CERN and Mont Blanc: Dark and Frozen Matter: Switzerland and France

8 October 2024 - Sold out

Register for 2025 now at tours@newscientist.com and we will contact you later this year with confirmed tour details.

Prepare to have your mind blown by CERN, Europe's particle physics centre, where researchers operate the famous Large Hadron Collider, nestled near the charming Swiss lakeside city of Geneva.

This tour focuses on CERN and Geneva's fascinating history before heading to Chamonix in France to explore Mont Blanc and a nearby glacier. During the tour, you will enjoy a private lecture from particle physicist Darren Price, who will also give you a personal guided tour of CERN.

In Geneva, you will also explore the old town, cruise the lake, visit the Museum of the History of Science and learn about horology at the Patek Philippe Museum.

In partnership with Kirker Holidays.

 DAY 1: ARRIVE INTO GENEVA

On arrival, check into the 4-star Hotel Royal, located in the centre of Geneva. The remainder of the afternoon will be free for you to explore this beautiful city.

In the evening, meet with your tour leader and the group for a welcome session followed by dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 2: OLD TOWN AND AN INTRODUCTION TO CERN

This morning, you will start with a walking tour of the old town centre of Geneva, including the cathedral where John Calvin preached in the 16th century and a visit to the Patek Philippe Museum, where you will discover over 2500 watches, automata and precious objects representing five centuries of Genevan and Swiss horological innovation.

This evening particle physicist Darren Price will join you to give a talk on particle physics and his work at CERN, followed by dinner together.

DAY 3: CERN AND THE LARGE HADRON COLLIDER

Today is devoted to the CERN complex, where the European Organization for Nuclear Research operates the world’s largest particle physics laboratory, including the famous Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The largest machine ever constructed, with a circumference of 17 miles, the LHC is one of the most important research establishments in the world, and several areas are open to visitors. Darren will accompany the visit to the lab itself and you will see the Universe of Particles exhibition inside the Globe of Science and Innovation, a 27-metre-high wooden dome. CERN also has a new flagship building for science education, an innovative tubular structure called the CERN Science Gateway, with immersive exhibitions and hands-on activities.

DAY 4: CHAMONIX AND MONT BLANC

Heading out of Geneva for the day, you will travel into the majestic Alps, which provide the city’s striking backdrop. You will visit the charming small town of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc and take the mountain railway to the Mer de Glace, where you will visit an ice cave carved into the glacier. You will enjoy a traditional fondue lunch and there will be an option to take Europe's highest cable car up to the summit of the Aiguille du Midi. The views over the Alps from this 3800-metre-high peak are simply stunning. 

DAY 5: SCIENCE, DIPLOMACY, BOTANY AND LAKE GENEVA

Today, you will start at the Museum of the History of Science, which opened in the 1960s inside the neo-classical Villa Bartholoni. The museum, located by Lake Geneva, houses exhibits relating to astronomy, microscopy, meteorology and electricity, including a collection of scientific instruments from the 17th to 19th centuries, such as microscopes, telescopes, thermometers and astrolabes.

You will continue to the Palais des Nations, built for the League of Nations and still an important UN centre, before reaching the Botanical Gardens and Conservatory, where you can wander in 69 calming acres of grounds, which are home to more than 14,000 species, including rare medicinal plants plus a herbarium with nearly 6 million specimens.

In the evening, you will take a dinner cruise on Lake Geneva, on board a Belle Epoque paddle steamer.

DAY 6: MORNING AT LEISURE BEFORE DEPARTING GENEVA

This morning will be free for independent sightseeing. In the afternoon, there will be a group transfer to Geneva airport for the flight home.