We are heading back to Switzerland this fall and are trying to spend some time in places we didn't see on last year's trip. Last year we stayed in Samedan, Zermatt, Wengen, Luzern, and Geneva (to fly out the next day). We are certainly going back to Wengen for several nights to do some of the day trips we did not get to last year. But this time we are arriving by train from Paris to Luasanne. Since we prefer smaller towns, we are thinking of Montreux for a few nights to see the castle, the Lavaux Vineyards, and perhaps take a boat back to Luasanne to have lunch. 1) What are your thoughts on Montreau for 3 days? Is it a worthwhile stop before me move back to the Jungfrau? 2) Is there a good hotel on the lake that is an easy walk to the train station in Montreux? 3) It is unclear to me how to get to Lavaux Vineayards to walk around a bit and taste some wines from Montreau. Does the train go to a station at the vineyard? SBB is not showing me a means of getting to the vineyard that I can understand.
Thanks very much for any shared experience on these things in the Montreux area.
Posted by
Chicago
3330 posts
I’m a big fan of Montreux. I’ve been there twice in the last few years.
I believe my trip reports will answer all your questions:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/solo-in-switzerland-my-trip-report
Posted by
Nashville, TN
698 posts
Just so you have the correct expectation, Montreux does not have a small town feel. Lake Geneva in general is a very bustling area of Switzerland with lots of traffic, people, industry, etc so if you’re looking for quaint Switzerland, you’re not going to get it there. It is a lovely place, so it’s worthwhile, but I’d probably say 2 nights is enough before moving on. 1 day for walking the lake promenade to Chateau de Chillon and taking the boat back (you can continue on to Lausanne if you want an even more bustling city experience). Then 1 day for the vineyards. We enjoyed going up to Chexbres and then walking the vineyard terraces down to St.Saphorin. Alternatively, you could stay in a place like St-Prex on the lake, as that truly is a small quaint town with a beautiful historic village, boat stop and train service. There are no hotels, but there are some nice airbnbs on the waterfront promenade there. You could still visit Chateau de Chillon, do the boat and the vineyards from there.
Posted by
274 posts
We just spent five nights in Montreux back in October and loved every second. We came straight from a week in Wengen, so it was very different but still great.
The views of the mountains on the other side of the lake were far better than I expected, and the sunsets were simply perfect.
We stayed at the Grand Suisse Majestic, which is literally across the road from the station. If you book a lake view room with a balcony, such as the Junior Suite that we had, you will never hear a train, but have all the convenience of the station being close. We were very happy with the hotel and it's restaurant for breakfast and one evening meal.
We did a day trip to Vevey and caught the steamer boat from there to Chillon Castle one day, then caught the bus back. Another day we spent in Gruyeres, another going to Nyon and then boat to Yvoire in France and the final one in the Lavaux region and doing some tasting at the Lavaux Vinorama.
All the transport was simple, using the SBB app. From memory it was just a very short train journey to Saint Saphorin and then we just walked around.
Here is a link to by very long TR if you are interested. Scroll down to Friday 11th October, which is the day we caught the Golden Pass Express to Montreux from Wengen. There is far more detail there.
Posted by
5333 posts
There are some tours/tastings you can do at Vevey (I just searched online to find them). I ended up not being able to do this, but it seemed like a great way to spend an afternoon!