DRIVING FROM GENEVA AIRPORT

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Note where the airport is in relation to the city and autoroutes (Swiss green, French blue). The airport can be accessed and cars can be hired from the "French side" or the "Swiss side".

Car hire is often cheaper on the French side but the cars are not taxed for use of Swiss autoroutes - unless you want to pay 40 francs for a vignette, or risk a fine, you must drive through the city, but Geneva is possibly the easiest city to drive through.

See our separate "Geneva airport hints and tips".

Driving from the Swiss side, with a vignette you are allowed to take the N1 autoroute, but it is easy to drive through Geneva. On leaving arrivals you are headed SW so be careful to follow signs for "Genève" not for "France". Take three right turns around the long-term multi-storey car park (P51 on airport plan), in order to head SE through the city.

That 3rd turn is at traffic lights. You then cross the bridge over the autoroute, following blue direction signs towards the city centre. Take the straight through road at any junctions to keep heading towards "le lac" and city centre.

In about 8 minutes (plus current road works) you'll reach the bridge over the head of the lake (see below).

Driving from the French side, it is quite a different route to the head of "le lac".

You exit northwards through the airport, already in France, via a tunnel under the runways (currently delayed by traffic lights). As soon as you join the main road you need to double back sharp right through the customs and back through the tunnel into Switzerland. Go straight through the traffic lights, over the swiss autoroute, and straight over the next roundabout.

Stay on this road (route de Ferney) through Grand-Saconnex area, until it eventually sweeps right along the side of lac Leman (traffic may be fairly heavy for the last quarter mile because it is the diplomatic hotel area with lots of taxis and traffic coming in from Lausanne). You will need to turn left onto the bridge ...

Over the head of the lake, take the middle lane over the bridge. Your exit sweeps round to the left. Then as soon as possible get into the right-hand lane where traffic lights are linked for a clear through run, climbing gently for almost two kilometers.

When the road starts to descend again, look out for a right turn sign-posted to Chamonix. This enters a short link road ending with a left turn to "France".

It is another kilometer up the dual carriageway to passport control and then straight ahead onto the Autoroute Blanc heading towards Chamonix, Combloux and many other French ski resorts.

From here Sallanches is 47 kms, and Combloux is a further 9 kms. There are two tolls to pass through costing 1.60 €, and 3.50 € - pay by cash or credit card.