Train links to Geneva are being improved, and soon it may be easier to travel to and from Annecy by public transport, but for the moment, the car is king.

Car

Distances from Annecy:

Aix-les-Bains: 35 km (22 miles, 30 minutes) south

Chambéry: 51 km (32 miles, 45 minutes) south

Chamonix: 101 km (63 miles, 1.25 hours) west

Geneva, Switzerland: 41 km (25 miles, 45 minutes) north

Grenoble: 107 km (66 miles, 1.25 hours) south

Lyon: 145 km (90 miles, 1.5 hours) west

Paris: 561 km (349 miles, 5.25 hours) northwest

Train

Several fast TGV trains connect Paris (Gare de Lyon) and Annecy directly each day, taking about 3 hours 45 minutes. Other train routes—from Paris via Lyon (Part-Dieu), for example, may take 4 hours 15 minutes; and some other routes take you from Paris (Gare de Lyon) to Lyon by train, then to Annecy by bus.

There are direct trains from Lyon to Annecy, taking about 2 hours.

Trains between Annecy and Geneva, Switzerland, are inconvenient, requiring a change of trains at either La Roche sur Foron or Aix-les-Bains. You may find it better to take a bus on this route.

Intercity Bus

LIHSA bus service between Geneva (Gare Routière/Bus Terminal) and Annecy (Gare Routière at the Gare d'Annecy SNCF) is frequent on weekdays (Monday through Friday), but there are only a few buses on Saturday and Sunday.

The fastest travel time is 1 hour and 10 minutes, but other routes take longer—2 to 3 hours.

A few buses stop at Geneva Airport as well as at Geneva's Gare Routière.

City Bus

Local city bus service in Annecy is operated by SIBRA. Luckily, you probably won't need to take a bus because most of what you'll want to see and do in Annecy is within walking distance.

This is lucky because the SIBRA website is only easy to use if you already know all about the bus system. I could find no overall map of the system to give me an idea of its reach and routes. Instead, you are asked to choose which bus line you want a map for—which, of course, you won't know until you see the map! So you must click to download all 10 maps....

Lake Town Buses

LIHSA bus 61 connects Annecy with the towns on the eastern shore of the lake (Veyrier, Menthon, St-Bernard, Talloires).

LIHSA buses 51 and 52 travel along the western shore connecting Annecy with Sevrier, St-Jorioz, Duingt, Faverges, Ugine and all the way to Albertville.

Plane

Annecy has its own small general-aviation airport, without scheduled flights. The nearest major airport is Geneva (Cointrin).

Boat

The Compagnie des Bateaux du Lac d'Annecy offers scenic cruises on the lake, with or without stopovers in the other towns on the lake, but there is no scheduled ferry service on the lake.

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