united nations geneva guided tour

What to know about visiting the United Nations in Geneva

2014 marked the 70th anniversary of the United Nations.

After the end of World War II, 51 countries came together with the goal of promoting peace through mutual cooperation. Geneva was picked as one of four locations for a United Nations Office, housing many important UN agencies .

Today, all of the world's countries but three are members of the United Nations. Due to their cultural and historical significance of any citizen in the world, the United Nations and the Palace of Nations are meaningful places to visit while in Geneva .

In order to enter the secure perimeter of the United Nations complex in Geneva, visitors have to pass the "Pregny" security checkpoint.

Once inside, the guided tour provides access to various buildings, conference rooms, and meeting halls...

And - of course - the exclusive gift shop!

First off, the tour enters Building E which houses the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development:

Some hallways have a hard time hiding their age...

But special exhibits, displays, and art work can be found throughout the premises. While devised to help inform constituents and diplomats about important topics, this seems to be great way of bringing in some color!

This assembly hall has witnessed quite some history. For instance, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was devised here:

This tapestry is an optical illusion! It was donated by the People's Republic of China, and you will have to see it to believe it...

Here are more examples of cultural artifacts which were donated by UN member countries:

This gigantic porcelain vase was donated by Japan in commemoration of the UN's 50th anniversary. It is called "The Blue Star of Life":

The main assembly hall holds no less than 2000 people! Apart from UN staff and diplomats, meetings also include numerous interpreters, scripts and ushers.

Each desk features a microphone and a special earphone which feeds simultaneous translations in one of the six official UN languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.

The park behind the main complex is stunning! Court of Honour is perfectly landscaped and has panoramic vistas as far as the eye can see...

Here's a truly secure phone booth from pre NSA times:

The iconic entrance of the Palace of Nations is only for staff with security clearance. However, visitors can still peek through the gate to catch a glimpse of the world's flags:

The Broken Chair just outside the entrance stands as a symbol for peace. It has a very powerful presence.

Some advice about visiting the United Nations in Geneva

• It is best to plan an entire day for the visit of the United Nations and the Palace of Nations in Geneva.
• You want to get started early in order to beat the crowds (but there will be crowds, nonetheless).
• There is no need to rush, but arrive by 9:30 AM as visitors in the front of the line will be admitted between 9:45 and 10:00 AM.
• After security clearance, you will be able to buy a tour pass for CHF 12.
• The address of the "Pregny" gate is 14 avenue de la Paix. Here is how to get there .
• Important: Bring your passport or Swiss ID card in order to be admitted, and avoid any large bags or purses if possible.

More Information

- Palace des Nations Visitor Center - More photographs of the United Nations Office in Geneva - PLAY, EAT, SHOP AND STAY in Geneva

Dimitri Burkhard

As the founder, editor, and community manager of Newly Swissed, Dimitri owns the strategic vision. He is passionate about storytelling and is a member of Swiss Travel Communicators. Dimitri loves discovering new trends and covers architecture, design, start-ups and tourism.

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Guided tour : Palais des Nations.

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The secrets of the palais des nations..

One hour behind the scenes at one of the biggest world organisations.

Built between 1929 and 1936, the Palais des Nations houses the European headquarters of the United Nations and is, after New York, the largest UN centre. More than 25,000 delegates are welcomed there every year and many works of art are exhibited.

In addition, the Palais opens its doors daily for exciting guided tours!

Take a guided tour of the Palais des Nations and learn more about the United Nations and the UN in Geneva. Our guides will inform you about the United Nations and its activities to maintain peace, foster international relations and development.

You will discover the Palais des Nations, a unique building, formerly the headquarters of the League of Nations. The Palais des Nations, an outstanding example of 20th century architecture, is located in the beautiful Ariana Park in Geneva, Switzerland.

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Geneva.info » Sights » United Nations

Initially built for the League of Nations, the construction of the Palace of Nations began in 1929 and ended in 1938, a year before the League’s demise. Further infrastructure works were undertaken in the 50’s and 60’s resulting in the building we know today. Officially, the Palace of Nations has been the ONU/UN’s headquarters since 1946, shortly after WWII. Paradoxically, Switzerland only joined the UN in 2002.

Take a bus number 8 from Gare Cornavin to Appia bus stop, right next to the UN. Another way to access UN Office: go to Palais des Nations (famous square with Borken Chair), by either tramway 15 or buses 5, 8, 11, 22, 28, V, F and Z. From here, walk a brief 5 minutes up the street Avenue de la Paix towards the main UN entry at Avenue de la Paix 12 .

United Nations Guide

Group guided tours, which are the only way how to get inside the UN, are available in over 15 languages. From the Human Rights and Alliance of Civilizations Room to the Assembly Hall, the two-hour long tour will take you across all the main landmarks of this historical building.

The Serpent Bar, an extremely 70's cafeteria with a view over the lake and peacocks walking in the front garden. The perfect opportunity to take a selfie while enjoying fair-trade organic foods and drinks.

The SAFI shop is restricted to UN Office representatives. It sells the diplomat’s full panoply, from toiletries to tailor-made suits and fancy watches. The SAFI shop is not duty-free.

A book and souvenirs shop is available to visitors, it offers a large selection of books from international governmental organisations including UNESCO.

Over the years, the UN Office has been the scene of espionage, surveillance telephone tappings were found in different rooms of the building. Conveniently, nobody ever knew what country was responsible for installing those systems.

• Art collection (2000 international works of art)
• The Re-Birth sculpture (by Michelangelo Pistoletto, unveiled October 24 th 2015)
• Adapted for disabled guests
• Bar cafeteria
• Free WIFI hotspots

Around United Nations

• Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum - One of Geneva's top museums, mapping the history and current mission of International Committee of the Red Cross.
• Ariana Museum - glass and ceramics museum.
• Ariana park (46 hectares)
• Place des Nations , with it's famous Broken Chair.
• Geneva's Botanical Gardens and Conservatory

Official Website

Whether a visitor, press or delegate, the very complete UN website has an area dedicated to you.

Public and private conferences and committees are held daily, usually themed after peace, politics and humanistic values.

Have a look at the complete program for moreinformation.

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Visit the UN in Geneva

WELCOME TO THE UNITED NATIONS

Take a tour of the Palais des Nations and learn about the United Nations and the UN’s work in Geneva. Our tour guides will inform you about the organization and its activities to maintain world peace, foster international relations and development.

You will discover the Palais des Nations, a unique building, formerly the headquarters of the League of Nations. The Palais des Nations, an outstanding testimony to twentieth century architecture, is situated in the beautiful Ariana park in Geneva, Switzerland. 

Due to the ongoing renovations in the Palais des Nations, our tour offers are limited and subject to changes. Please read the below information carefully and check this page regularly for updates. 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

During the renovation work, guided tours are temporarily not suitable for persons with reduced mobility., please be informed that tours for individual visitors are currently limited and sell out very quickly. we encourage you to check our website regularly. thank you for your understanding., before the tour, once you have your ticket(s).

As soon as you receive your ticket(s), every person in your group needs to register for an access badge. The registration link for access badges is on the ticket(s). Please register as soon as your receive your ticket(s). Participants will then receive a digital badge with a QR code sent to their email address which they can print out and bring along or store on their mobile phone. The QR code will be scanned on the day to enter the Palais des Nations.

On the tour day

• All visitors must carry a valid passport (UN Member or Observer State). ID cards from the Schengen Zone are also accepted. Passports or ID cards will be checked at the entrance gate.
• Please be at the meeting point mentioned in your booking confirmation, 30 minutes before your tour to allow time for security screening and transfer to the Visitors’ Center.  

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Discover international Geneva's museums, tours & exhibitions

The humanitarian trail of the Red Cross:

More information

International district of Geneva: walking guided tour, panoramic tour by trolley-bus or Segway, with Geneva Tourism:

The United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG), housed at the Palais des Nations, is one of the most active centres for multilateral diplomacy in the world.

Walk in the chambers where many important historical negotiations took place, discover the incredible gifts presented by various countries to the UN at Geneva or learn about the Palais des Nation's history and the UN's current activities. Whether you are interested in politics and history, or simply want to enjoy a walk in one of Geneva's most beautiful parks, these various guided tours proposed by UNOG and available in different languages are a great way to explore all these aspects. 

Guided tours

What are the great questions of contemporary physics? What is the Higgs Boson and what does it tell us about the origins of the universe? What is the role of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), its focus and objectives? What are the experiments conducted on its premises?

CERN invites the public to discover the mysteries of the universe and the work of the world's biggest physics laboratory at the Science Gateway.

Visit CERN Science Gateway

Built between 1923 and 1926, the Centre William Rappard was the first building in Geneva designed to house an international organization, the International Labour Organization (ILO). The ILO left the building in 1975 for its new headquarters. It then hosted the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the library of the Graduate Institute of International Studies (IUHEI) and the Secretariat of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).

In 1995, the Centre William Rappard became the headquarters of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum's permanent exhibition "The Humanitarian Adventure" offers visitors a unique opportunity to learn more about the history and current challenges of humanitarian action.

Located next to the ICRC headquarters in Geneva, the Museum reflects on the major challenges of today's world: Defending human dignity, Restoring family links, Reducing natural risks. These three separate areas were developed by renowned architects from different regions of the world.

An interactive chronology also presents 150 years of humanitarian history, and visitors can track Red Cross and Red Crescent operations around the globe. Visitors can also discover temporary exhibitions at the Museum.

Visit the Museum

• United Nations Library & Archives Geneva
• Bibliothèque
• UN Resources
• 13 Practical information
• 4 Reading rooms
• 2 Research tools
• 7 Resources
• 10 Services
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• 1 UN documents

As of 22 April 2024, the Library & Archives building (B Building) will be temporarily closed.

No visits can be organized until further notice.

If you are interested in a guided tour of the UN Library Geneva, please use our online form to send your request or enquiry for a tour.

Group visits of the Library can be organized upon request. The tour includes explanations of the Library’s history, collections, reading rooms and services, and lasts approximately 45 minutes.

• Interested groups should contact the Library well in advance.
• Visits can be organized in several languages, mainly English, French, Spanish and Italian.
• A full list of participants will be requested.

Library tours are free-of-charge. They can be combined with a  paying  guided tour of the Palais des Nations. If interested in this option, please contact the UN Geneva Visitors Service:  [email protected] , for further information.

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• Practical information

UN Library Geneva

Library resources.

If you have never been at UN Geneva, navigating your way through the vast gardens and large network of corridors and meeting rooms is not an easy task. The below information give you guidance on the way to, into and inside the Palais des Nations. View and download the map of the Palais, use our room guide to find your next meeting venue or find out which routes and facilities are wheelchair accessible. 

Additional resources

Getting to the UN

Palais des Nations transit stops are Appia and Nations

Public Transport

Transports Publics Genevois Palais des Nations transit stops are Appia and Nations.

Access from Cornavin railway station:

• Bus lines 8, 20, 60 ("Appia" stop)
• Bus line 5 or tram line 15 (“Nations” stop), then a 5 minutes' walk to Pregny Gate

Access from Cointrin airport:

• Bus line 5 (“Nations” stop), then a 5 minutes' walk to Pregny Gate

Other bus lines with stop at “Nations”:

• Other bus lines with stop at “Nations”: 11 and 22, then a 5 minutes' walk to Pregny Gate

In Geneva, unireso public-transport tickets must be purchased prior to boarding a tram, bus or ferry. Ticket machines are available at most stops. Travel cards or passes can be purchased at the main TPG centres (Rive, Cornavin and Bachet de Pesay). Please note tickets are not available on the bus itself. Hotels, youth hostels or campsites typically offer a Geneva Transport Card, which allows use of public transport in Geneva free of charge during the period of stay.

Private means of transport

Access roads to the UN are the Rue de Lausanne and Avenue de la Paix/Route de Pregny.

Visitors are unfortunately not allowed to enter the UN by car or with a bicycle.  Public parking is available on the surroundings of the Palais. For further details and locations please visit https://www.geneve-parking.ch/fr/parkings/parkings/parkings-publics .  Public transport is strongly recommended. 

Delegates may drive to the Palais des Nations and park their vehicles in the parking lots in the compound, provided they have been delivered a parking sticker. Parking stickers are issued upon written request from the permanent missions. They can be collected from the Pregny Gate, 14 Avenue de la Paix.

Entry for visitors and conference participants

To the palais des nations:.

Conference participants

• Conference participants are to register on the Indico.UN platform prior to attending the respective meeting or conference.
• First time entry for conference participants is through Pregny Gate, Avenue de la Paix 14, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m on weekdays only upon which they will be issued with a digital conference badge. Thereafter, the digital conference badge permits access through the Pregny, Avenue de la Paix 14, and Peace Gate, Place des Nations, subject to security screening.
• Visitors coming for a guided tour: please follow the guidelines on the Visits Page .
• All other visitors are to be announced by their host in the  Visitor Announcement Page .
• Entry for visitors is possible at  Pregny Gate  and  Peace Gate  from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. upon which visitors will obtain a digital badge for the day after passing through security screening.

All visitors must carry a valid passport (UN Member or Observer State). A valid national ID card issued by a European Member State is also accepted.

To the buildings within the Palais des Nations:

Access to most doors at the Palais des Nations is secured by a centralized access security system and can only be opened by means of a magnetic United Nations grounds pass issued to authorized users. Only public doors will be accessible without a magnetic ground pass from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays to enable access to visitors and conference participants.

Public Doors:

Annexe Bocage (CLM): Open 8 a.m. - 7 p.m

Tempus (Conference Rooms Tempus 1-3): Open 8 a.m. - 7 p.m                    

E40 (Conference Rooms XVII – XXVII): Open 8 a.m. - 7 p.m                    

S1 (JMS, SAFI, UNDT): Open 8 a.m. - 6 p.m                     

E39: (Guided Tours Service): Open 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.

All other building doors are under Electronic Access Control and require a magnetic badge for access, including building H via door H60 (Plaza) and the tunnel (link E-H).

Exit of the building after 7 p.m. on weekdays: Door E40 has a release button that can be activated after 7 p.m.

Exit through the gates : Nations gate and Pregny gate have free flow pedestrian exit at the turnstiles, no electronic badge is required. Visitors will leave their magnetic day pass in the receptacle provided for this purpose during their last visit, to exit via the dedicated turnstile.

Exit with a bike : Visitors and conference participants cannot come into the Palais des Nations with a bicycle.

Entry for UN Geneva staff

Pedestrian access:.

• For permanent badge holders, pedestrian and bicycles, access at Pregny Gate is open between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. on working days. Nations Gate is open for exit only, until 7:30 p.m. Peace Gate is open for authorized pedestrians and cyclists from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Vehicle access:

Pregny Gate is open for vehicle access on working days, between 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Chemin de Fer Gate is also open for vehicle access on working days, but only until 2 p.m. It is thereafter completely closed for entry and exit.

• Offices and conference/meeting rooms are open between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. on working days.

Emergencies:

• Should you need to enter or exit the campus outside opening hours due to an emergency, please contact security immediately at [email protected] or +41 (0)22 917 2112. After contacting security, wait at the gate for an officer to assist you. Note that such instances should be rare, and we expect all staff and visitors to have exited the gates by 7.30 p.m.

Wheelchair accessible routes

Accessible Doors Open access 8:00 a.m. - 7:00p.m.: Doors A11 I E40 I H60

Accessible Toilets Door A11 | 3rd floor Door E40 | 1st, 3rd and 6th floors

Priority parking For persons with disabilities is available nearby the accessible doors.

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