Airport location, terminals and transportation
Geneva Airport (also known as Cointrin Airport) is an international airport located just 4 km away from the city. It was founded in 1919 as Cointrin Airport and was renovated several times. The airport borders on France. The airport location lets it serve passengers and freight flights from both countries. There’s a special zone handling French flights.
The airport has a runway used for all aircraft and a runway suitable only for light aircraft. Two terminals – T1 (main) and T2 (seasonal) – receive over 18 million people annually. The main terminal is open from 4 am till 12 am.
The airport is connected to Geneva and other cities with railways. Public buses, buses, and transfer vehicles to Swiss as well as French ski resorts stop at GVA. Besides, you can take a taxi or use free transfer to a hotel.
Rental offices, how to find them, where to return car
Car rental services are provided in the T1 passenger terminal as well as in the French sector. The following car rental companies are present in the French sector: Avis, Budget France, VIP Cars, Enterprise, Europcar, Hertz, Sixt. To get to the French sector from the international arrivals lounge, you need to leave the baggage reclaim hall, go up to the departure level, follow the signs towards the French sector, and go through customs, where you should show your voucher with a rental agreement. A car pick-up point is located near T2 and parking lot P51. The Budget France rental office serves drivers from 6:30 am till 11:30 pm. VIP Cars is open 24/7 with a short break from 11:30 pm till 12 am.
The following companies are present in the Swiss sector: Avis, Sixt, Budget, Enterprise, Europcar, Hertz, National, Alamo, Flizzr, Dollar, Thrifty. Avis serves customers from 7:30 am till 10:30 pm; Sixt is open from 8 am till 10 pm. Rental stands in the Swiss sector of the terminal are situated in the arrivals area near the post office. The cars in the Swiss sector are placed between roofed parking lot P26 and public parking lot P49. The vehicles can be taken from P1.
Return of the cars is performed on the bottom level of P51. If a car is received in one sector and returned to another one, the companies can charge an additional fee.
Long-term and short-term parking, hotels nearby
There are several parking lots at Geneva Airport: P2 (a short-term parking lot), P1 (a long-term roofed parking lot with convenient access to T1), P26, P31, P32 (long-term partly roofed parking lots), P51 (a long-term parking lot), P20 (a French zone parking lot), a valet parking lot (P1 Level 3).
The following hotels are located near the airport: Nash Airport, Crowne Plaza Geneva, Holiday Inn Express, Hotel NH, Residence du Grand Saconnex, Movenpick, Hotel Ibis.