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The Geneva visit season in 2026
Open days are the single most useful step in choosing a Geneva school, and the city's international schools run them on their own schedules rather than to a shared calendar. In practice the visit season clusters in the autumn term, as families begin planning the next August intake, and again across the winter and spring as decisions firm up. Exact 2026 dates are set and published by each school on its admissions pages, and most schools also offer individual tours on request year-round, so you are rarely limited to a single group event. For the full list of schools to consider visiting, start with our international schools in Geneva directory, and read this alongside our Geneva admissions deadlines 2026 page so the visit and the application line up.
How open days and tours work
There are two routes into a Geneva school: a scheduled open day, which is a group event with presentations and a guided walk, and a private tour or admissions meeting arranged on request. Most of the established schools, including the International School of Geneva, College du Leman, Institut Florimont and Institut International de Lancy, offer both. Open days are booked through each school's admissions team, usually via a form on the website, and because Geneva is a high-demand market the group events can fill, so register early. A private visit often gives a fuller sense of fit than a busy open day, and it is the better option if the published dates do not suit you or if you are coordinating from abroad, in which case many schools can arrange a virtual tour or meeting instead. Treat the exact dates as something to confirm with each school rather than fixed here.
What to ask on the visit
A school visit is most valuable when you use it to learn the things a website will not tell you. Ask whether your child's exact year group has space for the intended start or sits on a waiting list, because in Geneva capacity is the real constraint. Ask about genuine class sizes rather than averages, the language-support provision for children still learning French or English, and, for older children, the senior-year qualifications on offer, whether that is the IB Diploma, the American Diploma with Advanced Placement, the French Baccalaureate or the Swiss Maturite. Ask for the all-in annual cost, including registration, enrolment and meals, which you can sense-check against our guide to international school fees in Geneva. Use the visit to test fit and timing, and follow up in writing on anything that will shape your decision.
Build your Geneva visit shortlist
The school finder shortlists Geneva schools by curriculum, district and stage so your open-day visits are well chosen.
Use the school finderFitting visits into your 2026 plan
Sequence the visits to support a strong application rather than as an afterthought. Because Geneva schools admit on a rolling basis and the cantonal year starts on Monday 17 August 2026, the productive pattern is to visit in the autumn and winter before that start, shortlist quickly, and apply early to the schools that fit while year groups are still open. If you are relocating, line up several visits in a single trip and ask each admissions team in advance to confirm year-group availability, so the journey is not wasted. Plan around the Geneva school holidays 2026 calendar, since schools do not run open days during the breaks, and use our Geneva primary schools guide if you are visiting for the early years. The families who get the school they want are almost always the ones who visited and applied early.
Geneva school open days 2026: FAQ
Most Geneva international schools hold open days and individual campus visits during the school year, with clusters in the autumn term and again in the winter and spring as families plan the next August intake. Exact 2026 dates are set and published by each school on its own admissions pages, and many also offer private tours on request year-round. Check the school's website and book ahead, as places at group events fill.
Yes. Alongside scheduled open days, most Geneva international schools, including the International School of Geneva, College du Leman, Institut Florimont and Institut International de Lancy, offer individual visits and admissions meetings on request throughout the year. A private tour often gives a fuller sense of fit than a busy group event, so ask the admissions team directly if the published open-day dates do not suit you.
Open days and tours are booked through each school's admissions team, usually via a form on the school website. Because Geneva is a high-demand market, group events can fill, so register early and have a few questions ready about curriculum, the year group's availability and fees. If you are visiting from abroad, ask whether the school can arrange a virtual tour or meeting as well.
Focus on the things a website cannot tell you: whether your child's exact year group has space for the intended start, the real class sizes, the language-support provision, the senior-year qualifications offered, and the all-in annual cost including registration and meals. Use the visit to test fit and timing, not just to see the facilities, and follow up in writing on anything that matters for your decision.
They are not always compulsory, but most Geneva schools strongly encourage a visit before applying, and some make a tour or meeting part of the admissions process. A visit helps both sides judge fit and is the natural moment to confirm year-group availability and timing. If you cannot attend in person, ask the school about a virtual alternative so a missed open day does not delay your application.