 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Hi
We're new to SnowHeads so please excuse us (& maybe send us the right direction) if this has been answered before elsewhere........
We're flying into Geneva (Swiss sector) but hiring our car from the French sector (much cheaper - even with additional cost of chains & vignette).
Is anyone able to confirm driving directions from the car hire pick-up in the French sector of the airport to the A1 (Swiss highway) southbound. From here we'll join the A40 (French highway) westbound to our destination in France - Les Carroz - via what appears to be the quickest & most direct route.
We've read quite a few posts suggesting that it's complicated/difficult & there's a high probability of getting lost due to poor signage etc but looking at the map it seems very straightforward - ie follow the 'route douanière' out of the airport, go under the tunnel, turn right at the T junction & go back under the tunnel the opposite way. The sliproad to the A1 appears to be a few hundred yards on the right. Is this it or are we missing something ??
Many thanks in anticipation.
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brian
brian
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paulnjackieblackie, no, you are spot on.
If any confusion were to occur it would be by trying to stay in France to get to the alps in France. As long as you're happy to stump up for the vignette at the border and head onto the Swiss motorway, no problem.
Similarly, on the return journey, make sure you ignore the signs for the airport and head for "Ferney" where you will cross the border and then immediately turn left back into the "Route Douaniere". There is a microscopic sign for the airport, cote Francais at this point.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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paulnjackieblackie, I frequently go through Geneva heading for Les Carroz. I enter Switzerland at the Douane and go through the tunnel you refer to. But then, being mean I don't pay for a vignette to use the M-way but head for Le Lac, and follow the lake on the left over the Bridge (the source of the River Rhone) and then look for the signs for Chamonix which will take you to the A40 at Junction 14. However it does depend on the time you arrive as it can be very slow around eveing rush hour.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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paulnjackieblackie, welcome to snowheads.  Yes, getting out and back onto the Swiss highway is very easy - but I don't follow the description of doing the tunnel twice. I've done that journey quite often. Follow the barbed-wire fringed road back towards Ferney, then turn right, directly through the border control (where you can buy a vignette). Immediately after that is the tunnel - then you take a right (signposted to the airport) and then out onto the motorway before you actually get to the airport. If you do get to the airport, doesn't matter, just follow the signs for "France" and get on at the next junction.
Coming back, as brian says, you need to follow the signs to Ferney - the next exit after the airport one, very close (just after the big PALEXPO building which straddles the motorway). Under the tunnel, then immediately back up that little road. It is very odd indeed that the signage is so obscure.
I haven't flown into Geneva and headed for the french side for a while. It used to be straightforward, but I think you now need to come out through "international" and pick up your luggage (ie Swiss side) then carry your bags through the Alice in Wonderland style corridor to the French side - that isn't signposted desperately clearly either, but airport info will point you in the right direction.
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brian
brian
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pam w, the barbed-wire fringed road has it's own part of the tunnel under the runway.
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When we last picked up a car on the French side, they gave us a useful map on how to get back into Switzerland.
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Many thanks for the replies guys - we feel less likely to spend a couple of hours driving round & round the perimeter of the airport now !!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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paulnjackieblackie, you'll be fine provided you avoid ALL signposting to the airport except that last tiny one to the "French sector".
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We have just used the French sector car hire for the first time after several years of using the Swiss side. My main concern was finding the correct access point to the airport on our return. Some info which might be of interest:
If you have a SatNav set it to 46.250565, 6.118176. That gets you to the turn off onto access road to the car hire, which is the Route Douanière. Once you are on that you can't go anywhere else and you just have to follow it through the fenced sections and the tunnels and eventually you will see a small sign for the car hire returns.
If you don't have a SatNav, put the above lat/long into Google Maps and have a look before you travel. You will see the D1005 (Route de Genève) which you will be on, heading NW, if you have just come out through Geneva. The two buildings either side of the D1005 just before the turn off are the border crossing, so as soon as you go through that it is just a case of making a hard left into the access road.
The car hire parking is a total dungeon, even worse than the old one 2 floors down on the Swiss side. We had hired from Europcar and on the way out, before leaving, we managed to park near one end to get some daylight and found a scratch and a good sized dent that were not recorded on their paperwork. Of course, the staff have torches, so when we returned the car they found a further scratch (amazingly quickly) under the front bumper skirt. We had a big argument at the desk about it, which I amazingly won and that made me even more suspicious about how much damage they really new about before the car left them. IF I hire from Europcar again on the French side, I am definitely taking a torch. Yes, seriously.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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SnowballCowie, Useful post, and I agree about the torch. Last time I hired from the French side, after a thorough inspection of the car we called the Europcar rep over and pointed out numerous scratches/dents on the car plus a crack in the windscreen which wasn't noted on the hiring forms give us at the desk!
We have annual insurance to cover the excess but still like to point out any problems with the car, to avoid the hassles
Also: we had requested winter tyres and also stated we wanted an additional driver (on Holiday autos it stated the latter was free on this particular grade of car).When we picked up the car, they said they had no cars (left?) with winter tyres and also that we would have to pay for an additional driver. After some discussion they gave us snow chains and allowed an additional driver for no extra charge.
Being able to have an additional driver for free when booked through Holiday autos was for us in the past the main reason for booking on the French side (Swiss motorway vignette not a problem for us as we go enough times a year to buy a vignette online at the beginning of the year and carry it with us - hoping of course that they don't make us stick the vignette permanently on the windscreen at the border crossing into Switzerland!)
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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SnowballCowie, Useful post, and I agree about the torch. Last time I hired from the French side, after a thorough inspection of the car we called the Europcar rep over and pointed out numerous scratches/dents on the car plus a crack in the windscreen which wasn't noted on the hiring forms give us at the desk!
We have annual insurance to cover the excess but still like to point out any problems with the car, to avoid the hassles
Also: we had requested winter tyres and also stated we wanted an additional driver (on Holiday autos it stated the latter was free on this particular grade of car).When we picked up the car, they said they had no cars (left?) with winter tyres and also that we would have to pay for an additional driver. After some discussion they gave us snow chains and allowed an additional driver for no extra charge.
Being able to have an additional driver for free when booked through Holiday autos was for us in the past the main reason for booking on the French side (Swiss motorway vignette not a problem for us as we go enough times a year to buy a vignette online at the beginning of the year and carry it with us - hoping of course that they don't make us stick the vignette permanently on the windscreen at the border crossing into Switzerland!)
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