History of navigation on Lake Geneva

Lake Geneva is not only a body of water of superlatives because of its size. No fewer than eight historic paddle steamers from the Belle Époque have survived on the largest lake on the edge of the Alps. Of these, five are still powered by steam engines to this day. In addition, there are numerous motor ships from several decades, with the newest ones just entering service. Each of these ships is given a biography in the new book on the “History of navigation on Lake Geneva,” illustrated with numerous, mostly never-before-published images. However, not only the vessels that have survived to this day are given their due, but also the biographies of historic ships that have already disappeared are included. The story begins with the steamer Guillaume Tell, which was put into service in 1823 as the first steamship in Switzerland.