Geneva Removals

Our Removals Service Includes…

For removals to and from Geneva.

Defy convention and find peace in city of thinkers and doers

Peace, man. Peace, perfect peace.

The Swiss city of Geneva has long dedicated itself to peace. It’s even been called the ‘Peace Capital’. The whole country was of course, neutral during the Second World War. It’s the perfect place for political organisations to settle, to be assured that knotty issues will be tackled with the utmost diplomacy and calm. This possibly makes Geneva, long famed for the Geneva Convention, the best place to settle for the politically aware, but neutral, kindness and fairness-seeking expat.

Nearly half of the people living in Geneva are not Swiss-born. They come here to work and to settle near enough to be able to get out skiing at world-renowned ski resorts such as Verbier and Crans-Montana – both less than three hours away by car. There are closer opportunities to get going on the white stuff, too. The towering Mont Salève, at 4,524 ft, is just across the border in France and dominates the view from the city centre. You can see Mont Blanc, the highest of the Alps, from most of the city.

Geneva is the European headquarters of the United Nations. Several other agencies are also based in Geneva, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the World Health Organization, the International Labour Organization, International Telecommunication Union, the International Baccalaureate Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Geneva hosts many inter-governmental organisations, such as the World Trade Organization, the South Centre, the World Meteorological Organization, the World Economic Forum, the International Organization for Migration, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Also here in Geneva are the International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, the Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, as well as other peace, international affairs and sustainable development organisations. In fact, Geneva hosts the biggest number of international organisations of any place on the world.

Many other global bodies have settled here, including the Scout movement, and Geneva is the second most populated city in Switzerland.

Geneva intentionally does not have any sister relationships with other cities. It declares itself related to the entire world. And indeed it is – there are long-held relationships here with so many global companies and organisations the outlook of its people is similarly broad.

The official language of Geneva is French. English is also common due to the high number of expats and people living there temporarily due to work in the many international institutions and in the financial sector.

In the city of Geneva, a whopping 48 per cent of the population are resident foreign nationals.

There is a long tradition of watchmaking in the city, which dates back to the 16th century. Many famous watchmakers have been based in Geneva since they started, such as Baume et Mercier, Charriol, Chopard, Franck Muller, Patek Philippe, Rolex, Universal Genève, Raymond Weil, Vacheron Constantin and Frédérique Constant.

Two major international producers of flavours and fragrances, Firmenich and Givaudan, have their headquarters and main production facilities in Geneva.

Scientists flock to visit and work at CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research –the world’s largest particle physics lab.

The city is also at the forefront of tackling environmental issues. The Geneva Environment Network (GEN) publishes a list of the many Geneva-based global organisations working on green issues, called the Geneva Green Guide.

There are nearly half a million people living in the city and its suburbs.

In 2019, Geneva was ranked among the ten most liveable cities in the world.

Although winters are fairly chilly here, summers are warm enough to swim in the lake and visit the beaches, such as Genève Plage and the Bains des Pâquis.

The history of Geneva

For a very compact city, Geneva has a fair few important sites. There are 82 buildings or sites here listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance, and the entire old city is part of a heritage site.

The city boasts beautiful religious buildings, such as Cathedral St-Pierre et Chapel des Macchabés, Notre-Dame Church, a Russian church, St-Germain Church, Temple de la Fusterie and Temple de l’Auditoire.

Everywhere you look there are grand civic buildings and archaeological sites include Neolithic, Roman and mediaeval sites.

Geneva was taken by the Romans in 121 BC. It became Christian under the Romans.

In the Middle Ages, Geneva was ruled by a count until the late 14th century, when it was granted a charter to govern itself. The creation of the Grand Council in the 15th century cemented the city’s independence. In 1541, Protestant reformer John Calvin established the Republic of Geneva.

However, by the 18th century, Geneva moved more towards Catholicism as it allied itself more firmly with neighbouring France. The people of the city railed at this, and launched the Geneva Revolution of 1782, to win representation in the government for ordinary folk. The bid failed.

In 1798, France cut Geneva off and it remained outside  any formal grouping until 1814, when it was accepted into the Swiss Confederation.

It wasn’t until the 19th and 20th centuries that Geneva started to become the place it is today, with many international organisations adopting it as their spiritual and physical home.

Geneva stands at 1,225 feet, at the altitude of the largest of the Pierres du Niton, two large rocks emerging from the lake from the last ice age. Mont Blanc is an hour’s drive away, but clearly visible from the city.

Removals service

We are fully insured and have a great team to help reduce the stress of moving.

You can call us on 0800 917 1015 or email enquiries@armishaws.com for a quote.

Allow us to move you to or from anywhere in the UK or Europe. Our staff have been well trained in all aspects of moving homes and businesses.

Armishaws has held the BSEN 12522 certificate since 1999.