Gallia, Paddle steamer on Lake Lucerne, Switzerland

The Gallia is a salon paddle steamer built by Escher-Wyss in Zurich, launched on 2 June 1913 and put into scheduled service on 10 July 1913. Its salon is furnished in Neu-Empire style with the original furniture, and its large windows were a novelty among Lake Lucerne steamers. A Gallic rooster decorates the bow, and the French flag flies from the bow mast.

The Dampfschiffgesellschaft des Vierwaldstättersees ordered the Gallia from Escher-Wyss in Zurich in 1912. It was launched on 2 June 1913, and scheduled service began on 10 July 1913. It was the last, largest and fastest steamship Escher-Wyss built for Lake Lucerne. Converted from coal to heavy oil in 1952/53, it received a new boiler during a full renovation from 2001 to 2004.

The name continues a series of Lake Lucerne steamers named after countries: Helvetia, Germania and Italia. The Gallia is now the only one of these left, apart from the motor vessel Europa, named in reference to that tradition. Its bow carries a Gallic rooster figurehead and the French flag flies from the bow mast.

The Gallia is used on courses with tight timetables, thanks to its top speed of 31.5 km/h. Since May 2025 it has run with a share of solar fuel blended in, a first for a scheduled ship worldwide; full conversion is planned by 2027. The open salon keeps its original Neu-Empire furniture, so the large windows are the best place to watch the paddle wheels.

The Gallia's figurehead is a Gallic rooster, and it flies the French flag from its bow mast, a nod to the country-name series Helvetia, Germania and Italia. Since May 2025 it has run with a share of solar fuel blended in, the first scheduled vessel worldwide to do so, with full conversion planned by 2027.