Geneva, city of parks

The public parks in Geneva are often former private estates bequeathed to the City of Geneva. Public figures such as Candolle, Boissier and Saussure created priceless collections of native and exotic species of tree, often bequeathed to the City of Geneva at the same time as their richly wooded estates.

Multi-purpose areas

Parks are often associated with rest, relaxation and recreation. These green areas nevertheless fulfil other roles:

• a social role: they help improve the quality of life of the city’s inhabitants;
• an aesthetic role: the floral and plant heritage contributes to the beauty of the city;
• a cultural role: the parks bear witness to history of Geneva and of its great botanists;
• a pedagogical role: the diversity of the vegetation helps make city-dwellers more aware of nature and environmental considerations;
• a biological role: a host of animals live in the parks’ vegetation, which act as genuine nature reserves;
• a climatic role: the vegetation has a beneficial effect on the urban microclimate;
• a genetic role: the green areas contain a reservoir of species and varieties acclimatised to an urban setting;
• an environmental role: the green areas create a connection between the city centre and the surrounding countryside. 

Events in the parks

To hold any event in one of the city’s parks, a request must be submitted to the Safety and Public Areas Department. This request is then sent to the Green Areas and Environment Department.
When organising events, it is necessary to comply with a certain number of directives.

The procedure page above provides information on the process to be followed when organising an event.

Map of the parks in the City of Geneva