Also we would love to hear from anyone living outside Geneva and commuting with TAC line 1 to find out whether a 9 and 16 year-old can commute together or if they need an adult because of border crossing?
Thank you
Hello, I will be, along with wife + 2 kids + 2 cats, joining the new expats community in Geneva. Have done a lot of background research but would welcome advice on families living in the following areas: Carouge, Plan les Ouates, Collonge-sous-Saleve, St Julien en Genevois and area or Moillesulaz/Gaillard, and on the lake side Messery, Vernier, Douvaine. Key issue is that children's school and my work will be in Quartier des Eaux Vives. Rent prices being what they are in Geneva, CF 3200 is already stretching the budget. We are thoroughly exploring all areas withing public transport reach and reasonable commuting distance (for our kids especially). What is the experience of going to work, living, commuting for people living in the areas mentioned? Is a 3 bedroom accommodation with a few m2 of grass for the cats within budget a totally unrealistic expectation?
For communting times, the site www.tpg.ch will give you all the public transport times using geneva transport. For example, Moillesulaz to the general Eaux-vives area (depending on which stop) by direct tram will take about 20 minutes. Plan-les-ouates to the Eaux Vives area will be more like 30 min. on 2 buses. Look at this site and the releveant tram or bus lines to each place and it will tell you the journey length and type of transport. Some places may require two or more buses/trams, which may make it a bit more complex.
As for your budget and having a house with a garden, it probably won't be possible in Geneva if want an individual house. Perhaps a ground floor apt. with terrace might be possible.
As for places, Carouge is generally a nice place to live with a nice mix of shops, restaruants, and night life. As for Plan les Ouates, keep in mind this is a major industrial zone at the end of the Geneve corridor. Yes, some people live there and rents are slightly lower, but it is at the end of Geneve and all industrial. Moillesulaz is a border crossing and comes with all the issues that accompany that; not my choice to live but maybe you want that.
Getting into Geneva from the French lakeside area (Messery, etc.) is generally horrible: Narrow roads and lots of commuters. We looked there for a while, but finally gave up and ended up on the Annecy side.
Thank you all for your reply. Did you actually try Messery-Geneve at peak time? Did it take you more than 30 mn. My commute would be to Rive-Gauche, still, so no wretched Pont du Mont Blanc to cross, but perhaps that doesn't make any difference. What's your view?
Had you also looked at the options of living near the ter Evian-Geneve line, such as Bons en Chablais, Machilly...? Although, having looked at train timetable, that wouldn't be ideal either for our work / school starting times.
I had not realised how the cross-border public transport was so poor.
Thanks for your reply. It is excellent to get feedback such as yours because our pre-visit to Geneva will be very short and we don't have time to explore every area. That Plan les Ouates is very industrial doesn't get mentioned in the usual guides/ websites, so your comments were very useful. Do you have any views on living in Annemasse?
1) Indeed, cross-border public transport is rubbish. The French state doesn't give a fig about the plight of a few frontaliers.
2) Re. French Lakeside to Geneva: certainly crossing Pont de Mont-Blanc is a killer. But I don't think it is much fun even if you don't have to cross it. Especially with fixed bad travel times. Leave early, home early makes life a bit more tolerable.
3) Annemasse is rough in parts, there's no doubt about it. Perhaps not as rough as some Geneva inhabitants would have you believe. Hence it's cheaper...
Thank you "Frankzappa". Would you recommend any particular area in Annemasse. I've just sent another post called "living in Annemasse" for specs. Living in Nottingham, I know how a city can sometimes get a bad press and yet there are many fantastic things going for it (even if the bad press is at times justified!). A nice, balanced view is what we need about Annemasse.
We moved to Messery last year with a family and 3 kids after 1 year in the Pays de Gex on the other side of the lake. This move was the best thing that happened to us. We think it's absolutely perfect here for a family. Very international and a great atmosphere (guess it's the lake and the beautiful surroundings). Your budget will also stretch a lot further coming here than staying close to Geneva or looking around the Nyon area. For work/school commute you should try it out. Yes bus connection is an issue (it only works until Hermance). By car you should be fine if your work is in Eaux Vives. My work is around Cornavin. In winter I go by car and park at Geneva plage where I take the mouette (boat) to Paquis. This works out at 45 min in total. For the rest of the time I go by scooter and cross the Mont Blanc bridge after 25-30 minutes. Traffic is never busy on the Route de Hermance, the traffic jam usually starts around Geneve Plage. Best of luck.
Hi Frank Zappa, we considered Annecy briefly as it is so beautiful. But it looked impossible to me to get under 1 hour in Geneva city center in the morning. You have to park your car somewhere close the border I guess and take a bus from there?
Thanks to belgo for the more precise info than mine. Living in Messery & commuting to Geneva is not as miserable as I thought. I work in Meyrin's industrial zone, so, luckily, I avoid driving into central Geneva every morning. As belgo says, I'm pretty sure I'd park & ride if I did.
The new Annecy-Geneva motorway has lightened the traffic on the old road, so I now manage door-to-door in 50 minutes, without having to jump out of bed at 5:50 to avoid the morning rush. The motorway would knock 10 minutes off that, but at 7CHF each way, it's outrageously expensive.