Nightlife

Geneva has a more diverse and varied nightlife than any other city in Switzerland. At least some of the activities are centered around place du Bourg-de-Four, a stagecoach stop during the 19th century, and today one of the spiritual centerpieces of Geneva's Old Town. In summer, outdoor cafes, each with an almost obligatory collection of flowering shrubs and plants, seem to thrive both in the Old Town and along the banks of the river and lake.

For a listing of nightlife and cultural activities, free copies of the bilingual monthly Genève Le Guide (www.le-guide.ch) are distributed at hotel desks and tourist information centers.

The Performing Arts

Geneva has always attracted the culturally sophisticated, including Byron, Jean-Baptiste, Corot, Victor Hugo, Balzac, George Sand, and Franz Liszt. Ernst Ansermet founded Geneva's great Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, whose frequent concerts entertain music lovers at Victoria Hall. For opera there's the 1,500-seat Grand Théâtre, which welcomes Béjart, the Bolshoi, and other ballet companies, in addition to having a company of its own.

For a preview of events at the time of your visit, pick up a copy of the monthly "List of Events" issued by the tourist office.

The Bar Scene

Most bars in Geneva close at 1:30 or 2am.

The Gay & Lesbian Scene

Geneva's gay switchboard is Dialogai, 11-13, rue de la Navigation (tel. 022/906-40-40). It provides multilingual information and advice to anyone who calls. On the basement level are a library, a cafe and bar, and meeting rooms for Wednesday-night dinners and Sunday-morning brunches. The organization publishes a free list of the gay bars in Geneva and French-speaking Switzerland, and is the best access to the male homosexual network of Geneva. It schedules discussion groups for gay youths and gay seniors, and it also offers support groups for people who are HIV positive.

Twin's Lounge and Club, our favorite gay bar in Geneva, is a battered and completely unpretentious neighborhood hangout, just downhill from the Cornavin railway station, where many of the regulars seem to have known each other, and in some cases, perhaps to have actually co-habited with each other, at some distant point in their collective pasts. Aggressively multicultural, its client mix reflects the international nature of Geneva itself. At this cramped and simple bar, the typical client hasn't seen his 20s in between 10 and 30 years. Beer costs 4F ($3.30/£1.70) per bottle, and if you hammer away, you'll probably be able to engage more than one of the guys inside in some kind of dialogue. A knowledge of French helps a lot, and an exposure to this place, if you're gay and relatively extroverted, can reveal a lot about Geneva that's very far removed from its glossy, über-capitalist facade. It's open Monday to Friday from 5pm till 2am, Saturday from 7pm till 2am, and closed on Sunday. If you happen to want dinner anytime during your visit here, you can slip through a curtain in the back, thereby entering directly into the backside of a simple eatery, Café-Restaurant L'Escale, 11 rue de Berne (tel. 022/732-72-82). Here, daily between 11am and 2:30pm, and 7 and 10:30pm, you can order simple dishes which include fondues and horsesteaks with garlic and mushrooms in a cheap but cheerful setting that's financially independent from Twins, but with "strong emotional links" nonetheless. Main courses cost from 17F to 28F ($14-$23/£7.30-£12; AE, DC, MC, V accepted).