Travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side)

Travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side) - From above black and white side view of unrecognizable female tourist with backpack and suitcase strolling on fenced passage in airport

I'll be in Lyon for a few days in June (taking a train from Paris) and planning to rent a car in Lyon. It sounds like I can drive from Lyon to the French side of the Geneva airport and drop off the car there. Is that possible?

Should I take the train instead? My flight is at 12:30 p.m. on a Tuesday.



Best Answer

It's certainly doable. If you have a French rental car, you will need to either leave the motorway in Bellegarde-sur-Valserine and go to Ferney-Voltaire using the secondary road network or buy a CHF 40 motorway vignette for Switzerland as the car most likely will not have one. Train is also quite convenient but goes to the Swiss side, the duration of the journey from Lyon should be more-or-less similar. Within the airport, you can switch sides easily if you need to.

Do check which car hire companies are present in the French sector, some only have a desk on the Swiss side. You should also probably check in advance what they charge for dropping off the car in the French sector but in principle it should be a regular surcharge similar to what you would pay to drop it off somewhere else in France.

If you need to completely avoid going through Switzerland to reach the French side of the airport, it will be more difficult. You won't be able to take the train but could take a bus. With the car, you will need to pay attention to the directions; road signs and navigation devices would most likely bring you to the airport through Switzerland.




Pictures about "Travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side)"

Travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side) - Formal man with tablet giving presentation in office
Travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side) - Young ethnic man in earbuds listening to music while waiting for transport at contemporary subway station
Travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side) - White Airplane Reflection on Car Side Mirror



Is there a French side to Geneva airport?

The airport is partially located within the commune of Meyrin (France) and partially in the commune of Grand-Saconnex (Switzerland), with its northern limit along the Swiss\u2013French border, thus having a Swiss side and a French side. The airport can be accessed from both countries.

How far is the French border from Geneva?

It's a 5 hour drive with a couple of short stops, but there are many places you can stop and make an overnight such as the incredible National Park of Le Vercors, famous for its stunning cliffs and mountains and for being a symbol of the French resistance during WW2. 5. Re: How far is Geneva from the french border?

How long is the train journey from Lyon to Geneva?

It takes an average of 3h 10m to travel from Lyon to Geneva by train, over a distance of around 70 miles (112 km). There are normally 16 trains per day travelling from Lyon to Geneva and tickets for this journey start from \u20ac29.40 when you book in advance.

Does Geneva airport have a train station?

Geneva Airport railway station (French: Gare de Gen\xe8ve-A\xe9roport) is a train station located underground next to the terminal building of Geneva International Airport (French: A\xe9roport international de Gen\xe8ve) (IATA code: GVA), in Grand-Saconnex, Geneva, Switzerland.



To exit the French Sector of Geneva Airport




More answers regarding travel from Lyon to Geneva Airport (French side)

Answer 2

If you decide to rent a car, beware that not all rental companies will accept taking a car in Lyon and dropping it off in Geneva (a different country). Those that do will likely charge extra for it (in addition to the motorway surcharge).

Normally 12:30 should be plenty of time to catch a train from Lyon. The airport website mentions an 8:38 departure with a connection in Genève Cornavin, for a trip lasting a little over 2 hours, which sounds plausible. However, this page does not seem to be accurate: according to CFF, the Lyon–Geneva train is no longer running, and the only morning connection on a weekday departs from Lyon at 7:20 and involves taking a TGV (high-speed train — but not on this stretch, with compulsory reservation and market pricing) from Bourg-en-Bresse to Geneva. This is probably due to ongoing repair works on several lines in the northern French Alps and in the Geneva area. For the June period, the current announcement is:

  • Geneva–Bellegarde trains are running with a modified schedule.
  • Geneva–Lyon trains run to Saint-Julien-en-Genevois, with a bus substitution.

The CFF page states that “More precise information will be available on this page shortly.” The SNCF page promises more information 2 weeks before the beginning of each phase, which for your trip will be on 21 April. The lack of accurate information probably caused some trains not to be listed in the database even though they will end up running with only a slightly modified schedule or with a partial bus substitution.

You may want to put off planning until more information is available. I expect that there will be a reasonable train or train+bus connection that will get you there in time. You may also want to research bus alternatives. The most plausible connection would be via Annecy (there is a 9:15 bus to downtown Geneva), but it doesn't seem that you can get there in time from Lyon. There is a bus that leaves Grenoble at 8:30 and Chambéry at 9:30 (in both cases, the bus stop is just outside the train station), arriving at Geneva airport at 10:45. SNCF currently lists a 7:32 departue from Lyon to Chambéry, but there is no schedule for June; there is a 6:49 departure to Grenoble. Even with the track works, there will probably be a more direct connection to Geneva that doesn't involve that bus. You might also consider driving to Annecy or Chambéry and dropping off the car there to avoid Swiss motorway and international drop-off fees.

Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Marcelo Renda, Andrea Piacquadio, Andrea Piacquadio, Pixabay