Extreme Christmas shopping: 7 luxurious shops in Carouge, Geneva

An original Superman cartoon? A hand-crafted dress? A Swiss clock with a 35,000 Swiss Francs price tag? Bespoke millinery? Pink pepper chocolates? How original will your gifts be this Christmas? And how deep are you pockets when it comes to stocking-fillers for your nearest and dearest?

Strike off mundane items on your Christmas shopping list in central Geneva’s exclusive designer stores but then take a yellow tram. Cross the River Arve to cultured Carouge’s discrete artisan quarter for those very special personal presents. This is where you’ll use a credit card to buy chocolates and a bank loan for a made-to-measure dress.

Carouge became Geneva’s escape-valve during straight-laced Calvinist times. A place where Genevans could let their hair down with wine, women and song. Today, after gentrification, Carouge has journeyed beyond hip. It is Geneva’s Greenwich Village, a bohemian quarter whose quirky creativity and hedonism should not…