for some downtime.

And when you feel you might have been overindulging, and you might need a bit of fitness, there's morning Pilates, or Afro-dance, a gentle and fun cardio workout.

Other ways to join in, rather than just watch are with the disguised crossing, where you can join other stand-up paddle boarders to cross the harbour - but you all have to be in fancy dress! There will also be soap-box car racing down Avenue de France and a roller-skate party!

Attending Genève Genève

This whole festival is totally free to enjoy, which already makes us like Geneva even more than we did!

It takes place at six main locations around the lake: Pont de la Machine, Quai Général-Guisan, Plage des Eaux-Vives, Jardin Anglais, Quai Gustave-Ador and Rotonde du Mont-Blanc, all of which are very central. The train station in Geneva is in the centre of town, just a 10-minute walk from the harbour, and there is excellent public transport around town should you not wish to walk all day.

You can explore the whole programme on the Genève Genève website, so take a look and start getting excited!