Diving in Lake Geneva: sites, rules and clubs

The rules, Swiss side and French side

• Mark the dive. The boat or pontoon you dive from flies flag “A” of the International Code of Signals, visible from all sides (RNL, art. 44). On the French side, a diver surfacing outside the safety zone uses a brightly coloured surface marker buoy (RPP, art. 6.6).
• Boats keep clear: at least 50 m from a boat flying flag A under the Lake Geneva regulations (art. 78); 100 m in French waters (RPP, art. 4.2).
• Where it is prohibited: on the route of passenger vessels with right of way, in front of harbour entrances, near usual mooring places, in water-skiing areas and on protected archaeological sites (RNL, art. 78). On the French side, add public harbours and channels, the 50 m zone in front of emergent vegetation, the Coudrée Bay reed bed, the Tougues site, the Dranse estuary (except dives supervised by the site manager), the Meillerie, Dranse and Ripaille char spawning grounds from 15 November to 31 January, and during a storm warning (RPP, art. 3 and 6.6).
• Also on the French side: no solo recreational diving, wetsuit and hood below 18 °C, and no closer than 100 m to a professional fisher hauling nets or to a net marker (RPP, art. 6.6).

First of all: the app's “Restricted areas” map layer, and advice from a local club.

Geneva

• La Banane on the map — down to 40 m · CMAS ** / AOW
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site); position to be confirmed. Source: sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Le Paradis on the map
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site); position to be confirmed. Source: Association pour la sauvegarde du Léman (not a diving source).
• Le Creux-de-Genthod on the map — down to 40 m · CMAS ** / AOW
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point); position to be confirmed. Source: sitesdeplongee.ch.
• La Cochère on the map — down to 47 m · CMAS ** / AOW
  Map point: offshore, over the site. Source: sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Les Courbes (Anières) on the map — down to 6 m · pile-dwelling site (Bronze Age)
  Map point: offshore, over the site. Source: plongeplo.ch.
• Hermance on the map — down to 51 m · All levels · drop-off + wrecks
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: scaph.ch, club-subaquatique-evian.fr.

La Côte

• Nyon (Plage des Trois-Jetées) on the map — down to 30 m · N1 to N3
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point); position to be confirmed. Source: sitesdeplongee.ch, plongeplo.ch.
• Rolle (L'Île de La Harpe) on the map — down to 20 m · N1
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: club-subaquatique-evian.fr, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• St-Prex on the map — down to 31 m · AOWD (tricky navigation) · drop-off + small wreck
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: scaph.ch, club-subaquatique-evian.fr.
• Morges (Le Petit-Bois) on the map — down to 25 m · N1 / N2
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point). Source: sitesdeplongee.ch.

Lausanne and Lavaux

• Pully (Falaise de Glaise) on the map — down to 60 m · AOWD · cliff
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• La Paudèze on the map — down to 40 m · All levels (OWD minimum) · statues and clay cliff
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Lutry on the map — down to 40 m · All levels · plateau and sandy drop-off
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: scaph.ch.
• Lutry - La Crépine on the map — down to 48 m · AOWD · pipe and drop-off
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point). Source: plongee.ch, economie-region-lausanne.ch.
• Cully (Port / Bain des Dames) on the map — down to 25 m · N1 / N2
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point). Source: plongee.ch.
• Moratel on the map — down to 40 m · All levels (from OWD/P1) · drop-off, clay cliff
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: scaph.ch.
• Rivaz - Minoterie on the map — down to 80 m · AOWD · cliff and statue
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Rivaz - Gare on the map — down to 50 m · OWD · cliff with crystals
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Château de Glérolles / Gare St. Saphorin on the map — down to 40 m · All levels · cliff
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: sitesdeplongee.ch.

Riviera and Valais Chablais

• Crépine Pichette on the map — down to 40 m · All levels · pipes and drop-off
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: scaph.ch.
• La Pichette on the map — down to 40 m · All levels · cliff
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: scaph.ch.
• Fenalet on the map — down to 62 m · AOWD · slate cliff
  Map point: offshore, over the site; position to be confirmed. Source: plongee.ch, club-subaquatique-evian.fr.
• Les Gazoducs on the map — down to 40 m · OWD - D2 · slope
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: plongee.ch.
• Les quais Vevey on the map — down to 15 m · OWD · semi-underground
  Map point: close to shore (5 to 15 m deep). Source: plongee.ch.
• Le Bouveret / Les Missions on the map — down to 35 m · AOWD · cliff
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: susv.ch, plongee.ch.
• La Tour de Peilz on the map — down to 70 m · AOWD · cliff
  Map point: close to shore (5 to 15 m deep). Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Hirondelle on the map — down to 57 m · AOWD - Trimix · historic wreck
  Map point: offshore, over the site. Source: scaph.ch, plongee.ch.
• Villeneuve - Plage on the map — down to 47 m · Beginner to Advanced · slope with wrecks
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site); position to be confirmed. Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Chillon / Château on the map — down to 50 m · All levels · cliff and rocky drop-off
  Map point: offshore, over the site. Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.

French shore

• Tougues on the map — down to 31 m · AOWD · aircraft wreck
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point). Source: club-subaquatique-evian.fr, plongee.ch.
• St-Disdille on the map — down to 40 m · AOWD · wrecks, trees and fissure
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point). Source: club-subaquatique-evian.fr, plongee.ch.
• Parc du Miroir (Amphion-les-Bains) on the map
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point). Source: club-subaquatique-evian.fr.
• Meillerie on the map — down to 150 m · Level 2 minimum · rock scree and quarry
  Map point: access point (the water entry, not the site). Source: club-subaquatique-evian.fr, plongee.ch.
• Locum on the map — down to 80 m · AOWD / Trimix · small cliff
  Map point: close to shore (5 to 15 m deep). Source: plongee.ch, sitesdeplongee.ch.
• Saint-Gingolph (Frontière) on the map — down to 45 m · N2 / N3
  Map point: on land (car park or meeting point); position to be confirmed. Source: sitesdeplongee.ch.

Sites with no published position

These sites are confirmed by a diving source, but none publishes their position: they are not on the map yet. A local club will know where they are.

• La Charbonnière (Genthod) — down to 34 m
• Le Boesch (Anières) — down to 20 m

Clubs, centres and shops

13 diving and freediving clubs and 15 centres and shops (courses, try dives, air fills, gear), checked on their websites. A club rarely welcomes you unannounced: get in touch first.

Clubs

• Club Subaquatique de Nyon (CSN) on the map (Nyon) — csnyon.ch
• In the blue divers on the map (Nyon) — intheblue.ch
• Les Lémantines on the map — lemantines.ch
• Club de Sport Subaquatique de Lausanne (CSSL) on the map (Lausanne) — cssl.ch
• Centre de Sports Subaquatiques de Vevey (CSSV) on the map (Corseaux) — cssv.ch
• Club Subaquatique du Léman (CSL Thonon) on the map (Thonon-les-Bains) — cslthonon.fr
• Club Subaquatique d'Évian on the map (Évian-les-Bains) — evian-tourisme.com
• Apnea Club Nyon on the map — apneaclubnyon.ch
• Léman Immersion on the map — leman-immersion.ch
• Spandan Freediving on the map (Vevey) — spandan.ch
• Apnée Léman on the map (Évian-les-Bains) — apnee-leman.com
• France Apnée (No Limit Apnée SAS) on the map (Thonon-les-Bains) — france-apnee.com
• CPSS Club de plongée St-Sulpice on the map (St-Sulpice) — st-sulpice.ch

Centres and shops

• Diving Shop Immersion on the map (Confignon) — diving-immersion.ch
• Scuba-Dream on the map (Vésenaz) — scuba-dream.ch
• Aqua Diving (Scuba-Dream club school) on the map (Vésenaz) — scuba-dream.ch
• Fare Moana on the map (Thônex) — travel.padi.com
• Mora Mora on the map (Cologny) — plongee-geneve-plage.ch
• Tethys Scuba Club on the map (Cointrin) — tethys-scubaclub.ch
• Deep Turtle Sàrl on the map (Lonay) — deep-turtle.ch
• Scub H2o on the map (Morges) — divessi.com
• Plongée.ch on the map (Puidoux) — plongee.ch
• Scuba-Shop Villeneuve SA on the map (Villeneuve) — scubashop.ch
• Maeva Diving on the map (Corseaux) — maevadiving.ch
• Aquaventure (Centre de Plongée du Léman) on the map (Thonon-les-Bains) — disdille.com
• Emotions Plongée on the map (Publier) — leman-mountains-explore.com
• Seal Aqua Leisure Sàrl on the map (Mies) — seal-aqualeisure.com
• Esprit de la Plongée on the map (Morges) — espritdelaplongee.ch

With the Navleman map

Diving menu: the sites (with the water entry and the underwater route), the bottom slope, depth bands, restricted areas, and the water temperature profile offshore from your position (Eawag model).

Open the Lake Geneva map

See also

The Nature, fishing and diving guide, and: Reserves and natural habitats, Fishing.