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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Visitors Face Tough Going At Telecom Snarled Phones, Bed Shortage Leave Delegates In A Quandary

Associated Press

Need a room for the night? The tourist office is advising visitors to try a nice nuclear bomb shelter.

The city is bursting at the seams with the telecommunication industry’s quadrennial showcase, which has drawn an estimated 170,000 people, nearly doubling Geneva’s population.

Lack of accommodation isn’t the only headache at Telecom ‘95. Communications are touch and go, too.

“It’s the biggest thing we’ve ever seen,” said tourist office spokesman Marc Grangier.

Genevans are stoical about the snarled traffic, overflowing buses and other inconveniences from the invasion of cellular-phone toting visitors. Many residents, in fact, are making a healthy profit renting out their apartments for as much as $1,500 per day.

For those who find that price a little steep, there’s always the air-raid shelter, where a subterranean bunk-bed goes for $22. Switzerland probably boasts the world’s most elaborate system of such shelters, with room for all 7 million citizens in case of nuclear attack.

“They are clean and tidy and are fine for the budget traveler,” said Grangier, acknowledging little demand for the 125 available beds.

For visitors venturing to the Telecom exhibition itself, the advice is: Don’t try to phone home.

Exhibitors all carry cellular phones, and the network has been so overloaded that it’s difficult to get a line out. Pay phones for the less well-equipped visitor are practically impossible to find.