Wikitravel won the 2007 Webby Award for best Travel site!

Annecy

From Wikitravel Shared

Jump to: navigation, search
Error creating thumbnail: /var/www/html/wikitravel.org/mw-review-1.11.2/bin/ulimit4.sh: line 4: /opt/csw/bin/convert: No such file or directory
Annecy old-city : Thiou river Sunday morning market

Annecy [1] in the North of the French Alps, is the Venice of Savoie -- a well deserved title. The medieval town centre built around a 14th Century Chateau is dissected by small canals and streams running out of Lac Annecy, which is clean, fresh and a wonderful azure colour. Annecy is also the prefecture of the département of Haute-Savoie.

[edit] Get in

Annecy is a popular day trip from nearby Geneva, Switzerland (bring your passport for the border crossing).

Geneva is the nearest major international airport and is well served from across Europe and beyond. A little further away are Lyon, a full international airport, and Grenoble, which is focussed on low cost and winter flights. Both are about a one-hour drive by car or bus. The airport at Annecy only has flights to Paris.

[edit] See

[edit] Events

  • June : One of the biggest animation festival is held in Annecy (6 days)
  • July : Noctibules festival during the nights (4 days)
  • The first week-end of August is the Lake Festival (Fête du Lac) with attractions around the lake and a great fireworks. This event brings more than 100'000 spectators.
  • October : "Descente des Alpages" old tradition show in streets

[edit] Do

  • Swim, row or sail on the lake
  • Hike on the mountains around the city
  • Bike around the lake, or up in the mountains if you are in good condition.
  • Hangliding above the lake from the Col de la Forclaz (~20km)
  • Shop the many boutiques lining the narrow stone-paved streets.

[edit] Eat

Eating- lots of tourist trap restaurants but look at the menus, be prepared to wander down alleyways to find the best small restaurants and always try to speak French.

For between meals try the Italian ice cream shops, favored by the locals, located on the numerous pedestrian-only by-ways that weave the city and river together.

Another suggestion is the brioche (sweet roll) and other goodies to be found at the boulangeries (bakeries) in town.

[edit] Sleep

A subtential number of hotels, bed & Breakfast, youth hostel exist. Surounding mountains and lake activities are draining a large number of tourist during the summer and more and more during the winter season. Several winter sport resorts being in 30' drive.

[edit] Buy

Annecy has a number of local artisan shops as well as many European chain boutiques.

There is a market (marché) each Sunday morning in the pedestrian streets of the medieval city

[edit] Cope

The town itself gets ridiculously busy in July but September brings less folk- visit then when the air is clearer and the views to the mountains are better.

[edit] Get out

This article is an outline and needs more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. Please plunge forward and help it grow!
Retrieved from "http://wikitravel.org/review/Annecy"