My dear wife has started driving lessons and will hopefully have a learner's license in the near future. In addition to the instructor hours, it is my understanding she is allowed to drive accompanied by another driver (e.g. myself).
I am very motivated to provide all the support I can and, with our car or a rental, spend time with her practicing as much as possible. Before we join regular traffic, I am wondering if there are areas / locations where one might do just that, practice but without endangering other cars/ people.
Shopping centre car parks when the shops are closed. Did this many times in France in the evening or Sunday afternoon. They often sell petrol so a few cars go in & out.
Not every driver may accompany a learning driver. The easy way is to contact your insurance and make sure you qualify - you probably do but, better safe than sorry.
Usually (i.e. the pupil learns reasonably fast) you're allowed to do what has been convered so far by the instructor lessons. For instance you're expected to not go on the motorway before the instructor had your wife drive there. Conversely this means it's ok to drive on quiet roads if your wife has been there already.
As for particular areas:
I don't know about Geneva, but in the german speaking parts the Strassenverkehrsamt usually has areas that are used for driving tests (motorbikes, perhaps others as well) that can be used if free.
I'm not really up to date with procedures, but doesn't your wife need to have the learners license already in order to be allwoed to drive?
If your rent a car you do want to make sure the insurance covers your wife as a driver; i wouldn't take this for granted as learners proabbly have an unusually high risk.
Excellent point and tips, thank you all for the angles and thoughts. Indeed, I should check on our insurance and ditto for our own car - what happens in the event of...
school parking lots for turning and stuff, rural roads (in the fields) outside the city for faster driving and how to change speeds and learning to give precedence to the right which is the basis of everything.
this area looks rich in large parking lots for example but it seems to me there are good places all around geneva: https://goo.gl/maps/6bvMx9wJo572
by learner license i think he means the restricted 3 years license that you get in the beginning.
Regarding accidents, be sure to be able to stop the car with the handbrake from the passenger seat.
I also suggest taking a weekend to explore rural switzerland for some intensive driving lessons, this way you can learn the more technical side without worrying about the traffic, then you can instead focus on the city traffic, there's nothing worse as people having technical doubts or being unsure (like forgetting what speed they're in) in the middle of traffic.