This walk combines impressive views (Geneva region, Arve Valley) with an exceptional plant life that thrives in the southern microclimate. You'll also see the traces of some of the region's oldest inhabitants!
On the way, there is a breathtaking view of the Geneva region and Arve Valley. You'll be close to the site of the Allobroges encampment (an old hillfort on the Petit Salève which was of military importance in Gallo-Roman times and of commercial importance at a later period). Plants typical of southern regions, such as orchids. In Monnetier-Mornex, you'll see the old weather station, the old station of the Salève funicular railway (now the Town Hall), and hotels and boarding houses dating from the 19th century, as well as the Ermitage castle. En route, at Mornex, you will discover the plaque to Wagner and Ruskin, famous people who stayed at the Pavillon des Glycines.
On the way, there is a breathtaking view of the Geneva region and Arve Valley. You'll be close to the site of the Allobroges encampment (an old hillfort on the Petit Salève which was of military importance in Gallo-Roman times and of commercial importance at a later period). Plants typical of southern regions, such as orchids. In Monnetier-Mornex, you'll see the old weather station, the old station of the Salève funicular railway (now the Town Hall), and hotels and boarding houses dating from the 19th century, as well as the Ermitage castle. En route, at Mornex, you will discover the plaque to Wagner and Ruskin, famous people who stayed at the Pavillon des Glycines.
Plain text period
All year round.Accepted customers
Accepted customers
- Individuals
Points of interest
Points of interest
Points of interest
1Hermitage Castle
Standing on a cliffside at the end of the Monnetier valley, Château de l'Ermitage has dominated the Genevan plain for almost five centuries. The château is believed to have been built in the early 16th century by François-Prosper de Genève-Lullin.<br/>Owned by the Dukes of Savoy, this fortress overlooking the plain was deemed sufficiently threatening by the Genevese that they decided to launch an attack on the building. On August 31, 1589, Captain Guinet and his troops captured the Château de l'Ermitage, before demolishing part of it and setting it on fire. The ruins remained untouched for almost three centuries.
In 1855, Messrs Bovet and de Mandrot purchased the Hermitage ruins and grounds. On the remains of the feudal keep, they built a manor house flanked by turrets, which became a hotel-pension with a breathtaking view of Geneva and Lake Geneva.
Château de l'Ermitage came very close to destruction at the end of the 20th century. Ransacked and squatted, it was finally bought by a local entrepreneur.
2The Allobroges camp
At the summit of the Petit Salève, traces of a fortified enclosure can still be seen. This is an Allobroge camp dating from the 5th to 1st centuries BC.<br/>This defensive site, partly surrounded by natural cliffs, is completed by "ramparts" made of earthen embankments. The Allobroges were Gauls who populated the territory corresponding to historic Savoie. In the 1st century B.C., the Romans appropriated the camp and turned it into a much smaller Oppidum than Geneva. It was a strategic location, overlooking the Lake Geneva basin and traffic routes: the Roman bridge at Etrembières over the Arve and the roads on either side of the Salève and on the ridge.
