So it turns out Annecy is actually closer to Geneva, which I visited twice last month, and not Lyon! I had my heart set on visiting during my last trip to Lyon, but didn’t want to go alone, but if only I had known (or done my research better!) I could have popped over from Geneva.
Never mind, this trip I found 3 others who were also up for a road trip, and after a few small complications (i.e. there being no cars available in any of the car hire places at the main train station!) and a quick metro ride a few stops along, we managed to hire a car.
Our captain Christian, from Mexico, along with Jenny from Scotland, Waleed from Egypt, and myself, were all ready to go and finally on our way.
The drive out of the city took a while as there was a fair bit of traffic, but once we were on the motorway it was smooth sailing.
We had a quick pitstop halfway for a toilet break (thanks to the coffee the lovely car hire man had given us!) and to pick up a delicious chocolate pastry and another coffee (when in France, after all!) and just after lunchtime we were finally in Annecy.
Somewhere along the way it had started to snow lightly, and by the time we arrived the snow had really picked up and the flakes were falling thick and fast! It was my first snow of 2017 and I was so happy to see it.
Annecy is a fairly small town located along Lake Annecy, which we drove to see first of all. Since it was snowy and pretty foggy, the view was fairly minimal so we headed back towards the centre of the old town.
There are lots of pretty buildings, although one of the first and most well-known ones, the Palais de l’Ile, a picturesque house that resembles the prow of a stone ship seemingly advancing towards the river, that we spotted was unfortunately under construction.
With no real plan for the day other than stroll through the cobbled streets and take plenty of cute pictures, and the snow falling heavier and thicker every minute, we ducked into a pretty restaurant just across the bridge.
It didn’t seem song since we’d stuffed ourselves with freshly-baked flaky pastries at the service station, but the boys were getting hungry again, so we decided to make it our lunch stop.
After lunch we headed back out to venture into the streets. Waleed mentioned that it was his first time ever seeing snow, which made me appreciate it even more!
We walked up a rather steep hill, which was just a little bit slippery in the fresh snow!
Our walk continued back down into the town, through the winding streets and along past lots of pretty buildings and bridges.
Soon we were feeling the chill and craving something sweet, so stopped by a little cafe to warm up and for a waffle, with cream, of course!
We sat inside chatting and warming ourselves up for a while, and before long it was getting dark outside. We decided to make a move and start the drive back to Lyon.
It’s around 1,5 hours in the car, or a bit longer if you take the train. Annecy is definitely worth the trip, and only around 35 minutes from Geneva, so even quicker if you’re flying there rather than to Lyon. I bet it’s gorgeous in summer as well, although I’m also fairly sure there would be at least double the amount of tourists!
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You didn’t go to the lake? Lake Annecy is sooooo amazing!
Author
We went to the lake but it was sooo foggy you couldn’t see the water! 🙂
Oh :((
Amazing photos, Rachel, as always! Snow is always a great entrance into the new year!
Author
Thank you! 🙂
Hi! Are Tehran and Athens turnaround destinations? I’ve heard that Athens and Istanbul are one of the least liked destinations due to their flight length…
Author
Yes Tehran is a turnaround but fairly short, less than 2 hours each way. Athens is also usually a turnaround but the one I have is a 48 hour layover, which I mentioned in the post! It stops off briefly in Larnaca before we continue to Athens.
Looks like you had a great trip! So nice pictures 🙂
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Author
Thanks so much! 🙂
This looks amazing! I will definitely be trying this when I get GVA! So so pretty xx
Author
It was so gorgeous! I think it would be lovely in summer as well, so definitely worth a trip! xx