GENEVA, Switzerland — So much to do, and so much daylight to do so. Unless noted otherwise, the events take place in canton Geneva. A few favourites are highlighted in blue and those that could be of interest to kids and families are highlighted in green (for a full agenda of events for the little ones, checkout these websites, AmStramGram, Geneva Family Diaries, and HappyKid).
Navigate the list easier by clicking on the following categories:
- Art & Other Exhibits
- Concerts
- Film Festivals and other Performing Arts
- Fairs and other Special Events
- Fitness Activities and Sporting Events
- Food and Drink
- Shopping: fleamarkets, home decor, vintage sales, etc
Art & Other Exhibits
- Until 9 Aug: Kunst Yourself — 27 modern artists in exhibit in Cité du Temps, free
- Until 20 Aug: Ma vie de courgette — exhibit of the puppets and art work of the famous Swiss film — a must of any family with kids
- Until 2 Sep: The Roman Sarcophagus Affair — discovered in 2010 in the Ports Francs in Geneva, the beautifully carved sarcophagus was traced to the old Ottoman Empire — before it is returned to its rightful place, you get to view it, free at the University of Geneva
- Until 8 Oct: Déambule – Festival des paysages – outdoor art installations throughout Annecy — follow the map and spend the day discovering the public art work
- Until 29 Oct: 100 Years of the Reform – over 125 pieces in exhibition tell the story of Calvin and other church reformers
- Until Oct: At Work from 1860 to Our Days — a photo exhibit at the Prangins Castle in canton Vaud
- Until 2018: Printed Narrative Scenes on 19th Century Creamware — collection of plates, usually 12, telling one collective story
- until 2018: Images of Science — exhibit of some of the best science images, free the first Sunday of the month
- until 2018: The Boomerang Effect, Australia’s Aboriginal Arts, free the first Sunday of the month
- until 2018: ANTS — all you ever wanted to know about these crawlers, free the first Sunday of the month
Concerts
- Throughout July: concerts and jam sessions, free
- Throughout July and until mid-Aug: Classical music and jazz at Geneva’s city hall (Cour de l’Hôtel de Ville, CHF30)
- 21 Jul-6 Aug: Verbier Classic Music Festival
- 22 Jul-5 Aug: Concerts at the St Pierre Cathedral, free
- 25 Jul: Festival Puplinge Classique
- 26 Jul: Serge Beynaud, afropop, free at La Grange Park
- 28 Jul: Residente — reggaeton, rock/rap en español and more from the former member of successful brotherly duo Residente-Calle 13, free at La Grange Park
- 2 Aug: Cumbia All Stars — Peruvian cumbia under the stars, free at La Grange Park
- 3-6 Aug: Baroque’n’roll Festival
- 4 Aug: The Comet is Coming — psychedelic jazz from the UK, free at La Grange Park
- 5 Aug: European Medical Students’ Orchestra and Choir, at Unige, free
- 9 Aug: Hindi Zahra and Fatoumata Diawara — African world beat free at La Grange Park
- 11 Aug: Lau — Scottish folk directly from Edinburgh, free at La Grange Park
- 16 Aug: L’orage & L’eclair — groovy jazz from Geneva, free at La Grange Park
- 18-19 Aug: Jazz at the Beach –– two day free jazz festival at the beach in Hermance
- 23-26 Aug: Zurich Openair — three days of music with Mumford & Sons, The Prodicy, The Kooks and more
Outdoor Films and other Performing Arts
- July and August: Outdoor films — picnic, sip wine, watch films around the canton — the full list is posted separately, read it clicking here
- 23 & 30 Jul and 6, 13, 20 Aug: street arts and performances around Evian, France, free
- 28 Jul, 4 Aug, 18 Aug: Nocturne du vendredi – evening flea and organic food market, concerts, street theatre and more, free, Thonon-les-bains, France
- 31 Jul: Theatre in English — Legally Blond, The Musical
- 21-25 Aug: Danses Gourmandes — five evenings of international rhythms and dances (Argentinian, Austrian, Brazilian, American and more) at the conservatory
- 16 Aug: Outdoor theater, “Perdre le Nord” in Plan-les-Ouates
- 29 Aug, 5 Sep: The Wizard of Oz auditions at GAOS
Fairs and other Special Events
- Throughout Jul-Aug: Outdoor salsa and other LatAm-inspired dancing at La Barje — free
- 17-30 Jul: Les Rendez-Vous du Lac — music, food and more at the Geneva harbor
- 3-13 Aug: Fetes de Geneve — the Geneva festival comes back this year with its original names, mechanical rides, food and music but without the pre-fetes — prepare for the closing fireworks over the lake!
- 5 Aug: Pregny Alp Festival — get your Swiss on without leaving town!
- 5 Aug: Annecy Lake Festival — a large display of fireworks in beautiful Annecy, France
- 16 Aug: Fireworks to commemorate the liberation of Thonon-les-bains from the Nazis
- 22-26 Aug: Festival des Chênés — for kids and adults in Chêne-Bougeries
- 25 Aug: 21st Night of the Bats — a pretty cool way to approach nature, science and a fun eve out, in Lausanne, canton Vaud
- 25-27 Aug: Swiss gay pride parade in Bern
- 26-28 Aug: Avusy Kermesse
Fitness Activities & Sporting Events
- Every Saturday until October: free guided walks through Carouge
- 26 Jul: 4 x 4 female football tournament in Collonges-sous-Salève, France
- 1 Jul-27 Aug: Tour de Plage — Carouge becomes an urban beach where water fountains provide all the fun — weekends only
- 27-30 Jul: Jumping Longines Crans-Montana, in canton Valais
- 5-6 Aug: Mermaiding — at Bains de Paquis, swim like a mermaid or Triton
- 6 Aug: Horse jumping competition in Vulbens
- 6 & 20 Aug: Lindy Hop dancing at Bains de Paquis
- 12-13 Aug: Bike-polo tournament, Aire-la-Ville
- 19-20 Aug: Triathlon Lausanne
- 25-26 Aug: 3×3 Basketball World Tour, promoting pick-up games as an Olympic sport, Lausanne
- 27 Aug: Swim around the light house, bains de Paquis
- Swimming in Geneva lakes and rivers
- 27 Aug: The Color Run, the most colourful run this season, Lausanne
- 27 Aug: Bike Tour du Canton Geneva — for all levels, 38k, 82k or 126k cycling leg
- 31 Aug-3 Sep: Equissima, horse jumping competition in Lausanne
Food and Drink
- Throughout Jul-Aug-Sep-Oct: Sunday organic and farmers market in Onex
- 4 Aug: Marché de Saconnay, in Grand-Saconnex
- 28 Jul, 4 & 11 Aug, 1 & 15 Sep, and 6, 13, 20 Oct: Tour de Dardagny — visit the Chateau, countryside, vineyard and have lunch
- 26-27 Aug: Artisan market in Puplinge, canton Geneva (artisan foodmakers and handcrafts)
Shopping: Fleamarkets, artisans and art fairs, vintage sales, etc.
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