 Poster: A snowHead
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we're off to Les Gets shortly via Geneva airport, the last time I did it I got stung for taking the hire car back to the Swiss side rather than the French side, I realised that what's crucial is coming off the autoroute at the correct exit, but i don't know which it exit it is, can anyone help to avert that oh my god we're going to miss the plane/ get stung again palaver please?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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It's the exhibition place, can't quite remember the name - Palpexpo?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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bigpig, the correct exit is the one immediately AFTER the main one to the airport (assuming you're coming in from the Chamonix direction. You go under the big underpass and the next exit, signposted FERNEY, is not long after it. Follow signposting to FERNEY, ignoring all signs to the airport. This will take you round a roundabout back over the motorway, through some traffic lights and under the runway. Immediately after you emerge you will go through the French border post, and the road up to the French sector is on the left, immediately after the border, with a rather insignificant sign on it. If you get to the roundabout, a couple of hundred yards away, you missed it, so do a 180 turn and head back.
Remember FERNEY - nothing else.
You'll need a Swiss motorway vignette, but if you don't have one, they stop you at the Bardonnex border post and you'll have to buy it there; it's not a big deal.
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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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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Thanks Pam, do you have a ball park figure as to how much a vignette is?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Cheers bored, saved that to faves!
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bigpig, I think it is about 40 swiss francs. Not sure as I hire from Swiss side, and it is usually on the car already.
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bigpig, If you haven't got a vignette and you're coming from Chamonix, take the exit Geneva Vallard and the A411. Straight on and on into Geneva, right a bit, left a bit to the lake (signed Lausanne). Follow the lake on your right nearly a mile then follow signs for FERNEY. You'll see other signs for the airport en route but they'll only send you back to vignette land.
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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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Thanks Helen, I think I should have booked our car from the Swiss side in retrospect, thought it was cheaper, nice appt. you've got there, saved that to my faves too, you may hear from me next year!!!
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That sounds moe like it P10!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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Have a good one Helen, just noticed you're in my home city too!
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Exiled now I presume? I'm originally from just up the road near Consett, so still a home girl really.
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You know it makes sense.
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Yes I am exiled, to Hartlepool, I'd like to go back occasionally but the jet lags a killer!!!!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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bigpig, sent you a PM. We have directions if you would like me to send them over to you. Have so far always hired from French side through a mixture of it being usually cheaper than Swiss side and also a bit of stubborn-ness on my part in that we have done it for a while so why change. I just came back yesterday and for the first time hired in Swiss side and hate to admit it is one hell of a lot more simple getting to and from and on this case was not more expensive. Let me know if you want the directions as they are tried and tested by us and all our guests!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Ha ha! I know, I can't believe it happened myself!
Mr Dan, that's great I'd appreciate that!
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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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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Sorry Mr Dan i'm a bit of a technophobe, can you access my email address from here?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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What's a pm?
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bigpig, PM is a 'private message'. A bit like an email, but sent through SnowHeads, to your SnowHeads inbox. To send one, click on Send/Read Messages link at the top of this page, under the SnowHeads logo. Click the new post button, and a form will open to allow you to send a message to the SnowHead, Just insert their name in the username box, a subject for your post, and a message, than click send.
If you want to receive them, make sure your profile is set so that you can receive them, and you will be notified of new messages.
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Dan, sent an email to your link (saved that one to my faves too!)
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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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Hey, this is just a journey of discovery!!!
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bigpig, great, I'll keep an eye open for it and reply when it comes through. Just means you can send a private message and keep your email address off the public forum in case any nefarious types want to steal your email and therefore your whole identity 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Think I got it actually Dan, should be with you now, many thanks!
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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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Pam w will be along to remind you that 40 francs is only the price of a round of drinks in a minute
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How sad to be so predictable... However, yes it is, and I suspect marriages and long-term friendships have been sorely tested more than once by going off the motorway into the airport. Still, if you have plenty of time, and a good map, why not?
It is also, of course, technically an offence to be driving on the motorway AWAY from the airport, towards the French border. No reason why a Swiss guard couldn't step out and fine you on the spot. I don't think I've ever heard of this happening, though. Just don't get clever with them; Swiss border guards aren't famous for their relaxed sense of humour. I got told off at Ferney once for driving through too fast (I was crawling along).
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A few years ago we naively assumed the hire company would provide "detailed" instructions on how to get to and from the french side.
After much faffing (and no vignette) we got to annecy and had a great week in tignes. On the way back we had some vague instructions that quickly degenerated into just following ferney signs and ending up on the motorway(again no vignette) and somehow made it back intact.
I dont know why we never got stopped for no vignette.
In fact we got lost finding a petrol station last year coming into the swiss side. In our defence some truck driver had parked in front of it.
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You know it makes sense.
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I dont know why we never got stopped for no vignette.
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prog99, your story sounds so familiar; I once had a nightmare getting 3 hired cars travelling in convoy through Geneva to the French side, asking for directions in garages and getting conflicting opinions from locals, and coming within a hairsbreadth of missing a flight. We caught it only because I took a completely illegal route through the airport and ran all the way to easyJet assuring them that the other 10 passengers, including my disabled mother, would be along "in a minute". It's surprising I wasn't shot going through doors marked "authorised personnel only".
You probably joined the motorway at an on-ramp in Swiss territory, so got away with it. You get stopped at the border or, if you are unlucky, or stopped by police for any other reason, on the motorway itself.
The route in and out of the French side is easy if you have the right directions, and if you use the motorway and are resolute about ignoring all the signs to the airport being constantly pointed out by back street drivers. It can be quite a hassle otherwise. I gave detailed directions to relatives going back to Geneva last year (they had to use the Frenchside because of no visas for Switzerland). They didn't follow them properly, left the motorway too soon, got totally lost in Geneva, spoke no French, had to buy a map, and missed their flight. British Airways, who are not nearly as good as easyJet in those circumstances. Expensive. 
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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One of my reasons for never using the French side was the warnings on here that it is easy to get lost andmiss the flight. I asked on our first DIY trip to Geneva which side of the airport to use, and the unanimous decision was Swiss.
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Poster: A snowHead
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pam w, I would completely echo the sentiment that one should not be too clever with the Swiss police and they do not show any sense of humour at all. We got stopped in January this year for no apparent reason just myself and my fiancee. They stepped out in front of us, waved us to the side of the road at the checkpoint, took our passports and driving licence and the guy just disappeared into the hut fora good 15 minutes or so. His partner then stood by my driverside door just out of eyeline refusing to look or speak at all and quite happy to stand with her hand on her gun toting hip  All very unpleasant and any attempt at small talk was rebuffed good n proper. Just smile politely!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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MrDan, we pass through the Bardonnex border dozens of time a year and each time I am glad (for once) I am an elderly English woman in a Fiat Multipla not a young Italian guy in a Porsche. You do see people whose journey is clearly being severely disrupted.... so far we have not been stopped, or asked for passports (even on the one time we would not have got through as our carload included 2 people with no Swiss visas). Your experience sounds very unpleasant. But then I'm also glad, every time I do UK immigration, that I'm not a British Asian.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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pam w, yes, it is not a pleasant experience at all. This time round when I went with just my brother, two guys in the car and they didn't even stop us or anything. Never can tell really. Still, part of me does wish that our own customs guys in the UK were a little bit more like the Swiss in that they appear on the ball and very efficient but it has to be a fine balance.
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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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They stung me for 300 euros tax once on the way back from IKEA. Grrrr!!
Weirdly they were very good-humoured about the whole thing and I even ventured a little joke and got a laugh. Most unusual because I agree, you should never crack so much as a smile normally, they have zero sense of humour and gave my dad, who's the picture of respectability, a right grilling once after he made some quip or other. I thought we were all off to the ROOM for a while.
Anyway, back to the swiss/french side....
The money saved is just not worth the aggro, as pamw says. Divorce is costly!  and so are missed flights.
If it gets really bad you CAN always dump it on the swiss side. We had to do this a few months back, when the traffic was bad. They charge you about 120 euros for it but again, a bargain compared to four flights.
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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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bigpig, there is no need to use the Swiss motorway the map boredsurfin linked to shows you all the routes. We never go through Bardonnex, you're better of using Perly and going through Geneva or even better avoiding Switzerland entirely and staying in France. We use Geneva every week and this season our tansfers are exclusively from the French side, without exception every guest has said how much easier it is.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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But were the guests driving and navigating?
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David@traxvax, but you and your drivers all know the way with their eyes closed. And it's a real big hassle to avoid Switzerland entirely - and no reason to do so if guests have visas for Switzerland (I had to research the route through France, and it would take loads longer).
People who arrive on international flights, without visas for Switzerland, but with checked baggage, are the biggest headache because they're not allowed through to the baggage place.... nightmare.
In and out of the Swiss side on the motorway is easy and stress free. worth a few bob.
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The only time you get stopped normally is when you enter Switzerland on a motorway.Then they will sell you a vignette or make you turn round and bug off back to France.
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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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Just to follow on and ask a question myself.
We are off to Saas fee at the weekend and have hired a car from the french side (I know it sounds silly, but Eurostar points are paying so no other option) I fee the advice on here will enable me to get in ina out of the airport but more confused about finding the car hire desk. As some say collect you bags and go back in through the french customs by the checkin desks, or the other ooption is to go through french customer before you get your bags and there is a desk taht will get your bags (swiss air or something).
Has anybody any advice which way is best?
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Last week I was driving south to Chamonix and decided to do a stop in Geneva on the way down. We paid a 30 euro fee to get that little sticker for a 2 hour side trip for dinner. I dont know if that is the same exit to head towards the airport or not.
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FAQ
Just call me stubborn and stuck in my ways. Maybe it was just this once but I also found the service to be a lot better and more efficient, the queue to get the car was non-existent and we didn't have the palaver of walking through two different countries and sets of customs to get in and out of the airport! And, this time round it was far cheaper hiring from Swiss side. However, in the future if it reveerts back to being cheaper in France we'll choose that as we've done it so many times it's not really that difficult. First time driving through centre of Geneva can be a bit hairy though.
