Annecy Scavenger Hunt and Self-Guided Tour

Rated 4.44 out of 5 based on 62 customer ratings
(62 customer reviews)

Explore the city at your own pace with a self-guided experience.
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Make a day of itInteractive guides by World City Trail, delivered with your tickets.

What is a city guide?

Your own guide to Annecy on your phone: hand-picked places, each with why to go, what to order and a practical tip.

  • Tick places off
  • Your own notes
  • One tap to Maps
  • Open now, near me
  • Works offline
  • Print it or save as PDF
See the guides, a short video and all the details →
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Loved by thousands of travelers and locals

  • No time limit – use your ticket whenever you want
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Included: your personal Trail Map with every city you finish, the kilometres you walk and your flag collection. See an example →

Everything you need for a flexible self-guided city experience

Explore the city at your own pace

✔ Discover hidden gems & highlights
✔ Enjoy a flexible self-guided experience
✔ Explore freely with no schedule
✔ Perfect for couples, students, companies, friends & families

How your city experience works

✔ Instant ticket purchase
✔ Easy access via the World City Trail app
✔ Quick setup with your booking details
✔ Start anytime and explore freely
✔ Pause and resume anytime

Why travelers choose this tour

✔ Instant access after purchase
✔ Optional AI voice narration — listen instead of read
✔ Discover top attractions & food spots
✔ Customize your route anytime

Canals, a stone prison and a bridge for lovers: Annecy as a game

The Annecy scavenger hunt is a self-guided city game you play on your phone: you walk from the lakeshore into the old town, solve a riddle at each landmark by looking closely at what is in front of you, and unlock the stories and legends behind it. Lakeshore and old town sit so close together that the 10 stops and 2 km need barely 18 minutes of walking, which leaves almost all of the roughly 2 hours for riddles, legends and looking at the water, and the game begins at whatever moment you choose to open it.

Highlights include the Pont des Amours, the statue of the chemist Claude Louis Berthollet, the view over Lake Annecy, the Palais de l'Île on its island in the Thiou, Notre-Dame-de-Liesse and Saint-Pierre Cathedral. Annecy is small and flat, and its canals, bridges and arcaded streets make it a town you can see entirely on foot.

  • Durationabout 2 hours
  • Walkingabout 18 min · 2 km
  • Stops10
  • LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch

Riddles between Lake Annecy and the Thiou, from the Pont des Amours to the Pont Morens

Clues on bridges and church fronts

In Annecy the puzzles are set into what you pass: the railings of the Pont des Amours, the statue of a chemist by the lake, the pointed island walls of the Palais de l'Île. A careful look and a bit of logic do the job, and no reading up beforehand is required.

A kiss, a bleach and a bishop in exile

Solved riddles unlock Annecy's tales: the custom that couples who kiss on the Pont des Amours stay together, how Berthollet's work with chlorine gave France its eau de Javel, and why the bishops of Geneva moved to Annecy during the Reformation. Prefer listening? Rather watch the swans on the canals than read? The audio narration will tell you the tales of the old town instead.

2 km, mostly along water

Barely 18 minutes of walking take you from the lakeside gardens past the town hall and into the old town, where the route follows the Thiou from bridge to bridge. The streets are short and level, and Google Maps keeps you on track between stops.

Fondue in the arcades, a rest on the Pâquier

Since nothing is timed, you can break for a Savoyard lunch under the arcades or stretch out on the lakeside lawns of the Pâquier, then pick up the riddles later that day or the next. Along the way the app also tips a few local spots for food and shopping.

See the route and attractions →

How it works

  1. Book online Choose the number of players. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
  2. Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
  3. Play when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.

Day trippers from Geneva, lake holidaymakers, families and groups

A half day from Geneva or the Alps

Annecy lies about 35 km from Geneva, and in around 2 hours the game covers the lake, the island palace, the churches and the canals that earned it the name Venice of the Alps. That leaves the rest of the day for a boat on the lake or the drive back to the mountains.

Kids who like castles in rivers

Children are usually taken with the Palais de l'Île, a stone fortress shaped like a ship that once held prisoners, with the lovers' bridge and with the view of the mountains across the lake. An adult joins every team, and with just 18 minutes on foot nobody runs out of steam.

Teams on an Alpine offsite

Teams of up to 5 compete side by side, every player following on their own phone, and groups can be sent off from the Pont des Amours at short intervals. The Pont Morens in the old town makes a compact finish line for comparing results, and the tickets are the only thing you book.

Good to know

  • Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
  • No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
  • Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
  • Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
  • Teams of up to 5 work best; bigger groups split into several teams, one ticket per player.
  • Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.

The route: from the Pont des Amours on the lake through the old town to the Pont Morens

10 stops · about 18 min walking · start: Pont des Amours · finish: Pont Morens

The hunt starts at the Pont des Amours by the lake and leads past the statue of Claude Louis Berthollet to the lake viewpoint and the Hôtel de Ville. From there you cross into the old town to the church of Saint-François-de-Sales and the Palais de l'Île, continue to Notre-Dame-de-Liesse and Place Notre-Dame, and pass Saint-Pierre Cathedral before you finish at the Pont Morens over the Thiou. Bridges, façades and the island prison give up their answers from the quayside, so the Thiou never sends you to a ticket desk, and if you reach Annecy from the station side rather than the lake, the app can open the game in the old town and reshuffle the remaining stops around that.

Open the route map ↗

  1. Pont des Amours

    1Pont des AmoursStart

    The Lovers' Bridge is a slender footbridge over the Vassé canal, linking the Jardins de l'Europe with the lakeside lawns of the Pâquier. From the middle you look straight out onto Lake Annecy and the mountains. Local tradition says that couples who kiss on the bridge will stay together forever.

    Read the full story →

  2. Claude Louis Berthollet

    2Claude Louis Berthollet

    This statue honours the chemist Claude Louis Berthollet, who was born in 1748 in Talloires on the shore of Lake Annecy and died in 1822. He discovered that chlorine could bleach fabrics, which led to the bleach still called eau de Javel in French, and he accompanied Napoleon's expedition to Egypt in 1798.

  3. Panorama du lac

    3Panorama du lac

    From this viewpoint you look along Lake Annecy towards the mountains that frame it, among them Mont Veyrier, the Semnoz and La Tournette. Annecy lies at the northern tip of the lake, about 35 kilometres south of Geneva.

  4. Hôtel de Ville d'Annecy

    4Hôtel de Ville d'Annecy

    Annecy's town hall stands on the lakeshore beside the Jardins de l'Europe. It was completed in 1851, when Annecy still belonged to the Kingdom of Sardinia, before Savoy became part of France in 1860.

  5. Église Saint-François-de-Sales

    5Église Saint-François-de-Sales

    This church on the bank of the Thiou, facing the Palais de l'Île, is dedicated to Francis de Sales. Born in 1567, he led the diocese of Geneva from Annecy as bishop from 1602 to 1622, after the bishops had left Calvinist Geneva, and was later made a saint.

  6. Palais de l'Île

    6Palais de l'Île

    This 12th-century stronghold stands on an island in the Thiou river in the old town. Until the French Revolution it served mainly as a prison and courthouse, it was a prison again during the Second World War, and today it houses a museum of local history.

  7. Église Notre-Dame-de-Liesse

    7Église Notre-Dame-de-Liesse

    This church stands on Place Notre-Dame in the old town and has drawn pilgrims for centuries. Its name comes from liesse, an old French word for joy.

  8. Place Notre-Dame

    8Place Notre-Dame

    This square in the old town opens in front of the church of Notre-Dame-de-Liesse, which gives it its name. Surrounded by old houses, it lies a short walk from the arcaded streets and the canals of the Thiou that shape the old town.

  9. Saint-Pierre Cathedral

    9Saint-Pierre Cathedral

    Annecy's cathedral is dedicated to Saint Peter and stands in the old town. Annecy became a Catholic stronghold after the bishop of Geneva took refuge here during the Calvinist Reformation of the 1530s, and the town is still the seat of a bishop.

  10. Pont Morens

    10Pont MorensFinish

    This small bridge crosses the Thiou in the middle of the old town. From it you see old houses rising straight from the water, flower boxes and the reflections of the facades in the canal.

62 reviews for Annecy Scavenger Hunt and Self-Guided Tour

  1. Rated 5 out of 5

    Chuey– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    C’?tait tr?s int?ressant et amusant

  2. Rated 4 out of 5

    Jeffrey– United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Took me around Annecy quite nicely, although the puzzle aspect was not always helpful. It’s possible to ignore that though if you want. The write ups were over-long

  3. Rated 4 out of 5

    Mariona– Spain –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    La idea me pareci? genial,poder descubrir ANNECY siguiendo las pistas. Pero,a m? parecer,la informaci? era demasiado densa,seguramente por como estaba expuesta,se hac?a pesada la lectura

  4. Rated 4 out of 5

    Emma– Switzerland –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Tr?s sympa pour motiver les enfants ? visiter la ville.

  5. Rated 4 out of 5

    Austria –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Die App ist leider mehrmals abgest?rzt (World City Trail). Die Route der Sehensw?rdigkeiten war allerdings sehr gut gegliedert. 10€ waren allerdings ein wenig zu viel, habe mir mehr von der Schnitzeljagd erwartet. W?re auch toll gewesen wenn man eine “H?rfunktion” f?r den Text gehabt h?tte, sodass man nicht st?ndig lesen muss (vor allem bei sehr sonnigen Wetter gestaltet es sich schwer alles am Bildschirm zu erkennen + Abwechselung).

  6. Rated 4 out of 5

    United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    It was sent the easiest app to navigate but had a couple of hours fun around Annecy

  7. Rated 5 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Une belle d?couverte et ludique de la ville d’Annecy

  8. Rated 5 out of 5

    United States –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Great guide that was delivered through the app. Nice to have a walking tour and information on all of the different places.

  9. Rated 5 out of 5

    Germany –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Kurze spannende Infos, gut l?sbare R?tsel

  10. Rated 5 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Mani?re ludique de d?couvrir la ville et son histoire ! Je recommande

  11. Rated 4 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Tr?s bien. Assez ludique. Mais il n’y a aucun audio. Dommage.

  12. Rated 5 out of 5

    Italy –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    ? stato divertente andare alla scoperta dei luoghi di Annecy e risolvere i quiz. I miei figli (8 e 11 anni) non sempre avevano voglia di leggere tutte le parti informative ma ho potuto recuperare dopo, a conclusione del gioco

  13. Rated 5 out of 5

    Stephanie– United States –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    We had fun doing the scavenger hunt and walking around the beautiful city. It’s nice that you go at your own pace.

  14. Rated 4 out of 5

    Ilenia– Germany –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Abbiamo trovato questa applicazione divertente, ci ha permesso di girare per 1.5h il centro. Una proposta diversa dal solito. Mi sarebbe piaciuto ascoltare le informazioni anzich? leggerle per poter guardare intorno senza stare troppo al telefono. Tuttavia non so se dipenda dal fatto che io abbia cercato male oppure se non esiste proprio l’opzione. Ci? nonostante, voto positivamente la caccia al tesoro.

  15. Rated 5 out of 5

    Neshiel– United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    It was fun and a great way to explore the city. ??

  16. Rated 4 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Principe du jeu sympathique mais sans plus. Rapport qualit? prix en dessous de nos attentes (10€). Nous avons fait 8 questions sur 10 et avons abandonn? vers la fin par manque d’int?r?t

  17. Rated 4 out of 5

    Sandra– Switzerland –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Fa?on sympa de d?couvrir les points principaux de la ville. Les distances entre les diff?rents points sont courtes. ?nigmes vari?es.

  18. Rated 5 out of 5

    Floriane– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Activit? g?niale je recommande ? 100%. Il y a des ?nigmes assez simples et quelques unes compliqu?es c’est parfait pour le c?t? stimulant. Il y a aussi un c?t? histoire qui est le bienvenu dans ce type d’activit?.

  19. Rated 5 out of 5

    Martijn– Netherlands –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Heel leuk om op deze manier de oude stad van Annecy te bekijken. Je kijkt toch anders naar gebouwen en andere objecten

  20. Rated 5 out of 5

    Carol– United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    10/10

  21. Rated 5 out of 5

    Melina– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Top

  22. Rated 4 out of 5

    Melanie– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Le jeu est plut?t pas mal, mais on se concentre que sur une petite partie de Annecy. De plus, certaines ?nigmes n’?taient pas possibles car les b?timents ?taient en travaux. Mais le gros point noir est les explications. Ce n’est pas clair comment utiliser le jeu, ce qu’il faut t?l?charger, etc. De plus, le service client met du temps ? r?pondre.

  23. Rated 4 out of 5

    United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    This is a really great idea as I wanted to engage the kids (10&12) while we went sightseeing. The first clue was fun and I was looking forward to the rest of it. However, my biggest issue was that you had to do the clues in strict order and that didn’t suit my plans for the day. It is fine to have a firm itinerary for those who want it, but I just wanted to go to a few main sights and have something for the kids to do at that point. This wasn’t possible sadly so for me it didn’t work, but I’d imagine good for those looking to immerse themselves in it. Also if you put one person in the basket, it automatically calculates a minimum of two so actually cost nearer £11 which wasn’t clear before purchasing.

  24. Rated 5 out of 5

    Maye– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    trop court

  25. Rated 3 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Sympa mais sans plus ! Je m’attendais ? d?couvrir un peu plus de lieux « cach?s » des touristes, des jolis points de vue ou autre… Mais le fait de devoir r?soudre des ?nigmes ?tait plut?t sympa ! L’id?e de base est bonne mais peut-?tre ? am?liorer…

  26. Rated 4 out of 5

    Kevin– Switzerland –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Top activit? ? faire entre amis , en couple, en famille. A faire en cas de beau temps. Application facile ? utiliser je recommande

  27. Rated 4 out of 5

    Argentina –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Ha sido una muy buena opci?n para conocer el centro hist?rico de Annecy. Lamentablemente no pudimos seguir muy bien las instrucciones del juego, de todas maneras apreciamos la conectividad, la gu?a a trav?s del mapa para movernos un punto a otro.

  28. Rated 5 out of 5

    Nathalie– Switzerland –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Vraiment tr?s sympa ? faire et assez tranquille . Merci

  29. Rated 5 out of 5

    V?ro– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    C’est tr?s sympa, ?a change de d?couvrir une ville comme cela. Par contre ce n’est qu’une toute petite partie du vieux Annecy qui est concern?, un tour plus important serait sympa aussi !

  30. Rated 5 out of 5

    Romane– France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    On a vien visit? la ville et les enigmes sont sympa

  31. Rated 4 out of 5

    United States –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    My 9 year old son and I were traveling through Annecy and booked this self guided tour with fun facts/ puzzles as a way to get to know the city that also kept him engaged. Pros: you can use it on multiple days to finish the entire game. Cons: it may be hard to finish the game within a few hours as we were trying to do. Also we could have got by with just one persons worth of the activity as we were solving it together, instead of purchasing two individual’s worth of it. Otherwise it was informative of the local history abc landmarks. Hope this is helpful. Have a great time!!

  32. Rated 4 out of 5

    Switzerland –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Visiter autrement. Pas mal du tout

  33. Rated 5 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Parfait avec des enfants de 12 ans. Les ?nigmes peuvent ?tre r?solues assez facilement ce qui permet s’ils ne se lassent pas

  34. Rated 5 out of 5

    Belgium –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Heel leuk

  35. Rated 4 out of 5

    R?union –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Bonne exp?rience de visite – jeux

  36. Rated 4 out of 5

    Netherlands –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Fun activity to get to know Annecy. Would recommend if you want to combine history with a bit of competition. We did it in about 1,5 hours, without taking a break. Not sure if this would be an activity to keep you occupied for a whole morning/afternoon.

  37. Rated 5 out of 5

    Netherlands –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    World City Trail helped us explore the city of Annecy in around 1,5 hours, with a dog, without needing to go in any shops or attractions. The app gives you information about the places your visiting, as well as some small puzzles that you get to solve.

  38. Rated 4 out of 5

    Netherlands –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Leuke speurtocht en mooie plekjes van de stad gezien. Even een moeilijke start, de taal was frans i.p.v. Nederlands, maar dat was snel opgelost toen we via whapsapp contact hadden gezocht. Ook leuk om met kinderen te doen!

  39. Rated 4 out of 5

    United States –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    It was a fun way to acquaint oneself with Annecy, but had I to do it over again, I would have spent the money for an in person guide.

  40. Rated 4 out of 5

    Norway –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Had a good time visiting Annecy using the game. Great that there was information provided to help understand which I found interesting. It is a different way of visiting the city

  41. Rated 4 out of 5

    Switzerland –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Tour molto bello

  42. Rated 4 out of 5

    Indonesia –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Interesting nonetheless

  43. Rated 5 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Un jeu de piste tr?s ludique et original, accessible m?me en ?quipe de 2 et facile d’utilisation avec son portable. On a ador?. Et bien s?r on recommande.

  44. Rated 4 out of 5

    United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Just completed the Annecy Highlights Self-Guided Scavenger Hunt & Walking Tour booked through GetYouGuide App. Great way to tour the centre of the town, exploring some of the monuments. Loved the facts given in-between puzzles. The app wasn’t working to start with and kept freezing but it was sorted out very quick! Would recomend!

  45. Rated 5 out of 5

    Greece –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    I would do the same tour again! Highly enjoyed it…

  46. Rated 5 out of 5

    Greece –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Explore places in an all new way!!! This App is easy to use.

  47. Rated 5 out of 5

    South Africa –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Fun family activity that was enjoyed by all!

  48. Rated 4 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Bonne id?e mais on reste sur sa faim. Des anecdotes insolites concernant les ?tapes du parcours auraient donn? plus de fun ? l’activit?. Le parcours est aussi trop court et ne permet pas de d?couvrir d’autres lieux majeurs de la ville. Dommage que le ch?teau et la vieille ville n’aient pas eu plus de place dans le jeu.

  49. Rated 4 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Bonne d?couverte de la ville en s’amusant ? r?soudre des ?nigmes. Petit b?mol devant l’h?tel de ville qui ?tait en travaux et donc nous n’avons pu r?soudre l’?nigme de la fa?ade !

  50. Rated 5 out of 5

    jordan –

    Beautiful activity

Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.

Frequently asked questions

Is 2 hours enough for the Annecy hunt?

Yes, about 2 hours covers the whole game, and walking takes up just some 18 minutes of it, over 2 km and 10 stops from the lake to the old town canals. That leaves plenty of time for the riddles, the stories and a pause by the water whenever you feel like one.

Which bridge does the Annecy game start from, and which one ends it?

Fittingly for a town of canals, both ends are bridges: you begin at the Pont des Amours between the Jardins de l'Europe and the Pâquier, and finish at the Pont Morens over the Thiou in the old town. If you arrive from the station side, the app can make an old town stop your first one instead.

Is there a set departure time or a guide waiting at the lake?

Nobody is waiting by the lake, and no departure time is fixed. Book online, one ticket per player, enter the booking reference from your email in the World City Trail app, and start on the day and at the hour that suit you, perhaps early before the lakeside fills up. Each team member follows the riddles on their own phone.

Do we need to pay to enter the Palais de l'Île or the churches?

Not for the game, as every riddle is answered from the street, the quays or the bridges. The local history museum inside the Palais de l'Île is a separate paid visit, and a boat trip on the lake would also be extra, if you want to add either.

Will a prison on an island and a lovers' bridge hold children's interest?

Generally very well when an adult plays in each team: the ship-shaped Palais de l'Île with its prison past, the kissing legend of the Pont des Amours and the chemist whose discovery ended up in every French cleaning cupboard keep them curious. The route is not suitable for wheelchairs, and the narrow old town lanes get crowded for pushchairs on busy days.

Can we follow the riddles along the Thiou in German, Italian or Dutch?

All three are on offer, together with English, French and Spanish, so the Annecy route exists in six languages. The language is chosen per player in the World City Trail app before the riddle at the Pont des Amours, so a group with mixed preferences can still follow one route.

Does the Annecy hunt work for a company or club outing?

Very well, and the short distances keep the teams close. Buy a ticket for each person, divide everyone into teams of up to five, start them from the Pont des Amours a few minutes apart and gather again at the Pont Morens. The lakeside and the old town are public space, so no hall needs booking.

What should we pack for two hours between the lake and the canals?

A charged smartphone with mobile data per team and, if possible, a power bank. Comfortable shoes are enough for 2 km on level ground, while sunscreen and water help in summer, when the lakeshore can be bright and warm.

Start on the Pont des Amours

For Annecy every player needs a ticket bought online beforehand, and World City Trail emails you the booking reference. On the day, walk down to the lake, step onto the Pont des Amours and open the first riddle with the mountains in view.

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